Medicare Supplement

Medigap in Colorado Springs: how the standardized letters fit with Original Medicare

Colorado Springs sits in El Paso County, where retirees who stick with Original Medicare often pair it with a Medicare Supplement policy — better known as Medigap — to help with the out-of-pocket costs that Parts A and B leave behind. The rules that shape which Medigap you can buy are set in Washington and in Denver, not by any one insurance agent, and knowing them ahead of time makes the shopping much simpler.

What "standardized" really means

Medigap is federally standardized in most states, including Colorado. That means a Plan G from one company covers the same medical benefits as a Plan G from another company. The letter is the benefit package. What can differ between companies is the premium, how that premium is calculated as you age, and customer-service extras — not the covered benefits themselves.

Three states — Massachusetts, Minnesota and Wisconsin — standardize differently. Colorado does not, so the federal letter chart applies here.

The letters you can buy in Colorado today

If you are newly eligible for Medicare, the letters available in Colorado are A, B, D, G, G-HD (a high-deductible version of Plan G), K, L, M and N. Plans C and F remain on the market only for people who were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.

Each letter builds a different mix of cost sharing. Some (like K and L) share a percentage of costs up to a yearly limit. The high-deductible G asks you to meet a deductible before it pays. Plan N uses small copays for some visits. The table below lists every plan letter side by side so you can see which gaps each one fills.

There is no single "best" letter. The right fit depends on how often you see doctors, how predictable you want your bills to be, and how the premium is priced.

How Medigap fits with Original Medicare and Part D

Medigap is designed to pair with Original Medicare (Part A hospital and Part B medical). After Medicare pays its share, your Medigap policy picks up some or all of what is left, depending on the letter.

Medigap does not cover prescription drugs. For that, you enroll in a stand-alone Medicare Part D plan. A few 2026 Part D facts worth knowing:

• The Part D annual out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 in 2026.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $615.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap is gone as of 2025 — Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year in monthly installments.

If your income is above $109,000 as a single filer in 2026, an IRMAA surcharge can apply to your Part B and Part D premiums.

Important: you cannot have a Medigap policy and a Medicare Advantage plan at the same time. Medigap only works with Original Medicare.

The state rules that shape the choice

Your strongest protection is the federal Medigap Open Enrollment Period: the six months that start the month you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During that window, insurers must sell you any Medigap they offer and cannot charge more or turn you down because of health.

Outside that window, medical underwriting can come into play unless you have a federal guaranteed-issue right (for example, if you lose other coverage in specific ways). Colorado also has additional consumer protections that can affect switching later — including rules relating to disability and end-stage renal disease eligibility. Because these state-level rights change over time, confirm the current details with the Colorado Division of Insurance or Colorado SHIP before you make a move.

One more piece of the puzzle: how the premium is priced. Medigap policies can be "issue-age," "attained-age," or "community-rated," and that pricing method affects how your premium changes as you get older. Ask any company how its policy is rated before you sign.

How to shop in Colorado Springs without naming names

There is no CMS insurer list published for Colorado Medigap in the data we work from, so we are not naming carriers here. Instead, use these official tools to see who sells what in the Colorado Springs ZIP codes:

• Medicare.gov's Medigap policy search — enter your ZIP code to see companies licensed to sell each letter in your area.
• The Colorado Division of Insurance Medigap rate guide — a state-published comparison of premium ranges.
• Colorado SHIP (the State Health Insurance Assistance Program) — free, unbiased counseling by phone or in person.
• 1-800-MEDICARE, available 24/7.