When Will My Medicare Supplement Rates Change?

When in doubt, Medicare Supplement coverage is a fantastic way to save on your healthcare costs. However, it is probable that the rate for coverage that you sign up for initially may not be the rate that you pay forever.

Rate increases happen to the best of us, simply because of the nature of the Medicare renewal system. It’s totally normal.

While this may seem scary, never fear! At Medicare Allies, we will ensure that you get the best coverage possible for the best prices in the business.

What is a Medicare Supplement?

A Medicare Supplement is an insurance policy that fills in the gaps in your Original Medicare coverage.

A Medicare Supplement (otherwise known as Medigap) is an extra policy that will provide coverage for the portion Medicare doesn’t cover and pay for certain healthcare costs like deductibles, copayments and more!

However, it’s important to recognize that a Medicare Supplement policy only pays for services that are already Medicare approved. This means that dental, vision, or any other non-approved service can’t be filled by a Medigap policy.

Medigap is a beautiful thing, and depending on your situation, can help a lot with your medical costs.

Why do my Medicare Supplement rates go up?

If you’ve had a Medigap policy for over a year, you’ve probably noticed that a not-so-fun thing is happening to your rates.

Rate increases are commonly small, incremental boosts in your payments. Though they may seem like small changes, those dollars add up, so it’s important to be aware of how your rates are rising.

Usually, you’ll get a letter in the mail, or your insurance agent will call you directly to let you know that your rates are going up for the next year. Most Medigap plans are on an age-related pricing structure. This means that as your age grows, so does your Medicare Supplement rate.

Most insurance companies offer a 1-year guarantee that your Medigap rates won’t go up. But after those 12 months, your rate is fair game, unless you get the guarantee extended by the company for another year or two.

If your rates just increased and you didn’t have a birthday or policy anniversary, it could be because of your “claims experience.” If you’ve filed quite a few expensive claims in a year, you can probably expect a boost in your rates in order for the insurance company to offset those big claims.

If this happens, be aware that your increase won’t just happen to you, it will happen to everyone on your plan as well.

Inflation, new tech, administration changes, and more can also factor into a rate change. However, as your trusted agents, we can make sure to check a company’s rate change history before you sign on with them, so we can try to predict (and avoid) your rate changes as much as possible.

If you’re wondering exactly why your rates went up, or want to know what to expect, don’t be afraid to give us a call! We’re here to help.

Is Medicare Supplement the only rate that will change?

The short answer — nope!

While this might cause a pang in your heart and your wallet, every Medicare plan is subject to shift. Medicare Parts A and B change on January 1 of every new year. It usually results in a slight increase of your premiums and deductibles.

How much will premiums increase?

When you’ve been in the business as long as we have, you start to get a feel for how the rates are going to change. However, there are always years where we get a curveball thrown at us — but that’s just part of the fun, right?

Every plan is different, but we carefully analyze data about rate increases from all of our different providers, so we can give our customers a better idea of what to expect in coming years. We can never predict the future, but we’ll sure give it our best shot.

What do I do if my rates get too high?

It never hurts to call us and get a few free quotes on other Medicare Supplement policies. If you feel that your Medigap rates are getting out of control or costing you more than it’s worth, trust your gut!

However, if you are dealing with health issues, you may want to think twice before trying to hop on another plan. In order to switch Medigap policies, you will have to pass underwriting.

Medicare Allies are just that — your ally! We know the ins and outs of every policy on the market. Because our only allegiance is to you, we can scope out the plans that may work better for you, so you can rest easy.

Conclusion

If your Medicare Supplement rates have gone up, don’t worry. It’s totally normal.

There’s no way to avoid policy rate increases, as they will happen on every plan. However, if you’re unhappy with this change and feel it might be time to explore other options, we can help!

Call today to get a free consultation on the best priced Medicare Supplement plans on the market.