Page 2 - Evaluation for Jerri Zerlaut

Medigap policies do not include prescription drug benefits, and so you will also need to enroll in
a Part D stand-alone drug plan, as discussed in the Rx drug coverage section below. Also,
Medigap policies do not cover routine dental and vision care or hearing aids. Plans F, G, and N
include some benefits for medical emergencies while traveling outside the United States (as
shown on pages 6-7).

Here are summaries of the four Medigap options compared in your evaluation. They are listed
in the order of their comprehensiveness.

1) Medigap Plan F. This is the most comprehensive any Medigap plan, covering all of
Medicare’s gaps. That means that if you get Plan F, you will have no cost-sharing for
Medicare-covered services. Beginning in 2020, Plan F will no longer be sold, although
people who already own Plan F may keep it. In Anne Arundel County, you can likely
purchase a Plan F policy for $1,725 a year or perhaps less.

2) Medigap Plan G. This plan is identical to Plan F except that it does not cover the Part B
deductible, which in 2017 is $183. In some cases, people can trim their costs by
choosing Plan G instead of Plan F. That’s because they save more in their annual
premiums than they will pay for the Part B deductible. Also, a few people do not spend
enough to satisfy the deductible, and therefore they are likely to save a few dollars. Not
as many companies sell Plan G as sell Plan F, but in Maryland a fair number do. Your
annual premiums will likely be in the $1,525 range.

3) Medigap Plan N. This is slightly less comprehensive than Plans F and G and it has some
small gaps (pages 6-7 show where these gaps are). People in relatively good health who
don’t go to the doctor frequently will likely save $200-$300 a year compared to
choosing the higher-premium Plan F. In this plan you will have some small co-payments
from time to time, though. Estimated annual premiums are $1,250 a year.

4) Medicare Plan L. This is the least comprehensive of the Medigap plans compared in the
evaluation. One nice feature of Plan L is its low $2,480 out-of-pocket limit – it is the only
Medigap plan in your evaluation that has an OOP limit. But the limit does not include
premiums and applies only to the services the plan covers. As an example, the Part B
deductible ($183 in 2017) is not covered by this plan and so any money you spend
toward the deductible will not apply to the out-of-pocket limit. Annual premiums for
Plan L are about $1,125.

If you want to consider a less comprehensive Medigap plan like Plan L, the UnitedHealthcare
policies endorsed by AARP will permit you to upgrade later to a more comprehensive plan
without answering health-related questions. Some people choose one of the less expensive
Medigap plans sold by UnitedHealthcare (or UHC) – Plan L, for instance – knowing that if they
later want to upgrade to a different plan, they can do so without going through underwriting. If
that is something you want to consider, you should verify with UHC that you’ll later be able to
switch to a higher-level plan without answering questions about your health.

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