Are you offering Medicare Supplement Plan N to your clients?

If you're not discussing Plan N with your clients, it's time to start. Why? It has very similar coverage to Plan G, which is clearly one of the most popular Med Supp plans out there, next to the Plan F. If your clients are unable to purchase a Plan F due to MACRA, then you may tend to encourage them to purchase a Plan G. And that's always been a smart move. However, the differences between Plan G and Plan N are as follows:

• Plan N requires policy holders to pay the Part B deductible ($240 in 2024)
• Plan N requires policy holders to cover the cost of any copays (up to $20 for some office visits and up to $50 for ER visits)
• Plan N requires policy holders to pay any Part B excess charges (15% more than what Medicare covers).

Here's where it gets really interesting though. The vast majority of Plan N policy holders never end up paying the Part B excess charges because nearly every doctor in the U.S. (96%) who accepts Medicare, only charges the amount Medicare has approved for their services. So what does that mean? It means that your Plan N clients will likely only pay the cost-share copays and the Part B deductible.

Let's dig a little more into the Plan G vs. Plan N discussion. 
If your clients purchase a Plan N:

• they will have nearly identical coverage to Plan G
• their premiums will definitely be lower
• they will likely not experience rate increases as quickly as those with Plan G
• their out-of-pocket costs will be the Part B deductible and any copays they may incur​

Medigap Benefits	Plan G	Plan N
Medicare Part A Coinsurance and Hospital Costs up to an Additional 365 days after Medicare Benefits are Used up	100%	100%
Medicare Part B Coinsurance or Copayment	100%	100%*
Blood (first 3 pints)	100%	100%
Part A Hospice Care Coinsurance or Copayment	100%	100%
Skilled Nursing Facility Care Coinsurance	100%	100%
Medicare Part A Deductible	100%	100%
Medicare Part B Deductible	0%	0%
Medicare Part B Excess Charges	100%	0%
Foreign Travel Emergency (up to plan limits)	80%	80%

*Plan N pays 100% of the Part B coinsurance, except for a copayment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to a $50 copayment for emergency room visits that don’t result in admission.

Consider offering Plan N to your clients and carefully explain to them the cost differences, and how in the end, Plan N might be their better option, especially if they don't visit the doctor frequently. In the end, they could wind up saving more money over a Plan G and have the best coverage for their needs.​

By Carolyn Portanova

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