Medicare supplemental insurance is available in 2020 to give seniors the kind of coverage that will help to pay for common medical expenses. Since there are so many of these plans to choose from, we recommend that you compare Medicare Supplement plans for 2020. This way, you can tell which ones are good buys for you and which ones you would be better off avoiding.

We want to show you the benefits of comparing these plans and then show you how to compare them on a few different levels.

Why Compare the Plans?

If you look into Medicare Supplement plans for the upcoming year, you will find plenty of people giving their recommendations. All sorts of websites that offer information about these plans will recommend the ones they think offer the best deal or the most protection. That doesn’t mean that their choices are what you should go with, though, as these plans are designed to cater to specific needs. What works well for one person may not be a good option for another, so we urge you to look at what’s available and compare the plans.

You don’t want to end up with a coverage plan that isn’t suitable for you, leaving you lots of expenses to pay on your own and offering very little coverage of its own. Alternatively, we don’t want you to sign up for a plan that covers more than you need to have covered and costs you a lot of money, wasting your precious resources. Seniors need to take their time in choosing a coverage plan, especially when they are looking at Supplement plans and all their choices. Some of these plans are simply not going to work well for many people.

You also don’t want to go with whatever is the most popular plan. Popularity is not a good reason to pick an insurance plan, and you need to assess your personal needs before choosing a plan that meets those needs. The most popular Supplement plan may be the right choice for you, but you need to pick it for the right reasons.

Comparing Coverage

When you compare insurance plans, you want to start with the expenses they cover. Look at what medical expenses the Supplement plans will take care of you. See how many of those apply to you and what ones are just extra insurance cushioning. It’s okay to have some extra coverage that isn’t really relevant to what you are currently paying out of pocket. That additional coverage can provide peace of mind and make it easier for you to be covered when you have an emergency. You may not able to predict all of your medical expenses over the course of the year, so it’s a good idea to have some extra coverage, just in case, so long as you can afford it.

Let’s take a moment and look at the medical expenses that Supplement plans could be covering for you. Note that not all of the plans will cover all of these items. Some of them only cover a few, while others cover most of them.

Supplement plans can cover the cost of Medicare Part A copayment for hospital stays. It can also cover the coinsurance costs on Part A hospice services. These are expenses you pay each time you receive these kinds of services. Coverage for Part B copayment is also provided by many Supplement plans, and a few of them will cover you for Part B excess charges. That latter expense applies to instances where you go for medical treatment at a facility that doesn’t fully accept Medicare coverage.

Supplement plans typically provide cover for three pints of blood each year. The rest of your blood use will be covered by the Original Medicare, plan, which you have to have in order for your Supplement plan to be active. The two plans work closely together, and Supplement plans are not able to function or even be valid without Original Medicare.

Most of the Supplement plans also provide coverage for nursing care coinsurance costs and foreign travel exchange. That travel exchange will cover you for as much as 80% of the cost of being transported to a foreign country in the event of a medical emergency. It does not cover any expenses related to actual treatment, however, and there is a lifetime limit on this coverage item of $50,000.

These are the Medicare Supplement plan coverage items, and only one of the plans will provide cover for each and every one of them. That would be Supplement Plan F, which is known as a full coverage plan. Plan F is also the most expensive Medicare Supplement plan, and it is actually priced much higher than its real value, in many cases. When you compare it to similar plans like Supplement Plan G or Plan N, then you will notice that it is about 25% more expensive on average, but it doesn’t offer 25% more coverage. A plan that is similarly overpriced is Plan C, and along with Plan F, these two plans are now restricted under new legislation.

This legislation recently passed down has deemed these two plans are off limits to new subscribers. You can only sign up for them if you already have a subscription to them. At that point, you would be able to renew these plans, but even that may not be a good idea. We told you already that they are typically overpriced. Not every insurance company will charge far too much for them, but many do, and that problem is only going to be exacerbated now that no new signups will be occurring with these plans. Without new subscribers, the current subscribers have to make the plans profitable for the insurance companies, and that means increased rates.

Comparing the Costs

The cost of a Medicare Supplement plan is not something we can simply list for you here. We can’t give you an exhaustive list of rates for these plans, since the plans are sold by private insurance companies, and each company has its own rates set for the plans.

That means that if 50 different insurance companies sell Supplement Plan F, then there will be about 50 different prices for the plan. It’s actually even more than that, though, since the prices change from state to state. So, the same insurance company can charge different prices based on where you live. If you sign up for one of their plans, and you move to a different state, then you may need to pay a different rate for that plan. You’ll want to compare Medicare Supplement plans for 2020 and their prices to ensure you get a good deal.

The rates can also change from time to time. Most insurance companies will increase their rates about once a year. This helps them stay up with the rate of inflation and the cost of living. If you sign up for a Supplement plan for a full year, at the end of that year, when your term is up, you will have to pay the new rate when you renew your plan. Of course, you are not obligated to renew the coverage plan. You can always cancel it or choose a different plan entirely, but you need to be aware that prices will change, usually by increasing.

When you compare the prices, you can figure out who is offering a good price and who is charging too much. We recommend that you compare as many prices as possible. That way, you improve your chances of finding a really good deal. If you just go with the first plan that seems like it has a decent price, you may miss out on some really good deals.

Medicare Supplements will cost you each month as you pay the premium. You can find premiums that aren’t terribly expensive if you compare prices, but you also have to take into account your other medical costs. You have to pay deductibles and premiums on Original Medicare as well, unless some of those costs are covered by your Supplement plan. We suggest looking at plans that cover those expense you are already paying regularly related to your Original Medicare coverage. That way, you can consolidate costs and play less out of pocket.

Consider as well that some medical expenses are costlier when they are covered by an insurance plan. Take any cost you pay only once per year, for example. These costs are not repeated, and yet your plan will cover you for them for the duration of the year. The extra money you pay out in coverage for that one item may be more than what you would pay out of pocket just to have that expense covered. Be sure to compare costs related to the plans to the costs you are paying now for medical care. Weigh your options to determine what the best choice is.

Keep in mind that there are 10 different Supplement plans to pick from. You can choose one that covers you exactly like to need to be, since there are so many options with slightly different coverage. You can ensure that only the necessities are covered and that you are not paying to have any extra coverage provided that you do not need.

As your costs increase for medical care each year, consider how Supplement plans can cut those costs and make it easier for you to afford the healthcare you have to have. If you don’t have the right coverage plan, then you may not go to the hospital or doctor’s office when you need to. You may fear the expenses that will accrue and just they to wait it out and see if your problem goes away on its own. People who have fitting insurance plans to cover their medical expenses are more likely to go to the hospital when they need treatment and see their doctor when they have a medical problem. Seniors tend to live longer and healthier when they have a good healthcare coverage plan, as they take better care of themselves. Keep that in mind as you plan your coverage and take the time to pick a suitable plan.

Consider Advantage Plans Too

We also want you to think about your other options for medical coverage. There are some other insurance plans that could work very well in covering your healthcare costs and giving you peace of mind about your medical care. Medicare Advantage plans offer a superb alternative to Medicare Supplements, covering some of the same expenses but also some very different ones too.

Most Advantage plans provide powerful coverage that manages to take care of medical expenses that are fairly common for seniors. This includes coverage for a lot of your Medicare Part A and Part B costs. In fact, Advantage plans can take over for Original Medicare, taking its place and covering most of the same expenses. They won’t cover you for hospice care, but they make up for that by providing coverage for emergency medical services like ambulance transport and urgently needed services like some medications and lab tests.

Many of the Advantage plans will also cover the cost of Medicare Part D, which includes coverage for prescription drug costs. They may also cover the cost of your check ups you have each year, or should be having each year. You would be able to visit the optometrist and other specialists for regular checkups and even get some of your related expenses covered, such as the cost of new eyeglasses.

Advantage plans are worth considering for every senior, but if you are convinced that Supplement plans are right for you, then you need to take time to compare them. Compare Medicare Supplement plans for 2020 to see how different ones stack up and to see how they might cover you in ways that are relevant to your needs. If you can manage to do that and put in that effort, then you will be rewarded with lower costs and affordable healthcare.