Medicare Supplement (Medigap) Plans
Learn about Medigap plans and how to select the right Medicare Supplement plan for you
What Is Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap)?
Medicare Parts A and B, or Original Medicare, cover about 80 percent of the healthcare costs that seniors face. However, the 20 percent not covered by Medicare Parts A and B can represent a significant amount. To help mitigate costs and offer Medicare beneficiaries peace of mind, Medicare Supplement Insurance, or Medigap, helps fill the "gaps" that Original Medicare doesn’t cover.
Unlike Medicare Advantage plans, which replace your Medicare benefits with private coverage, Medicare Supplemental plans allow you to continue receiving federal health care benefits while handling some of the costs left behind by Parts A and B. These plans typically help with costs associated with deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance.
Additionally, because plan benefits are standardized and structured the same from company to company, Medigap beneficiaries can see any doctor in the Medicare network, even doctors in other states.
Types of Medicare Supplement Plans
There are ten different kinds of Medicare Supplement plans available in most states, each with an assigned letter from A to N (plans E, H, I, and J are no longer sold and Plans F and C are only available to those who were eligible for Medicare prior to Jan. 1, 2020).
Two-thirds of Medicare enrollees who purchase a Medigap plan select Plan F. Medicare Supplement Plan F includes all Parts A and B deductibles, along with coinsurance and copayment of Part A hospice care and Part B outpatient services.
Plan F also includes Part A coinsurance and hospital costs for an additional 365 days after your initial Medicare benefits have been used. As such, Plan F can help save thousands of dollars following an extensive hospital stay. High Deductible Plan F offers a low monthly premium in exchange for a high deductible, but is available only to enrollees eligible for Medicare before 2020.
Because of that enrollment cut-off, Medigap Plan G is a popular substitute, but you may want to review each of your options.
Comparing Plan F vs. Plan G
Two of the most popular Medicare Supplement (or Medigap) plans are Plan G and Plan F. They both provide broad coverage, but they are not identical.
Medicare Supplement Plan Descriptions
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Some Medicare Supplement plans may include additional benefits and are much more comprehensive. The Medigap plan comparison chart provides a convenient, compact way to compare plans to find the best option.
Note: In Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, Medigap policies are standardized differently.
Medicare Supplement plan options and comparison chart
There are 10 standard Medicare Supplemental Insurance plan types available in most states, each with an assigned letter from A to N (plans E, H, I, and J are no longer sold and Plans F and C are only available to those who were eligible for Medicare prior to Jan. 1, 2020). While these letters sound similar to Medicare Parts A and B, they are completely separate plans.
Medicare Supplement Plan comparison chart and additional benefits
Some Medicare Supplement plans may include additional benefits and are much more comprehensive. The Medigap plan comparison chart provides a convenient, compact way to compare plans in order to find the best option.
Note: In Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, Medigap policies are standardized differently.
2026 Standardized Medicare Supplement Plan Comparison Chart
The chart shows the benefits included in each of the standard Medicare supplement plans. Some plans may not be available. Only applicants first eligible for Medicare before 2020 may purchase Plans C, F, and high deductible F. (✓= 100% of benefit is paid)
| BENEFITS | PLANS AVAILABLE TO ALL APPLICANTS | MEDICARE FIRST ELIGIBLE BEFORE 2020 ONLY |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | B | D | G1 | K | L | M | N | C | F1 | |
| Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital coverage (up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Medicare Part B coinsurance or Copayment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 50% | 75% | ✓ | ✓3 | ✓ | ✓ |
| Blood (first 3 pints) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 50% | 75% | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 50% | 75% | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Skilled nursing facility coinsurance | ✓ | ✓ | 50% | 75% | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Medicare Part A deductible | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 50% | 75% | 50% | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Medicare Part B deductible | ✓ | ✓ | ||||||||
| Medicare Part B excess charges | ✓ | ✓ | ||||||||
| Foreign travel emergency (up to plan limits) | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | ||||
| Out-of-pocket limit in 20262 | $8,0002 | $4,0002 | ||||||||
1 Plans F and G also have a high deductible option which require first paying a plan deductible of $2,950 before the plan begins to pay. Once the plan deductible is met, the plan pays 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year. High deductible plan G does not cover the Medicare Part B deductible. However, high deductible plans F and G count your payment of the Medicare Part B deductible toward meeting the plan deductible.
2 Plans K and L pay 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year once you meet the out-of-pocket yearly limit.
3 Plan N pays 100% of the Part B coinsurance, except for a co-payment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to a $50 co-payment for emergency room visits that do not result in an inpatient admission.
Comparing Medicare Medigap plans can be difficult due to plan standardization – the only difference you will see is cost. Some plans are priced and sold by private insurance companies, but the benefits of the plans are standardized across the nation and structured exactly the same from company to company.
If you need help comparing plans, our FAQs can provide insight and tips on evaluating your coverage options.
Recommended Reading
Comparing Medigap Plans FAQs
Medicare Supplement vs. Medicare Advantage
Both Medicare Medigap plans and Medicare Advantage plans offer comprehensive coverage, and there’s no single “best” plan. Instead, think about your unique situation, provider needs, and cost tolerance to help guide your decision.
Here are the key differences between Medicare Supplement vs. Medicare Advantage to keep in mind.
If you prioritize flexibility and low, predictable costs, Medigap may be a good fit. But if extra benefits and a low monthly premium are more important, consider Medicare Advantage.
What Do Medicare Supplement Plans Cover?
While Original Medicare pays for a significant portion of your covered health care costs, you’ll likely still deal with charges associated with deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance. A Medigap policy works to cover those patient expenses, making your medical costs much more predictable.
What’s Covered by Medigap
Medicare Supplement covers the gaps left by Original Medicare, which includes costs like:
- Deductibles for Parts A and B
- Excess costs for Part B
- Coinsurance or copays for Parts A and B
- Blood (first three pints)
- Health care costs during travel abroad
What’s Not Covered by Medigap
While Medigap helps you budget and control out-of-pocket costs for covered medical services, it doesn't cover services that Original Medicare (Parts A & B) excludes entirely.
This generally includes:
- Prescription Drugs: Medigap policies sold today do not include drug coverage. If you have Original Medicare and Medigap, you must purchase a separate Part D Prescription Drug Plan.
- Long-Term Care (Custodial Care): This is non-skilled care, like help with bathing, dressing, or feeding, often received in a nursing home. Medigap does not cover this.
- Routine Dental, Vision, and Hearing: Medigap does not pay for routine services like eye exams, glasses, hearing aids, or standard cleanings/fillings.
Private-Duty Nursing: Care provided by a private nurse in a home or hospital setting is generally excluded.
Costs of Medicare Supplement Insurance
Medicare Supplement plan costs vary by company and plan letter. Like with most insurance, the plans with the highest benefit levels will typically be more expensive up front, but come with little to no out-of-pocket costs.
If you want to pay a lower monthly premium and are okay with paying more as you go, you can choose a plan with fewer benefits but lower monthly costs.
How are costs calculated?
Although Medigap plans are federally standardized on basic benefits, private insurance companies can charge different premiums. Factors that can affect your premium include your age, location, gender, and (in some states) whether you use tobacco products.
Three pricing methods affect long-term Medigap costs. When you enroll in a policy, you should make sure you understand which pricing method your plan follows. Note: Depending on where you live, you may only have one of these options available.
- Attained-age-rated policies: These plans have premiums that increase as you age.
- Issue-age-rated policies: These plans have premiums that increase due to inflation, not due to aging.
- Community-rated policies: With these plans, everyone in an area is charged the same premium regardless of age.
How can I save on premiums?
Once you settle on the benefit level that best fits your health care needs, the easiest way to save money on a Medicare Supplement plan is to compare shop different insurance companies.
This is where United Medicare Advisors can help. We save our clients an average of $634 when switching Medigap plans and have helped over 400,000 people nationwide navigate their options.
Recommended Reading
Understanding Medigap Policy Ratings and Costs
How to Choose the Best Medicare Supplement Plan for You
These are some of the main financial points to focus on as you consider Medigap coverage:
- The cost of lab tests and imaging — you’ll be responsible for 20%
- How much you expect to pay for a nursing home stay through coinsurance
- Your deductible costs associated with a hospital stay
- How much 20% of your physician visits may cost — what you’ll be responsible for without a Medigap policy
Once you compare the price of a supplemental plan to your predicted out-of-pocket costs, you’ll be able to decide if a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan is right for you.
Because Medigap plans do not have rating systems, it’s difficult to conduct a side-by-side comparison of different insurers. UMA agents do the hard work for you, gathering personal health, lifestyle, and budgetary information and finding the right-sized plan type based on your situation and up-to-the-minute data on the best available rates.
Medicare Supplement FAQs
When is the best time to buy a Medicare Supplement Plan?
When you’re 65 and you have Medicare Part B, a period called the Medigap Enrollment Period automatically begins. This is the best time to buy a Medicare Supplement Plan, as you can buy any Medigap policy sold in your state. Because of Guaranteed Issue, during this period the underwriting process is unnecessary, generally giving you better prices and more policy options.
What is Guaranteed Issue?
Am I eligible for a Medicare Supplement Plan?
Can I get Medicare Supplement if I have employer coverage?
What is the average cost of Medicare Supplement Plans?
Why should I work with an agent for my Medicare Supplement needs?
Are Medicare Supplement plans worth it?
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