AARP Medicare Supplement Plan G with United Healthcare - Premium Increases

[VirginiaB166096]

My husband and I have had the AARP Medicare Supplement Plan G plan for LESS than 2 years. He is 18 months in; I'm at 16 months. In that time, we've seen 2 rate increases and the $2.00 incentive to be billed and pay together has disappeared. What's with the money grab by UHC (and AARP)?

My premium has gone from $106.64 to 131.69 with an interim hike and his has gone from $122.88 to $159.80 with another increase scheduled for Jan 2026. 

The literature we read when we subscribed to this AARP plan was that our rates would not increase, yet here we are. A bait and switch? A lie in the advertising? Which is it?

And why separate the bill so we lose that $2 incentive? Really?  You need to take back that $2?

I would love a cogent explanation from both AARP and United Healthcare.  Last time i inquired they simply told me that the rate went up because the rate increased. (Kid you not!)  I really would love to know why the rates increase and what we should expect going forward. More annual increases?

It seems like no matter what you read in the sales literature, it won't be that way IRL. AARP and United Healthcare are making billions off seniors. And always, always, going after more and more $$$$. SMH at the greed.

We will be shopping around next year. AARP can do better to negotiate on our behalf, but no doubt they are in bed with UHC. Gotta keep those lobbying dollars coming in . . . but then what are you doing on our behalf? Or just bleeding us dry?

[StacieS366357]

The same happened to me! The chart United HC sent me showed steady premiums for 4 years and then I ended up with a 26% increase!! I went online as if I was shopping for the first time and the chart still shows the same thing.  I called them this morning to find out what my premium will be in June and they said no info is available yet.  They did say I could move to a lower plan if I couldn't pay :(.  Researching on line- they are trying to get between a 15-23% increase! So now, if I change plans, I have to qualify for underwriting. 

[GailL1]

@StacieS366357 

All Medigap plans increase because of medical inflation.  That’s the normal increase in most every year - your state is the one that reviews the rate request that the Medigap insurers submit to them for approval.  

If you live in a state that has expanded Medigap guaranteed issue then that would also make your premiums increase because it allows people to switch plans without underwriting and thus high users can switch to a plan that is less costly for them. 

Medigap plans can also increase based on their rating method. 

• issue age
• attained age
• community rated

I think most AARP UHC Medigap plans are community rated but they may also have a declining enrollment discount - you descibed this in your post.

So many, maybe most,  AARP UHC Medigap users can have at least (2) increases a year - (1) for the medical inflation cost or loss ratios  (2) declining enrollment discount - 

Even though Medigap coverage is NOT medical insurance, it is so related that medical inflation, increased usage, higher cost of treatments and test, does affect it greatly.  

The nature of the beast, so to speak.

Your state will determine if you have to go thru underwriting if you change plans.  So what is your state?

[StacieS366357]

Well I learned two things today.  Per the company agent that I am using he said that a 26% increase was higher than most other companies.  I also learned about the birthday rule today via my own research.  After speaking with someone in the field they said that would cause rates to go up in those states.  Still at that rate if it continues our rates will double every 4 years!

[HillaryH491574]

agree with you totally. Shame on United Healthcare and AARP gap plans. I just received a letter from UHC saying I am getting an 18 % increase in premiums for 2026. And not for any reason other than greed. They are hugely profitable!

[JohnR790027]

 I just got a letter today. May 23, 2026 stating my premium for Plan G is going up on July 1st, 2026.  The increase is 20.4%.  Wow!

[TRL1111]

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@JohnR790027 wrote:

 I just got a letter today. May 23, 2026 stating my premium for Plan G is going up on July 1st, 2026.  The increase is 20.4%.  Wow!

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What state and what company?  20% isn't all that unusual for AARP/UHC's Medigap Supplements for 2026.  Or for any companies, really.  They're pretty much all getting hit hard.  And Plan N is suffering the similar percentage increases as Plan G, which is not what people predicted.

[GailL1]

@TRL1111 wrote . . . . And Plan N is suffering the similar percentage increases as Plan G, which is not what people predicted.

Why not ?  When they change plans, they take their usage and risk with them driving up cost in the newly selected plan; whatever plan that may be - seems the N plan was the vogue plan of yesterday.

Definitely a tiny copay for doc or the ER, like in Plan N, is not gonna slow their usage down.  

May not even with the HD plans but the premium increases will be much less since they begin much lower in premium cost due to the higher risk the beneficiary is assuming.

Insurers have proven to state insurance commissioners that they are paying for MUCH higher usage ( I posted a link to ths yesterday on this board) - so these state controllers have little else they can do but approve the increases.  

I am just gonna guess that this is not finished this year either - 

[TRL1111]

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@GailL1 wrote:

Why not ?  When they change plans, they take their usage and risk with them driving up cost in the newly selected plan; whatever plan that may be - seems the N plan was the vogue plan of yesterday.

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People thought/assumed that healthier people would choose Plan N over Plan G in the first place, or switch to Plan N from Plan G, to be in a presumably healthier pool, and healthier pools are assumed to have lower premium increases than pools with unhealthy people.  

[GailL1]

I guess “healthier” does not beat out “money savings” all the time.  Sometimes it is just saving a buck or two -  

If healthier was the working criteria then it should work - it isn’t always - there is still risk.

A beneficiary has to understand what affects premiums - usage, risk and inflation - none of these things change substantially from switching from G to N - 

A better comparison is switching from G to HD G - that is better but in today’s inflationary climate it may still not be the saving it once was - 

[TRL1111]

I suppose not substantially, but you're a big proponent of people having skin in the game, and a copay is a known friction point.  And in states that allow underwriting (like Texas), people who can't pass underwriting won't be able to switch to Plan N, meaning the only presumably super high users will have signed up for it in the first place, or have been granted a rare guaranteed-issue right to it, which is why people assume it would have fewer sick people in it.

That's why people thought Plan N premiums would rise slower than Plan G, but it turned out to not necessarily be the case.

Will G-HD perform to similar expectations?  Who knows?  The insurance company will make money on every person who doesn't reach their deductible, which is good news for the insurance company.  But the bad news is that if the insurance company does start paying claims, the member will have paid much less in premiums.

Who know how this will shake out in terms of numbers.  

In terms of risk pool, you're talking about predicting human behavior.  That' never easy, and it's especially hard to predict behavior when the majority of them have no idea what they're actually picking.

[TRL1111]

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@HillaryH491574 wrote:

Shame on United Healthcare and AARP gap plans. I just received a letter from UHC saying I am getting an 18 % increase in premiums for 2026. And not for any reason other than greed. They are hugely profitable!

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What data do you have to support that?  AARP/UHC is hardly unique in having an increase of about 20% this year.  Some are much higher.

Is there a reason you're not changing supplements?

[MarjorieM238987]

Been on this plan for 13 months and they’ve increased my premiums twice - two consecutive months - for a total of 25%. This is not sustainable. The coverage is so-so. Also, has anyone else noticed their CEO received a $10M bonus last year? Guess they’re really hurting, eh?

I will very likely be departing UHC. 

[TRL1111]

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@MarjorieM238987 wrote:

Been on this plan for 13 months and they’ve increased my premiums twice - two consecutive months - for a total of 25%. This is not sustainable. The coverage is so-so. ... I will very likely be departing UHC. 

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I don't understand your premium increases.  When I signed up, they guaranteed my rate for six months, and sure enough I had an increase six months after I signed up.  And then I got the annual increase that everybody gets the next July.

If you've been on it for 13 months, then the six months would have happened a long time ago.  Maybe in your state they guarantee the premium for one year?  I'll never truly understand how UHC prices their plans--I just kind of dance around the edges.

But I'll note that as long as you're enjoying the benefit of an age-related discount, you will have two premium increases a year--one on your birthday because you've become a year older, and another one in July or whenever your plan increases everyone's premium.

But more importantly, in what way do you consider the coverage of your Plan G supplement to be "so-so"?  It's the most comprehensive supplement available to new enrollees, and covers everything 100% once you pay a deductible of $257.

Also, what's stopping you from departing UHC right now?

[DeborahB303583]

I too just received notice of a mid-term premium increase in my Plan G.  Reason stated is “because of multiple adjustments to your account”.  It shouldn’t be an IRMAA adjustment, what other kind of adjustments would there be?

[kgtyson]

Same for me. Just got notice of an increase starting in June, due to multiple adjustments on account. Would love to know what that means. I had no extraordinary claims this year. 

[GailL1]

@kgtyson 

Maybe it means the (2) different premium increases for your Medigap plan - (1) the AARP/UHC declining discount based on age and (2) the one for the plan’s rate increase based on the insurer’s medical loss ration(claims:premiums) , usage utilization , medical inflation by area , rating method used by the insurer. 

[TRL1111]

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@GailL1 wrote:

Maybe it means the (2) different premium increases for your Medigap plan 

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I've wondered how they do the notice for people whose birthday is the same month as the annual adjustment.  My birthday is in May, so on the schedule for premiums for the upcoming year they sent me, there's a change in July for the mid-year one, and another change in May for my birthday one, but I don't think they actually label them.

[MarkP351941]

II just got hit with a 20.4% increase. I enrolled in Plan G in July of 2021 with a premium of $146. As of July 1, 2025, it goes up to $232.83!

[TRL1111]

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@MarkP351941 wrote:

II just got hit with a 20.4% increase. 

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20% is not an uncommon increase this year  You can easily look at other supplement options available to you at medicare.gov, if nothing else to compare your premium to the premium at other companies.  All supplements are being hit hard this year.

[SummerOnTheWay1]

📎  Mark @MarkP351941 , SO MANY seniors are dying every day/night due to NOT being able to afford medical help. I just hope I stay healthy at age 67. Take care, Nicole  👵

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➡️***[ Mark wrote on Wednesday 4/30/25: I just got hit with a 20.4% increase. I enrolled in Plan G in July of 2021 with a premium of $146. As of July 1, 2025, it goes up to $232.83! ***]

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[TRL1111]

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@SummerOnTheWay1 wrote:

SO MANY seniors are dying every day/night due to NOT being able to afford medical help. 

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Can you share the source of the data this is based on? 

It seems counterintuitive because with Medicare, seniors are protected against healthcare costs, and certainly moreso than people under 65, many of whom have health insurance policies with huge deductibles, or maybe no insurance at all if they're in a state that didn't expand Medicaid and they don't have enough income to qualify for an Obamacare plan with a subsidy.  

[SummerOnTheWay1]

📎  Lol @TRL1111 , I will let you post the link for me!!!  🤣😂

➡️[*** YOU POSTED: Can you share the source of the data this is based on?

[MarkP351941]

II'm actually 70.5. Like a lot of seniors, the only increase in I see in income is Social Security. My annuity and pension income are the same as they were in 2021. Fortunately I still work part-time which helps make up the difference. I strive to live within my means but inflation and enormous increases in premiums don't help at all. God **bleep** UnitedHealthcare!

[ChristopherK269505]

Consider yourself lucky.  My Plan G premium will increase in June from $283.22/month $314.59/month.  I live in South Florida where healthcare is expensive (and a certain hospital group has a stranglehold on medical services in the area) but I’m only 69 and healthy with very few claims. At least I get free gym membership.   My wife has United American for her medigap policy with a high deductible but premiums are only around $65/month so I’m going to look into that at renewal time. 

[TRL1111]

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@ChristopherK269505 wrote:

At least I get free gym membership.   My wife has United American for her medigap policy with a high deductible but premiums are only around $65/month so I’m going to look into that at renewal time. 

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There is no "renewal time" for supplements.  You can buy them year-round.  People in most states have to undergo medical underwriting in order to buy a supplement, but that's the same year-round (unless they're in one of the few states that either never allows underwriting or has a specified period (unrelated to open enrollment at the end of the year) during which people can do some switching without undergoing underwriting).

So if you want to look into switching, there's no reason to wait because Florida doesn't have any period during which people can switch without medical underwriting.  But be aware that all supplements in Florida have issue-age pricing, so buying a supplement when you're older might mean you have a higher premium than if you'd bought that supplement when you were 65, for example.

And also be aware that if the free gym membership is important, most supplements don't offer that benefit.  But it never hurts to shop around to see what your options are.  You can easily do that at medicare.gov and searching for supplements available in your zip code, along with premiums.

[TRL1111]

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@VirginiaB166096 wrote:

The literature we read when we subscribed to this AARP plan was that our rates would not increase, yet here we are. A bait and switch? A lie in the advertising? Which is it?

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I, too, would like to see where you read that your premium would not go up, because it's simply not the case.

Even with issue-age premiums, which are based on the age you were when you bought the plan, premiums go up over time even though the age at which you were issued the plan doesn't change.

Moreover, with most AARP/UHC supplements, the premium is calculated using a discount that goes down as you get older, so they absolutely WILL go up--if the discount goes down then obviously the premium goes up.

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@VirginiaB166096 wrote:

We will be shopping around next year. 

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If you're thinking about the annual open enrollment period at the end of the year, it has absolutely nothing to do with supplements.  If you can pass medical underwriting, you can change your supplement any time you want.  So do it now.

If you can't pass medical underwriting, then you're stuck with the supplement you have, although different carriers have different underwriting standards, so you'd be well advised to talk to an insurance broker, or more than one because they don't all sell policies for every company.

Or if you can't pass medical underwriting, but are in a state that has periods during which people can switch supplements, you can switch then (but each state that offers this has different rules).

If you're unhappy with your supplement and are healthy, there's no reason to wait to change it.  If you're not healthy enough to pass medical underwriting, then see if your state has a period during which you have "guaranteed issue" rights to a supplement (usually around your birthday, or the policy anniversary date).

[GailL1]

@VirginiaB166096 

What literature did you read that your premiums will not increase?  Can you produce it or link it?  I think you may have confused what “community rated” means since most AARP/UHC supplemental plans (Medigap) are rated this way.

• Community-rated Medigap plans, also sometimes called "no-age-rated" plans, set a flat premium for all beneficiaries within a specific area, regardless of their age or sex. 
• Community Rated means your premium will not increase simply because you are getting older, but premiums can still increase due to factors like inflation or changes in the cost of healthcare. 
• Community rated means if you and your neighbor enroll in the same Medigap plan from the same provider in the same area, you will both pay the same monthly premium, even if you are different ages. 
• CommunityRated Premiums are based on the location where you live, not your age or health status.

Now, it is common knowledge that insurers can never cancel a Medigap plan EXCEPT for (1) non payment of premiums (2) a non-truth on the application 

All Medicare plans are individual plans and there have been folks on this board that have had a very hard time with these joint billings so perhaps now they have changed it - I have no idea.  

Premiums can increase for any Medigap plan based on healthcare inflation, usage in the plan.  They are also higher in states that have expanded their guaranteed issue rules to allows those with higher risk to go into Medigap plans without underwriting.  

Medigap coverage is not really health insurance but does go up based on healthcare cost because of its connection to traditional Medicare.  The true reason for a Medigap policy is to protect the beneficiary with Traditional Medicare from a catastrophic financial event due to health if they only have Traditional Medicare since there is NO annual or lifetime cap on the beneficiary’s cost under Traditional Medicare.  It is optional coverage.  

Please review what a Medigap policy is and how any of them are rated before you change policies - go into it eyes wide open.  And just don’t read about them on this Medicare site - go to your state’s Dept of Ins. and see if they have have made special state rules about them because these too will affect you. 

Medicare.gov - Medigap Basics 

[HughW290135]

I've been on the United Healthcare AARP community rated Plan G for one year. I am 66 now. I just received a 38% increase in my monthly premium, from $150.00 to $208.04. I expected an increase of maybe 10% to 15% because of inflation, but holy cow!  That's almost $700.00 per year.