When to Buy Medigap Insurance

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When to Buy Medigap Insurance

The best time to buy a Medigap policy is during your Medigap open enrollment period. This is a 6-month period that begins on the first day of the month in which you’re both 65 or older and enrolled in Medicare Part B. The advantage of buying during this period is that the insurance company is not permitted to use your health status to deny you a policy or to charge you more for a Medigap policy than they charge someone with no health problems.

If you wait ...

If you apply for Medigap coverage after your open enrollment period, however, insurance companies are generally free to impose medical underwriting requirements to determine if they will issue the policy and at what price.

For more information

There is a chart available here that illustrates how the various plans compare. To understand it, however, there are 3 complicating issues you must be aware of:

• In Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, Medigap policies are standardized in a different way from the other states.
• Plans D and G effective on or after June 1, 2010 have different benefits than D or G plans bought before June 1, 2010.
• Plans E, H, I, and J are no longer sold. (Those who already have one of these can keep it, however.)

In summary, all Medigap plans cover your Medicare Part A co-insurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after original Medicare benefits are used up. Most plans cover your Medicare Part B co-insurance or co-payment. Beyond those generalities, it is best to consult the chart to compare the features of the various policy types.