Medicare Supplement

How Do Franklin County Medigap Insurers Actually Differ?

Columbus, Ohio — If you live in Franklin County and are shopping for a Medicare Supplement policy — better known as Medigap — you may have noticed something confusing: the same plan letter can look very different from one insurer to the next. The coverage inside a Plan G, for example, is set by federal rules. So why do people talk about "shopping" for it?

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The answer is that the coverage is standardized, but almost everything else — how the premium is calculated, how it changes over time, whether a household discount applies, and whether you have to answer health questions — is up to the insurer. Here is how to compare the same letter across the companies selling in Ohio, without getting lost.

The letter is the coverage — the company is everything else

Medigap plans are standardized by the federal government. That means a Plan G sold by Company A in Columbus covers the exact same Medicare cost-sharing as a Plan G sold by Company B down the street. Same deductibles left to you, same coinsurance picked up, same rules.

For people newly eligible for Medicare today, the standardized letters available are A, B, D, G, G-HD, K, L, M and N. Plans C and F remain available only to people who were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.

So when you compare "Plan G to Plan G" across insurers, you are really comparing companies, not coverage.

How to find the insurers selling in Franklin County

Ohio does not publish a single fixed list of Medigap carriers — the roster shifts as companies enter or leave the market. The most reliable ways to see who is selling which letter in your ZIP code:

• Medicare.gov Medigap policy search. Enter your Columbus ZIP code and the plan letter you are interested in. You will see the companies offering that letter in your area.
• Ohio Department of Insurance Medigap rate guide. The state publishes a guide that lists companies and premium ranges so you can compare in one place.
• Ohio SHIP (the Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program). Trained, unbiased counselors will walk you through the list for free.

The three pricing methods, and why they matter

The biggest reason two Plan Gs can have very different price tags — now and ten years from now — is the pricing method the insurer uses.

• Community-rated (also called "no-age-rated"). Everyone with that policy pays the same base premium, regardless of age. Premiums can still rise for inflation and claims.
• Issue-age-rated. Your premium is based on how old you were when you bought the policy. It does not go up just because you have a birthday, though it can rise for other reasons.
• Attained-age-rated. Your premium is based on your current age and typically increases as you get older.

None of these is universally "better." A policy that looks inexpensive at 65 under attained-age pricing may cost more at 80 than an issue-age policy would. Ask each insurer, in writing, which method they use.

Rate history: the number companies do not put on the brochure

Along with the pricing method, ask each insurer — or check the Ohio Department of Insurance rate guide — for the rate increase history on the specific plan letter you want. A carrier that has raised rates modestly and consistently over several years tells you something different than one with a big recent jump.

Rate history is public information in Ohio. It is one of the most useful comparison points and one of the most overlooked.

Household discounts and other company-level perks

Some Ohio insurers offer a household discount — a percentage off the premium if you live with another adult, or with a spouse who also has a policy with them. The rules and the percentage vary by company. Two insurers offering the identical Plan N might quote very different net premiums to a married couple because of this discount alone.

Other company-level differences to ask about:

• Payment method discounts (for example, electronic funds transfer).
• How claims are handled — most Medigap claims "crossover" automatically from Medicare, but service quality can differ.
• Company financial ratings from independent agencies (which are not the same as Medicare Star Ratings, and Medigap plans are not star-rated).

Underwriting: timing is often the biggest variable

During your Medigap Open Enrollment Period — the six-month window that starts when you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B — insurers in Ohio must sell you any Medigap policy they offer, at their best available rate, regardless of your health.

Outside that window, and outside of certain federal or Ohio "guaranteed issue" situations, insurers can use medical underwriting. That means they can ask health questions, and they can decline you or charge more based on the answers. Each company sets its own underwriting rules, so someone turned down by one carrier may be accepted by another.

If you are inside your one-time open enrollment window, that is usually the moment to shop carefully. If you are outside it, an Ohio SHIP counselor or a licensed independent agent can help you understand which carriers might accept your application.