Blog / General Medicare
📋 General Medicare
By Mike Miligi, Certified Medicare Insurance Planner- Michael M Insurance Services
Medigap bills have jumped sharply for 2026. Here’s what’s driving it, why guarantee-issue states are feeling it hardest, and the alternatives worth a real look — including one plan most people have never considered.
If your Medicare Supplement renewal notice landed with a bigger number than you expected this year, you’re not imagining it, and you’re not alone. Across the country, Medigap carriers have been filing some of the steepest rate increases seen in years — in many cases well into double digits, and in a handful of markets even higher. This isn’t a billing error or a fluke with your specific carrier. It’s a broader shift in the Medigap market, and understanding why it’s happening puts you in a much better position to respond.
$202.90*
Standard Medicare Part B premium for 2026, up from $185 — every dollar of it flows straight into Medigap claims costs.
$38.99*
2026 Part D base beneficiary premium, a 6% increase — the maximum allowed under current law.
$2,950*
2026 deductible for High Deductible Plan G, a lower-premium alternative worth a closer look this year.
*All three figures are 2026 amounts and are expected to increase again for 2027 — CMS typically announces updated Part B, Part D, and Medigap deductible amounts in the fall.
A few forces are hitting the Medigap market at the same time, and they compound rather than cancel out:
Medigap plans exist to cover what Original Medicare doesn’t — largely the 20% coinsurance on Part B services. When the Part B premium and deductible rise, as they did again for 2026, the underlying medical costs Medigap is on the hook for rise too. Higher claims costs eventually show up as higher premiums, because Medigap carriers are required to price to their actual claims experience.
Plans C and F closed to anyone newly eligible for Medicare starting in 2020. That means the pool of people holding those older, richer plans only gets older each year — no new, generally healthier 65-year-olds are coming in behind them to balance the risk. Plan G has absorbed most new enrollment since then, but even Plan G pools are maturing, and insurers price accordingly.
Healthcare prices and the volume of services used per person have both been climbing steadily. More visits,
more outpatient procedures, more imaging — all of it lands as claims on the Medigap side, and claims trend is
the single biggest input into next year’s rate filing
In states with year-round guaranteed issue or full community rating, insurers can’t turn applicants away or charge more based on health, and in community-rated states, they generally can’t charge more based on age either — everyone in a given plan pays close to the same rate regardless of when they enrolled. That’s real consumer protection, and it matters. But it also means the entire pool absorbs rising claims costs together, without the offsetting effect that fresh, lower-utilization 65-year-olds provide in age-rated states. When claims trend up in a community-rated, guarantee-issue market, the increase tends to show up faster and larger across the whole book of business. If you’re in one of these states, it’s worth understanding your state’s specific rating method — it explains a lot about why the increase looked the way it did.
It’s easy to look at a Medigap renewal in isolation, but for most people the real number that matters is the total monthly cost of coverage: Part B, Medigap, and a Part D drug plan (or the drug coverage bundled into Medicare Advantage) all together. And Part D has its own cost pressure right now. The national base beneficiary premium for 2026 rose to $38.99, a 6% increase — the maximum allowed under current federal rules — while the standard Part D deductible rose as well. Insurers’ actual bids for drug coverage moved up even more sharply behind the scenes, largely driven by the rising cost of prescription drugs.
The practical effect: even if your specific Medigap increase looks moderate, a same-year jump in your Part D premium can push your combined monthly outlay up considerably more than either number suggests on its own.
Part B premium
Standard 2026 amount
$202.90
Medigap premium
Illustrative example — yours will vary by plan, carrier, and state
$175
Part D premium
Illustrative example — plan-specific
$45
Total monthly cost of coverage
$422.90
The Medigap and Part D figures above are illustrative only, to show how the pieces stack — not a quote. Your actual numbers depend on your plan, carrier, ZIP code, and current rates.
Because Medigap benefits are standardized by federal law, a Plan G from one carrier covers exactly the same things as a Plan G from another — price is the only real variable. If your current carrier’s increase was steep, a competitor may offer the identical benefit for meaningfully less. Switching carriers for the same or lesser plan usually requires medical underwriting outside your original enrollment window, though a number of states have a “birthday rule” or similar provision allowing an annual switch without health questions — worth checking for your specific state.
This is one of the most underused options on the table. High Deductible Plan G provides the exact same coverage as standard Plan G — it just doesn’t kick in until you’ve paid $2,950 in Medicare-approved cost sharing for the year (2026 amount). Medicare still pays its share from day one; you’re simply responsible for more of the remaining 20% upfront. In exchange, the monthly premium is substantially lower — often low enough that even a year with real medical use still comes out ahead of standard Plan G’s higher premium. For someone in reasonably good health who mainly wants protection against a catastrophic year rather than first dollar coverage, it’s worth running the actual numbers.
Plan N carries a noticeably lower premium than Plan G in most markets, in exchange for small fixed copays (up to $20 for some office visits, up to $50 for an ER visit that doesn’t result in admission) and responsibility for any Part B excess charges. For people who don’t expect frequent specialist visits, the premium savings can outweigh the modest copays.
Medicare Advantage plans bundle Part B, typically Part D, and often dental, vision, and hearing benefits, frequently for a low or $0 monthly premium, with a built-in annual out-of-pocket maximum that Original Medicare alone doesn’t have. That structure can be a meaningfully cheaper path for people who are cost sensitive and comfortable with a plan network, referrals, and prior authorization requirements. It’s a real trade off, not a strict upgrade or downgrade from Medigap — flexibility and no networks on one side, lower monthly cost and capped exposure on the other.
Moving from a Medigap plan into Medicare Advantage is usually easy to do. Moving back is often not. If you drop your Medigap policy and later decide Medicare Advantage isn’t the right fit, getting back into a Medigap plan may require answering health questions in most states — and if your health has changed, you could be charged more or turned down entirely. A small number of situations, like a Trial Right period for first-time Medicare Advantage enrollees, provide protection for exactly this scenario. This is one of the more consequential decisions in this whole discussion, and it’s worth a real conversation before acting rather than a decision made from a renewal notice alone.
Staying in Medigap — potentially shopping carriers or moving to HD Plan G or Plan N — keeps you free of networks and referrals.
Medicare Advantage may meaningfully reduce your monthly outlay, in exchange for a network and plan rules to work within.
Quick Questions, Straight Answers
A combination of rising Part B costs, medical inflation, higher utilization, and an aging risk pool (since Plans C and F stopped accepting new enrollees in 2020) is pushing claims costs up across the industry — and premiums follow claims costs.
Medigap premiums are priced based on the entire risk pool’s claims experience, not your individual claims history. Your rate reflects what everyone in your plan and rating group is costing the insurer collectively.
Community-rated plans charge the same premium to everyone regardless of age; attained-age plans increase your premium as you get older. Community rating spreads cost more evenly but means the whole pool — not just older members — absorbs rising claims together, which can make increases land harder and faster.
Yes — since Medigap benefits are standardized by plan letter, a Plan G is a Plan G no matter who sells it. Comparing carrier pricing for your exact plan letter is one of the most effective ways to lower your bill without giving up any coverage.
In most states, yes, outside your original Medigap enrollment window or a qualifying event. Some states offer a birthday rule or similar annual window that allows a switch to equal or lesser coverage without health questions — this varies by state.
It’s a state provision that gives you a window — often around your birthday — to switch to a different Medigap carrier offering equal or lesser benefits, without answering health questions. Not all states have this rule, so it’s worth confirming for your own state.
It tends to work well for people in reasonably good health who want protection against a catastrophic year rather than first-dollar coverage on every visit. The lower premium can outpace the deductible exposure even in years with meaningful medical use — it’s worth running your specific numbers.
It depends entirely on your current premium and how much medical care you typically use in a year — there’s no single answer that applies to everyone. A side-by-side comparison using your actual current premium against HD Plan G’s premium and $2,950 deductible (2026 amount) is the only way to know for sure.
It can meaningfully lower your monthly cost, but it’s a real trade-off — you take on a plan network, referrals, and prior authorization requirements in exchange. It’s worth comparing honestly against your own providers and health needs rather than deciding on price alone.
Not automatically. Outside specific protections like a Trial Right period for first-time Medicare Advantage enrollees, returning to Medigap in most states means going through medical underwriting again — so this decision deserves real thought before you act, not just a reaction to this year’s bill.
