Medicare Supplement

Medigap in Cranston: What the Plan Letters Really Mean

CRANSTON, R.I. — If you've started looking into Medicare Supplement Insurance — better known as Medigap — you've probably noticed the plans go by letters: A, B, D, G, K, L, M, N. It can feel like alphabet soup. The good news? Those letters aren't random, and once you know how they work, choosing becomes a lot less stressful.

A Cranston Reader's Guide to Medigap Basics

Cranston is in Providence County, and Rhode Islanders here have the same standardized Medigap options that exist across most of the country. Here's what to know before you make a decision you might regret later.

What Medigap Actually Does

Medigap is private insurance that works alongside Original Medicare (Part A and Part B). After Medicare pays its share of a covered service, Medigap can help pick up some of what's left — things like coinsurance, copayments, and certain deductibles.

A few important points from Medicare.gov:

• Medigap only works with Original Medicare. It does not work with Medicare Advantage.
• You must already be enrolled in Part A and Part B.
• Medigap policies generally don't include prescription drug coverage — that's Part D's job.
• Each Medigap policy covers one person. Spouses need their own policies.

Why the Letters Are Standardized

Here's the part that trips people up. In most states, including Rhode Island, Medigap plans are standardized by the federal government. That means Plan G from one insurance company covers the same core benefits as Plan G from another company. The benefits inside each lettered plan are set by law.

What can differ between companies:

• The premium you pay
• Customer service and billing
• Optional extras a company may add on

So if two carriers both sell Plan N, the coverage is the same — but the price and service may not be. That's why comparing is worth the time.

A Quick Look at the Letter Options

Medigap plans available today include A, B, D, G, K, L, M, and N. Plans C and F are still held by people who had them before, but they are no longer sold to people who became eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020, because those plans covered the Part B deductible.

Each letter offers a different mix of coverage for things like:

• Part A hospital coinsurance and extra hospital days
• Part B coinsurance or copayments
• The first three pints of blood
• Skilled nursing facility coinsurance
• Foreign travel emergency care (on some plans)

Plans K and L have out-of-pocket limits and cover a percentage of certain costs rather than the full amount. Plan N has small copays for some office and ER visits.

You can see the full side-by-side benefit chart at Medicare.gov.

The Mistake Most People Make: Missing Their Open Enrollment Window

This is the big one. Your Medigap Open Enrollment Period is a six-month window that starts the first month you're 65 and enrolled in Part B. During this window:

• Insurance companies cannot turn you down for health reasons.
• They cannot charge you more because of pre-existing conditions.
• You get the widest choice of plans at the best available rate for your situation.

After that window closes, you can still apply — but in most cases, insurers can use medical underwriting, which means they can ask health questions, charge more, or deny you outright. Rhode Island has some additional protections in specific situations, but the safest move is to use your initial window wisely.

How Medigap Fits With the Rest of Medicare in 2026

Medigap doesn't touch your drug coverage, so most people with Medigap also enroll in a stand-alone Part D plan. A few 2026 program-level facts worth knowing:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 for 2026 — once you hit it, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615.
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone as of 2025. Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly amounts instead of paying big bills at the pharmacy.
• IRMAA — the income-related surcharge on Part B and Part D — kicks in above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026.

Key dates: Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7, and Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment runs January 1 – March 31. Note that Medigap has its own enrollment rules, separate from these windows.