Medicare Supplement Plan F vs Plan G vs Plan N

Hello, Medicare community. My name is Ashley Zaretzny, your Medicare expert for Elite Insurance Partners and MedicareFAQ.com. In today's video, we are going to break down the differences between Medicare Supplement Plan F vs. Plan G vs. Plan N. Before we dive into the differences between each plan's benefits, it is important to note the changes that have impacted those new to Original Medicare The year in which you become eligible for Medicare directly determines the Medicare Supplement Plans you can enroll in. Thus, if you were eligible for Medicare before 2020, you can enroll in any of the top three plans, that being Medicare Supplement Plan F, Plan G, or Plan N. If you were not eligible for Original Medicare until after January 1, 2020, you will not be able to enroll in Medicare Supplement Plan F. Your options will be Medicare Supplement Plan G or Medicare Supplement Plan N. The first plan we will discuss is Medicare Supplement Plan F. Remember, if you were eligible for Original Medicare before 2020, you can enroll in this plan. If you were not eligible for Medicare until after January 1, 2020, you will not be able to enroll in Plan F. Medicare Supplement Plan F is considered a first-dollar coverage plan because it will leave you with zero out-of-pocket costs outside of your monthly premium. So, with Plan F, you have no cost-sharing. This includes deductibles, co-insurance, and co-payments. Because of this, Medicare Supplement Plan F is considered the most comprehensive plan when it comes to benefits. Now, if you find your monthly premium for Medicare Supplement Plan F to be too high, Medicare Supplement Plan G is a great alternative. Plan G is a close second to Medicare Supplement Plan F in terms of coverage because it covers almost the exact same benefits except for the Medicare Part B deductible. This means that once you meet the annual Part B deductible, you will have full coverage for all of your out-of-pocket expenses, including co-payments, co-insurance, and Medicare Part A deductibles. The only out-of-pocket cost you will pay after the Medicare Part B deductible is your monthly premium for Medicare Supplement Plan G. Finally, Medicare Supplement Plan N. Plan N has quickly become one of the most popular Medicare Supplement plans that our clients choose to enroll in. Medicare Supplement Plan N is considered a cost-sharing plan because when you visit the doctor's office or emergency room, you will be responsible for paying a small co-payment. These co-pays help keep your monthly premium low. When you go to the doctor's office or a specialist, your co-payment is $20. If you end up in the emergency room, you will have a co-payment of $50 unless you are admitted. In this case, your co-payment will be waived. In addition to the co-payments, you will also be responsible for the Medicare Part B deductible, as well as any excess charges. However, you may not need to worry about excess charges as many states do not allow them, and many doctors in the states that do allow them will not charge the excess charge. Quick tip! If you can visit an urgent care facility, you will not be required to pay a co-payment for your visit. So if your injury or illness is not severe, this could be an easy route to avoid a co-payment. Now let's compare the difference in premiums for each plan. For example, let's say Medicare Supplement Plan F costs $190 in monthly premium. If you multiply that by 12, that gives you a total annual premium of $2,280. Since Plan F is considered a first-dollar coverage plan, this is the only out-of-pocket expense you will pay for the year. Remember, this plan is only available for those eligible before January 1, 2020. Now let's review Plan G. Let's say the Medicare Supplement Plan G monthly premium is $150. If you multiply that by 12, you will pay a total annual premium of $1,800. In addition to the annual premium, you will be responsible for the Medicare Part B deductible. It is important to compare your total out-of-pocket costs with Plan G and Plan F because often you will find the Medicare Supplement Plan G is more cost-effective over the course of a year. For example, if you take the annual premium for the Medicare Supplement Plan F and compare it side-by-side to the Plan G, you will see that after you pay the Part B deductible, you actually save money over the year when compared to a Plan F. Now let's look at a premium example for Medicare Supplement Plan N. Let's say Plan N costs you a total premium of $140 each month. If you multiply that by 12, you will pay a total annual premium of $1,680. In addition to your annual premium, you will be responsible for paying the Medicare Part B deductible, a $20 copayment when you visit your doctor's office, and a $50 copayment at the emergency room. Copayments are important to consider if you visit the doctor often. If this is the case, Medicare Supplement Plan G may be the better option for you. However, if you do not visit the doctor often, Plan N may be the most cost-effective option. For example, if you only visit the doctor's office twice a year, you will pay an additional $40 in copayments for the year on top of your annual premium and the Medicare Part B deductible. On the other hand, if you visit the doctor once a month, you will pay an additional $240 in copayments for the year. In this case, it may make more sense for you to enroll in a Medicare Supplement Plan G. It is important to remember that premiums vary from state to state. So while a beneficiary in Oregon may find that Plan F is cheaper annually, another beneficiary in Nebraska may find that Plan G is cheaper annually. To recap, Plan F will give you the most benefits. However, the more benefits you have, the higher your monthly premium will be. With Plan G, the only thing you will be responsible for outside of the monthly premium is the Medicare Part B deductible. And finally, with Plan N, the only out-of-pocket costs you are responsible for outside of your monthly premium is the Medicare Part B deductible, small copayments when visiting the doctor, and excess charges when applicable. Thank you so much for watching. I hope you found this video helpful. If you did, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Don't forget to turn on notifications so you're notified each time we upload a new video. We also have a fantastic Medicare community on Facebook. We'll leave a link in the description below so you can join. Until next time, bye!