Medicare Supplement

Before you call a Medigap insurer in Jacksonville, ask this

If you are shopping for a Medicare Supplement policy in Jacksonville, one fact tends to surprise people: a Plan G is a Plan G is a Plan G. The letter tells you the coverage. What changes from one insurer to the next is the price, how that price will move over time, and the rules for getting approved. That is where the real comparison happens.

Medicare SupplementJacksonville, FL

Jacksonville is in Duval County, and Florida sets the standardized Medigap letters that insurers may sell here. Below is a plain-English guide to lining up the same letter across different companies so you can compare apples to apples.

The letter is the coverage — the insurer is the price

Medigap plans sold today are standardized by the federal government. That means Plan G from Insurer A and Plan G from Insurer B pay the same share of the same Medicare-covered costs. If Original Medicare approves a service, every Plan G in Florida handles the leftover pieces the same way.

So when you compare, you are not comparing benefits. You are comparing:

• The monthly premium today
• The method the insurer uses to raise premiums as you age
• The company's track record of rate increases
• Discounts you might qualify for
• Whether you can get in without medical underwriting

The three pricing methods to ask about

This is the piece most Jacksonville shoppers miss. Florida allows insurers to price Medigap policies in different ways, and two policies with similar starting premiums can look very different ten years later.

• Attained-age rated. The premium is based on your current age and generally rises as you get older, on top of any across-the-board increases. This is the most common approach in Florida.
• Issue-age rated. The premium is based on your age when you first bought the policy. It can still rise with inflation and claims trends, but not simply because you had another birthday.
• Community rated. Everyone in the same area pays the same premium regardless of age. Increases still happen, but age is not a personal factor.

None of these is automatically "better." A lower attained-age premium at 65 can climb faster than a higher issue-age premium over 15 years. Ask each insurer, in writing, which method it uses for the letter you want.

Rate history matters more than the sticker price

Two insurers can quote similar first-year premiums and then behave very differently. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation publishes a Medigap rate guide that shows companies selling in the state and, for many, historical rate information. The Florida SHINE program (Florida's SHIP) can also walk you through it at no cost.

When you call an insurer or an agent, ask:

• What have your Plan [letter] rate increases looked like over the past three to five years in Florida?
• Do you increase rates by age band, by ZIP code, or statewide?
• When was your most recent rate change filed?

Companies are not required to predict the future, but a consistent pattern tells you something.

Household discounts and other discounts

Many insurers in Florida offer a household discount — often in the range of a few percent up to around 12% — when more than one adult in the same home has a policy with that company. Some apply the discount even if only one spouse enrolls, as long as another adult lives in the household. Rules and amounts vary by insurer.

Ask specifically:

• Do you offer a household or spousal discount on this plan letter?
• Do both people need to be enrolled to get it?
• Is the discount permanent or does it phase out?

Underwriting: your window matters

During your six-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period — which starts the month you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B — insurers in Florida must sell you any Medigap plan they offer, at their standard rate, regardless of health. You may also have "guaranteed issue" rights in certain situations, such as losing other coverage.

Outside those windows, insurers can use medical underwriting. That means they can ask health questions and can decline you or charge more. Different companies have different underwriting rules, so a person turned down at one insurer may be accepted at another. If you are past your open enrollment window, ask an agent to pre-screen you with more than one company before you formally apply.

Florida also has a "birthday rule" that lets current Medigap policyholders switch to an equal or lesser plan from any insurer within a set window around their birthday, without underwriting. Ask your SHINE counselor or agent for the current rules.

How to actually find the insurers selling in Duval County

Because insurer lists change, use the official sources rather than a memorized list:

1. Go to Medicare.gov and use the Medigap policy search. Enter your Jacksonville ZIP code to see which companies file Medigap policies for your area, and which letters each one sells. 2. Check the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation Medigap rate guide for filings and, where available, rate history. 3. Call Florida SHINE (Florida's State Health Insurance Assistance Program) for free, unbiased help sorting through your options. 4. Call 1-800-MEDICARE with questions about how Medigap works alongside Original Medicare and Part D.

The table on this page lists the standardized plan letters available to people newly eligible for Medicare today in Florida: A, B, D, G, high-deductible G, K, L, M, and N. Plans C and F remain available only to those eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.

A quick word on Part D

Medigap does not cover prescription drugs, so most people pair it with a standalone Part D plan. For 2026, Part D has a $2,100 out-of-pocket cap, a maximum deductible of $615, and no coverage gap (the "donut hole" was eliminated as of 2025). The optional Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the year in monthly installments.