Comparing the Price of Medicare Supplement Plans

In order to make sure that purchasing a Medicare supplemental plan, or Medigap plan, is the right decision, you should do your homework and research. Putting in the time and effort will get you the plan that fits your needs best at the lowest cost available.

Online

• One of the quickest ways to compare Medigap prices is through the Medicare official tool, called plan finder. This tool is located on the Medicare website. Enter information about your health status, what kind of coverage you have and where you live. The tool will supply you with a list of available plans, labeled A through N, and a column that lists the monthly premiums and estimated annual cost of that plan.

Phone

• You can call separate plans individually in order to compare actual prices. The cost of each plan may vary from company to company, so it's important to call around to get several price quotes.

What to Ask

• Ask what the monthly premium is based on. Then once you get your monthly premium price, ask how that number will change as you age. Some companies have community-rated plans, in which everyone's premiums go up at the same rate. Others have attained-age-rated plans, in which a premium will raise according to your age and finally. Issue-age-rated plan premiums are based on the age you were when you purchased the plan.

Considerations

• A higher premium plan that is issue-age-rated may be a better deal in the long run than a low premium plan that is attained-age-rated.