What is Medicare Supplemental Insurance?

Medicare Supplemental insurance is a kind of health insurance policy sold by private insurance companies to fill the “gaps” in Original Medicare Plan coverage.

Who is Eligible

You must be Medicare-eligible (in general, over age 64.5 years old) and covered under Original Medicare. Medigap policies don’t work with any other type of health insurance, including Medicare Advantage Plans, employer/union group coverage, Veterans Administration (VA) benefits, or TRICARE.

Informational Video of Medicare Supplemental Insurance

The Benefits

Medigap policies help pay some of the health care costs that your Original Medicare Plan doesn’t cover. If you are in the Original Medicare Plan and have a Medigap policy, then Medicare and your Medigap policy will pay both their shares of covered health care costs. You and your spouse must each buy separate Medigap policies. Your Medigap policy won’t cover any health care costs for your spouse.

How Much Does It Cost?

In each standardized Medicare Supplemental insurance plan, benefits are identical from one company to the next. This makes plan comparison far easier than it is for general individual health insurance. However, premiums may vary between companies. In most cases, you should compare plans from different carriers. As you shop for a Medigap policy, be sure to compare the same type of Medigap policy (for example, compare a Medigap Plan J from AARP with a Medigap Plan C from Mutual of Omaha). You can get a quote from one of our Medicare Supplemental partners by completing the form to your right.

Comparing Medicare Supplemental Plans

Every Medicare Supplemental policy, in order to be designated a “Medicare Supplemental” or “Medigap”, plan has to follow federal and state laws designed to make the buying process easier for the consumer. Medigap insurance companies can only sell you a “standardized” Medigap policy identified by letters A through L. Each standardized Medigap policy must offer the same basic benefits, no matter what insurance company sells it. Cost is usually the only difference between Medigap policies sold by different insurance companies. (You should, however, compare insurance companies on other measures such as customer service and reputation.)

There are exceptions to the standardization if you live in certain states, such as Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Depending on your state, you may be able to buy another type of Medigap policy called Medicare SELECT (a Medigap policy that requires you to use specific hospitals and in some cases specific doctors to get full benefits).

Who Provides Medicare Supplemental Insurance?

Medicare supplemental insurance is provided by private insurance companies such as AARP, BlueCross BlueShield, Globe Life, Humana, Mutual of Omaha, Transamerica Life, United American, UnitedHealthcare and many other insurance companies.

Remember from above that Medigap insurance companies can sell you only a “standardized” Medigap policy. All Medigap policies must have specific benefits so you can compare them easily on the basis of price.