2024 Rate Info for AARP / UHC Medicare Supplement Plans

Thank you Mark. I will try and call them myself tomorrow.

I am a bit late coming to this party, but I have been doing a lot of research on the issue of the Medicare Supplement increases. I have a Plan G Supplement in Texas through another top-rated insurer (Not AARP-UHC).  I have been asking questions which included filing a complaint with my state (TDI-Texas Department of Insurance) about the fact that my wife and I are seeing pretty high increases as well. Of course this is all about claim loss history versus premiums collected. Basically, all Plan G's are the same on benefits so the only reason a premium can be increased is twofold. One is if it is an age attained policy. This means that as your age goes up, they can arbitrarily add a percentage each year.  This is in addition to the second reason for a rate increase in premiums which has to be justified to the state regulators on the basis of claims loss over a percentage of premiums collected. Now Texas also has a two-tiered system of claims loss allowed. For Individual policies it is 65%.  For Group it is 75%. 

My policy in Texas is based on an area (zip code prefix) and I live about two counties away from a major metropolitan area but because we share the same prefix as some of their suburbs we get hit with a 15% premium increase over the rest of the states non- urban areas. They have an increased rate for smokers versus non-smokers and for gender (e.g. male vs female). And it was also explained when I got my policy. that the state would have to approve any rate increase. My policy stated "Any change in premium will apply to all covered persons in your same class based on the issue
state of your policy." Now I thought that meant I would have some protection as they would have to raise the rates for everyone in a Plan G Plan. Wrong.  When I checked it was apparent that the Company had closed my "plan" to new business and was opening up other subsidiaries to offer new Plan G policies. When I questioned this with the TDI this is their response. 

"We understand the strategy that some companies use of closing Medicare Supplement blocks and creating an affiliate to sell new Medicare Supplement policies.  Nothing in regulation prevents this practice since the newly created affiliate is a separate legal entity.  While a healthy individual could of course apply for a new contract with a lower premium, we of course understand your point that policyholders not able to pass underwriting are essentially stuck in the closed block, although there may be other alternatives such as a Medicare Advantage plan" 

I do not want to have to change to an advantage plan. I think not informing in their advertising and their policies that they reserve the right to do what they are doing and informing those that select their plans that it could result in an artificial escalation in their premiums over the course of the policy might invalidate their benefit to a guarantee of renewal is a material misrepresentation of the policy. 

I would note that under the Texas regulations, there is a right of guaranteed issuance (with no medical questions, if a Medicare supplemental policy is cancelled due to this sort of  misbehavior but there are some conditions and one is based on your age of eligibility for Medicare (e.g. if before 2020) then you are guaranteed to only be able to replace a Plan G with certain Non-Plan G types. Closest is a Plan F.  Maybe this was why the Plan F was discontinued by many Insurers...  I wanted to switch to AARP Supplement and applied and the agent said I could be eligible for guaranteed issue, but I think he misunderstood the criteria (or maybe I misunderstood what he was saying).