Medigap Insurance Quotes
Medicare is the comprehensive federal program of health insurance for those over 65 and receiving Social Security benefits. It consists of Parts A, B, and D with Parts B and D being optional benefits at an increased premium. Part A is hospital insurance, Part B adds outpatient expense coverage and Part D is prescription drug coverage.
While an excellent program, the problem is that Medicare has substantial deductibles and co-insurance payouts and can be expensive in terms of out of pocket expenses. To fill in the gaps in coverage, supplemental policies can be purchased called MediGap policies.
What is covered by each of the ten policies for MediGap insurance is standardized by the federal government regardless of the carrier, but premiums vary from company to company and are also based on age at the time of coverage.
Comparing MediGap insurance quotes is simple once a participant has chosen one of the plans and can look at the premiums for each company offering coverage. Most states have online listing of all companies offering policies for MediGap insurance. Not every company will offer all ten plans and not every state offers all of the plans as well.
Medigap Plans
MediGap plan A is the basic supplemental coverage. Plan B offers the basic increases in coverage plus a higher coverage of the deductible for inpatient hospital stays. Plan C has all of the A and B coverage plus more coverage for skilled nursing facility care and emergency coverage for foreign travel.
Plan D offers the basics plus foreign travel and at home recovery costs. Plan E adds certain preventative care coverage as well. Plan F adds 100% coverage of Part B excess charges as well, and can be offered with varying deductibles to make it more affordable.
Plan G has 80% coverage of Part B excess charges. Plan H adds prescription drug coverage, as do Plan I and Plan J. Plan J also offers varying deductibles. Some states offer Plans K and L with various other benefits, while some states have managed care programs labeled as K or L.
Once the level of coverage is chosen, a Medicare participant can go to the published tables of premiums and find the range based on his or her age. Another option is to call individual carriers for quotes on the plan level or levels being considered to compare them or to ask an independent insurance agent to obtain the best quotes.
Some plans are offered as part of various groups such as the AARP, who sponsors MediGap plans, as well as managed care plans. Managed care plans have the same or even better coverage as these standard MediGap plans at lower premiums, but the trade off is in being limited to a set network of providers and hospitals. When getting MediGap insurance quotes you need to know the coverage and the network if any to make a fair comparison.
*You may be able to get extra help to pay for your prescription drug premiums and costs. To see if you qualify for getting extra help, call:
- 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). TTY/TDD users should call 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day/7 days a week;
OR
- The Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. TTY/TDD users should call, 1-800-325-0778; or Your State Medicaid Office.