If you're on traditional Medicare, you already know the importance of having a medigap plan. Medigap is private supplemental insurance that helps fill gaping holes in traditional Medicare's government- administered coverage, like the $1,556 Part A deductible for hospital care or Part B coinsurance for doctor services, typically 20% in addition to this year's $233 Part B deductible.
There are 10 types of medigap plans, each labeled by a letter from A to N, and every plan with the same letter has identical benefits, even if the insurer is different. But the monthly premiums can be worlds apart. Depending on the insurer, a 70-year-old male in South Carolina could pay anywhere from $95.92 to $353.45 a month for medigap Plan G, even though the coverage is identical, says John Hill, president and CEO of Gateway Retirement in Rock Hill, S.C.