It's that time of year again.
You are probably seeing hundreds of Medicare ads
and you may be wondering what are really your best options for the coming year.
So today I'm looking ahead to 2022
and we're going to break down
what the best Medicare supplement plans are for the coming year.
So stay tuned.
Hi my name is Stephanie Abt.
I am a licensed independent insurance broker
and every year I like to make these brief videos to break down
the top or the best Medicare supplement plans.
Generally these are going to be the plans that have the best value
for your dollar for this year,
or the best cost versus benefit ratios.
I'm also going to share some very important tips
about how to choose the right Medicare supplement insurance company
which is so incredibly important when it comes to
'You are saving money in the long term.'
So let's dive into the top Medicare supplement plans for 2022.
The chart that you see on the screen right now
shows you all of these standardized Medigap or Medicare supplement,
those two words are interchangeable, plans.
This chart is in my opinion a little confusing to look at.
So we're going to break it down and simplify it for you today.
But before we do that, you want to remember that these plans are always standardized,
meaning that the plan benefits are exactly the same
by letter across any insurance company.
So for example, a plan A
will be the same exact Medicare Supplement Plan
no matter which insurance company you have it from,
whether it's Blue Cross Blue shield or Aetna or United Healthcare,
it's always the same exact plan by letter.
Additionally, since these plans are supplemental plans,
they're secondary to your original Medicare benefits,
you can always visit any Doctor who takes original Medicare.
So there are no networks on these plans.
And that is one thing that a lot of people really like about Medicare Supplement Plans.
You can always choose your own doctors.
So what are the top plans for 2022?
Right now the Medicare Supplement Plans
that generally have the best bang for your buck
are Medicare Supplement Plan G and Medicare Supplement Plan N.
Now plan G also has a high-deductible version
And that is a popular plan especially in certain states.
So we'll break that down in a moment.
But first let's break down these two most popular plans and how they work.
Now a lot of people ask me what about the other plans
like plan K, plan D, plan L, plan M?
Why don't we talk about those plans?
Well, in most areas, these plans really just don't make sense to buy
when you look at the cost versus the benefit ratio.
They're also not as widely offered as the more popular plans
like plan G and plan N.
So Medicare Supplement Plan G is the most comprehensive Medigap plan
available to any newly eligible Medicare beneficiary.
It has full coverage aside from your Medicare Part B Deductible.
Now right now the Part B Deductible is $203 annually.
We project it'll be about $217 a year starting in 2022.
So with Plan G, you have to pay into your Medicare Part B Deductible
each calendar year before your coverage kicks in.
But then after that, you're covered at 100%
for any Medicare Part A or B covered service.
This means that your hospital stay, your diagnostic testing,
your office visits, even chemotherapy
is all covered up 100% after you've met that Part B Deductible, if you have plan G.
This is very comprehensive coverage,
so it definitely offers you that piece of mind
knowing that you have so little out-of-pocket exposure.
Now Plan G also has a high-deductible version called high-deductible Plan G
and this plan has a larger annual deductible that you have to meet
before your coverage kicks in.
In 2022, the deductible is $2,490 per year.
So you pay your Medicare cost share into that deductible
and then once you've met that deductible,
the high-deductible Plan G would kick in at 100% after that
for any Medicare Part A or B covered service.
So there are definitely certain parts of the country
where high-deductible Plan G may be a plan that you want to look into.
Plan N is another plan that's growing in popularity.
It is very similar to traditional Plan G,
but there are two things that make it different.
So plan N offers almost the same 100% coverage
after you've met your Part B deductible.
So again, you have to pay into the Part B deductible before your coverage kicks in.
And now we'll get to what makes it different than plan G.
With plan N, after you've met the deductible,
you still are responsible for co-pays,
for office visits, or a stand-alone emergency room visit.
Now I'm going to link a video up here. it'll also be in the description below.
That talks more about plan N co-pays, how they work
and when you can expect to see them.
There are certain medical billing codes that will trigger that 20 co-pay
if you have a Plan N
and there are other codes that don't.
So be sure to watch that video if you are considering Plan N
and you want to learn more about when you can expect to pay those co-pays.
The other difference between Plan G and Plan N
is coverage for medicare Part B excess charges.
So Plan N does not cover Medicare excess charges,
Plan G does cover them at 100%.
Medicare access charges are pretty rare.
They're a form of balance billing that can happen if you go to a doctor
who accepts Medicare patients,
but they don't accept Medicare assignment
or Medicare's payment as payment in full.
In that case the doctor could bill you excess charges
of up to 15% above the Medicare approved amount for that service.
Again, excess charges are pretty rare
and I do have a video up here that talks a lot more about excess charges
and how to search to see if your doctor accepts Medicare assignment
and whether or not you may see excess charges with that provider.
Because Plan N has a couple fewer benefits than Plan G,
it is less expensive.
It has a lower monthly premium typically than Medicare Supplement Plan G.
So when you're deciding on your Medicare Supplement Plan,
you'll want to consider how many office visits
do you typically have in a calendar year
as well as your general health or maybe even your family's health history.
If you're someone who has frequent office visits,
maybe you're going to the doctor 15, 20 times per year on average,
then you'll probably want to consider Plan G
so you don't have to worry about any co-pays.
Now if your office visits are generally less than that,
then you may come out ahead with Plan N
when you factor in the savings in the monthly premium.
And you'll want to consider the pricing difference
between Plan G and Plan N in your area.
In some areas, it's a pretty big price difference
between the monthly cost for Plan G versus Plan N
while in some states the difference isn't that large at all.
So that's something else that you'll want to factor in
when you're making your decision.
When it comes to deciding on the best Medigap or Medicare Supplement Plan for you
you definitely want to compare the benefits of the different plan letters
to determine which plan best meets your needs.
But what is just as important or really even more important
is choosing the right insurance company for your Medicare Supplement Plan.
So like we reviewed before,
Medicare Supplement Plans are always exactly the same by plan letter,
no matter which insurance company you buy it from.
But the different insurance companies can charge vastly different prices
for the same exact plan.
When choosing an insurance company for your Medicare Supplement Plan,
you want to find a company that has a good low rate since the plans are standardized.
But you also want to choose a good insurance company as well.
We recommend looking for a company that is at least 'A' rated for financial strength,
a company that has been in the Medicare market for a while,
has good customer service and supports,
and also has a relatively low rate increase history.
when you look back on their historical rate increases over time.
No matter which way you slice it,
Medicare supplement rates do go up over time.
You are going to get rate increases.
Typically they happen once a year around your policy anniversary date.
But typically going with a company that is very strong financially
means that they can handle paying out large claims
and hopefully keep your rates lower over time.
Of course there is no way to predict the future.
We don't have a crystal ball.
But this is what we do as independent Medicare insurance brokers,
is we help our clients find the best Medicare Supplement Plans
and the best insurance carriers for their needs.
My team and I are licensed in almost every state
and we represent dozens of different insurance companies.
So we are able to take an unbiased approach
when it comes to helping you find the best Medicare Supplement Plan.
Our service is completely free of charge
and a lot of people ask me
"How can your service be completely free?"
So I've linked a video in the description below
that explains how independent Medicare insurance brokers get paid
and how we're able to offer this service free to you?
So be sure to check that out.
The important takeaway is that you pay the same exact price
whether you work with an independent broker
or whether you go directly to the insurance company.
So please feel free to let us help you cut through the confusion
and you can call us anytime for free,
no obligation Medicare supplement quotes and assistance.
Thank you so much for watching our update
on the best Medicare Supplement Plans for 2022
and we'll see you soon.