OHIO MEDIGAP POLICIES AVAILABLE IN 2012

OHIO MEDIGAP POLICIES AVAILABLE IN 2012

by George Jacobs, author of Managing Your Medicare, published by Self-Counsel Press

I have done an extensive analysis of the Medigap (Medicare supplement) policies currently available to Medicare beneficiaries. This is because the structure of new policies available to beneficiaries changed in June 2010, and by now there is enough information to give some guidance on both the availability and prices of the newly structured policies.

There is no need to go into explaining the new structure; this is all spelled out in Managing Your Medicare, on page 157. Or you can call 1-800-686-1578 and ask that the Ohio Department of Insurance send you its excellent and up-to-date “Guide to Medicare Supplement Insurance, Medicare Options and Part D.” But what I have available here is information, for those age 65, which is when most beneficiaries get a Medigap policy, on the number of policies available, the lowest priced one available, the highest priced one available, and the average price. Even better, this information is given for each policy type. There is also, for fee-for-service or standard policies, a quick comparison of the average price of each policy type to type “A”, the “basic” policy, so you can easily determine roughly how much more or less the policy type you are looking at compares to the basic one, or indeed, to any other policy type. All this is easier to show than explain. Information on SELECT or network policies is also given; usually you have to go to a doctor, hospital or provider in the insurer’s network to get full reimbursement for these types of Medigap policies, but the premiums are usually less.

A word of caution, though. The rates shown are “sample” rates only, and what you will be quoted by the insurance company will differ from these rates for a variety of reasons, including your gender, where you live in Ohio, how and how often you pay your premiums, your past medical claims, whether you use tobacco, and so forth. But the charts will give you an excellent idea of what the different policy types (“letters”) cost compared to each other, so you can decide which of these most interest you, and also as to which companies have low premiums.

One piece of information no longer shown in the Department’s charts is how the policies are “rated.” Based on past experience, most policies in Ohio are “Attained-Age-Rated” policies, and the premiums you pay for these will tend to increase as you get older. On the other hand, a few policies are “Issue-Age-Rated” policies, and won’t increase because you get older, but will increase because of new technology and medical inflation (as will Attained-Age-Rated policies). Therefore, if you buy an Issue-Age policy, you will perhaps pay a higher premium at first, but you will protect yourself against some future price increases as you age. (Based on past experience, AARP/United HealthCare, Aetna, Bankers Fidelity, Everence, and Transamerica have sold these, and, if interested, you may wish to call them about these.) With this exception, remember that for each policy type, the Medigap benefits are exactly the same no matter who sells it, and you should aggressively look for the best price. You will note significant differences in prices for the same policy type; in some cases by a factor of 2 or more!

This data was derived from the Ohio Department of Insurance website www.insurance.ohio.gov in June 2012. Premiums were reported in May 2012 and can change at any time. The dollar amounts shown below are the monthly cost of the policies.

Medigap Policies – Age 65 – Ohio

Policy A: The lowest price for a policy is $70, the highest is $178, and the average is $107. Some 39 different policies are available. Five SELECT policies, the lowest for $82, the highest for $143, are available. This “A” policy is the “basic” policy.

Policy B: The lowest price for a policy is $97, the highest is $203, and the average is $133. Some 20 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 24% more than a basic policy. Three SELECT policies, the lowest for $80, the highest for $149, are available.

Policy C: The lowest price for a policy is $118, the highest is $230, and the average is $148. Some 27 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 38% more than a basic policy. Eight SELECT policies, the lowest for $107, the highest for $160, are available. These “C” policies are popular.

Policy D: The lowest price for a policy is $96, the highest is $164, and the average is $123. Some 17 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 15% more than a basic policy. Six SELECT policies, the lowest for $87, the highest for $114, are available.

Policy F: The lowest price for a policy is $121, the highest is $194, and the average is $150. Some 38 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 40% more than a basic policy. Nine SELECT policies, the lowest for $107, the highest for $154, are available. These “F” policies cover all Medigap benefits and are popular.

Policy F – High Deductible: The lowest price for a policy is $26, the highest is $74, and the average is $51. Some 15 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 52% less than a basic policy. One SELECT policy is available for $41. The deductible in 2012 is $2,070.

Policy G: The lowest price for a policy is $96, the highest is $170, and the average is $129. Some 25 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost about 20% more than a basic policy. Seven SELECT policies, the lowest for $85, the highest for $127, are available.

Policy K: The lowest price for a policy is $48, the highest is $86, and the average is $72. Some 8 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 33% less than a basic policy. One SELECT policy is available, for $54. This “K” policy is the 50% catastrophic policy. The catastrophic level for this policy in 2012 is $4,660.

Policy L: The lowest price for a policy is $74, the highest is $121, and the average is $101. Some 8 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost 6% less than a basic policy. No SELECT policies are available. This “L” policy is the 75% catastrophic policy. The catastrophic level for this policy in 2012 is $2,330.

Policy M: The lowest price for a policy is $90, the highest is $147, and the average is $121. Some 8 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost about 13% more than a basic policy. No SELECT policies are available. This “M” policy is very new.

Policy N: The lowest price for a policy is $82, the highest is $150, and the average is $104. Some 28 different policies are available. On the whole, these cost about 3% less than a basic policy. Four SELECT policies, the lowest for $78, the highest for $105, are available. This “N” policy is very new.

If you email me at gjacobs23@windstream.net, I will send you a one-page Excel sheet which has more specific information.