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    <title>topic How Medigap Premium Prices Are Rising - in Medicare &amp; Insurance</title>
    <link>https://community.aarp.org/t5/Medicare-Insurance/How-Medigap-Premium-Prices-Are-Rising/m-p/2670637#M13059</link>
    <description>&lt;P&gt;From the mouth of those that have them - different plans / different states -&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Read the link and the posters that are chiming in on this subject.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&lt;A href="https://www.reddit.com/r/medicare/comments/1tfpf3d/plan_g_price_increase_as_of_july_1/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Reddit - Medicare - Plan G Price Increase as of July 1 - What Other Beneficiaries Are Saying&lt;/A&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Heck, paying less than $ 300 a month sounds like a real deal from what others are saying.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;There are usually options -depends on your state and your investigation skills or perhaps help that you find or experts that you connect with for help - you can always check with your Dept of Aging, SHIP in your state &amp;nbsp;(State Health Insurance Program Assistance), or even an independent Medicare Medigap agent or broker to find out any options you might have. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;NO, this is not a movement to get people on a MAPD plan - but it is a very good persuasion for considering taking on more of the risk in Original Medicare with your Supplemental plan.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;MAPD everywhere will never be an option for the program of Medicare - mainly because they are not available everywhere and never will be - networks can’t be designed in certain areas because the providers are not available. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;BTW, states are the ones that approve Medigap premium increases because it is not actually health insurance. &amp;nbsp;Medigap or Medicare Supplemental Insurance is financial protection insurance that is used ONLY with Original Medicare to protect the beneficiary from a financially catastrophic medical event because Original Medicare does not have any limit in out of pocket cost. &amp;nbsp;A plan (any) to supplement OG Medicare is not a requirement - in fact, there are 3 million on Medicare that only have Medicare and therefore pay out of pocket (or are supposed to) for their share of the cost.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;However, that does not mean that your Medigap policy has to cover 1st dollar - as we have seen with the discontinuance of sales of Plan F. &amp;nbsp;OR even most of it as Plan G offers with ONLY a Part B deductible of (2026) $ 283. &amp;nbsp;You are gonna pay dearly for this sort of complete coverage - but by picking up some more of your cost yourself in another plan, premiums are not as high.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Liken it to your auto insurance - premiums to high - you raise your deductible or make other changes so that you take on more of the risk that driving produces - thus lowering your premiums. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Interesting times we are in with all this inflation, especially medical inflation and Medicare usage because there are so many baby boomers - about half of which have to have some sort of supplemental coverage because they have Original Medicare. &amp;nbsp;That could be Medicaid or some other coverage that acts as a supplement - all of part added coverage - many of the rest gain access to this coverage via a Medigap plans but there are many different ones. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Different plans have been in vogue thru the years - prior 2010, it was Plan J, no more Plan J’s are sold since 2010. &amp;nbsp;Then there was Plan F, no more Plan Fs are sold since 2020 unless you meet the birth year qualifications. &amp;nbsp;But premiums are very high there now so it is probably best to pick another plan that F even if you do meet the qualifications. &amp;nbsp;NOW Plan G is (or was) in vogue since it covers what Medicare does not pay except for the Part B deductible (2026) $ 283. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;But that still leaves a bunch of others where you pick up more of the risk. &amp;nbsp;Plan A is where many states give the option for a Medigap plan to those less than 65 (disabled on SSDI) so that one may not be the best choice either due to potentially very &amp;nbsp;high health care cost of those beneficiaries. &amp;nbsp;But there are still others.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Even if your state allows for underwriting to change plans or insurers - you should still check out this option with an expert to see what they say are your chances to pass underwriting - especially if you are gonna pick a new plan where you take on more of the risk - that may make a difference to the insurer. &amp;nbsp;Insurers make the call on underwriting - who gets by with or without it, who gets to change but with perhaps a somewhat higher premium for the plan of choice (that’s the reason for underwriting - a higher premium evens out the risk you are bringing to the new plan - OR in some states, the insurer gets to hold off coverage of some pre-existing condition for a few months. &amp;nbsp;State law is very important to know because the state is the entity that governs what the Medigap insurer can do - just like in some states you can change to a different plan or insurer without underwriting. &amp;nbsp;And in a few states (4), you can pretty much do it anytime or even buy a plan at anytime because these few states have continuous enrollment - but they pay the price in higher premiums.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Good Luck to any of you who are trying to make the decision as to what to do with these higher and higher Medigap premiums especially for regular Plan G.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&lt;A href="https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/medigap/basics/compare-plan-benefits" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Medicare.gov - Compare Medigap Plan Benefits&lt;/A&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Have a great day&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;</description>
    <pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 16:12:00 GMT</pubDate>
    <dc:creator>GailL1</dc:creator>
    <dc:date>2026-05-17T16:12:00Z</dc:date>
    <item>
      <title>How Medigap Premium Prices Are Rising -</title>
      <link>https://community.aarp.org/t5/Medicare-Insurance/How-Medigap-Premium-Prices-Are-Rising/m-p/2670637#M13059</link>
      <description>&lt;P&gt;From the mouth of those that have them - different plans / different states -&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Read the link and the posters that are chiming in on this subject.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&lt;A href="https://www.reddit.com/r/medicare/comments/1tfpf3d/plan_g_price_increase_as_of_july_1/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Reddit - Medicare - Plan G Price Increase as of July 1 - What Other Beneficiaries Are Saying&lt;/A&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Heck, paying less than $ 300 a month sounds like a real deal from what others are saying.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;There are usually options -depends on your state and your investigation skills or perhaps help that you find or experts that you connect with for help - you can always check with your Dept of Aging, SHIP in your state &amp;nbsp;(State Health Insurance Program Assistance), or even an independent Medicare Medigap agent or broker to find out any options you might have. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;NO, this is not a movement to get people on a MAPD plan - but it is a very good persuasion for considering taking on more of the risk in Original Medicare with your Supplemental plan.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;MAPD everywhere will never be an option for the program of Medicare - mainly because they are not available everywhere and never will be - networks can’t be designed in certain areas because the providers are not available. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;BTW, states are the ones that approve Medigap premium increases because it is not actually health insurance. &amp;nbsp;Medigap or Medicare Supplemental Insurance is financial protection insurance that is used ONLY with Original Medicare to protect the beneficiary from a financially catastrophic medical event because Original Medicare does not have any limit in out of pocket cost. &amp;nbsp;A plan (any) to supplement OG Medicare is not a requirement - in fact, there are 3 million on Medicare that only have Medicare and therefore pay out of pocket (or are supposed to) for their share of the cost.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;However, that does not mean that your Medigap policy has to cover 1st dollar - as we have seen with the discontinuance of sales of Plan F. &amp;nbsp;OR even most of it as Plan G offers with ONLY a Part B deductible of (2026) $ 283. &amp;nbsp;You are gonna pay dearly for this sort of complete coverage - but by picking up some more of your cost yourself in another plan, premiums are not as high.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Liken it to your auto insurance - premiums to high - you raise your deductible or make other changes so that you take on more of the risk that driving produces - thus lowering your premiums. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Interesting times we are in with all this inflation, especially medical inflation and Medicare usage because there are so many baby boomers - about half of which have to have some sort of supplemental coverage because they have Original Medicare. &amp;nbsp;That could be Medicaid or some other coverage that acts as a supplement - all of part added coverage - many of the rest gain access to this coverage via a Medigap plans but there are many different ones. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Different plans have been in vogue thru the years - prior 2010, it was Plan J, no more Plan J’s are sold since 2010. &amp;nbsp;Then there was Plan F, no more Plan Fs are sold since 2020 unless you meet the birth year qualifications. &amp;nbsp;But premiums are very high there now so it is probably best to pick another plan that F even if you do meet the qualifications. &amp;nbsp;NOW Plan G is (or was) in vogue since it covers what Medicare does not pay except for the Part B deductible (2026) $ 283. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;But that still leaves a bunch of others where you pick up more of the risk. &amp;nbsp;Plan A is where many states give the option for a Medigap plan to those less than 65 (disabled on SSDI) so that one may not be the best choice either due to potentially very &amp;nbsp;high health care cost of those beneficiaries. &amp;nbsp;But there are still others.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Even if your state allows for underwriting to change plans or insurers - you should still check out this option with an expert to see what they say are your chances to pass underwriting - especially if you are gonna pick a new plan where you take on more of the risk - that may make a difference to the insurer. &amp;nbsp;Insurers make the call on underwriting - who gets by with or without it, who gets to change but with perhaps a somewhat higher premium for the plan of choice (that’s the reason for underwriting - a higher premium evens out the risk you are bringing to the new plan - OR in some states, the insurer gets to hold off coverage of some pre-existing condition for a few months. &amp;nbsp;State law is very important to know because the state is the entity that governs what the Medigap insurer can do - just like in some states you can change to a different plan or insurer without underwriting. &amp;nbsp;And in a few states (4), you can pretty much do it anytime or even buy a plan at anytime because these few states have continuous enrollment - but they pay the price in higher premiums.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Good Luck to any of you who are trying to make the decision as to what to do with these higher and higher Medigap premiums especially for regular Plan G.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&lt;A href="https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/medigap/basics/compare-plan-benefits" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Medicare.gov - Compare Medigap Plan Benefits&lt;/A&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;Have a great day&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;P&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/P&gt;</description>
      <pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 16:12:00 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://community.aarp.org/t5/Medicare-Insurance/How-Medigap-Premium-Prices-Are-Rising/m-p/2670637#M13059</guid>
      <dc:creator>GailL1</dc:creator>
      <dc:date>2026-05-17T16:12:00Z</dc:date>
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