Medicare Supplement

Newly eligible in Laredo? Plans C and F are off the table

LAREDO, Texas — If you have a Medigap policy in Webb County, or you are shopping for one this fall, a few moving parts are worth knowing before the calendar flips to 2026. The plan letters you can buy, the Part B deductible that Plans G and N are built around, and the annual rate filings insurers send to Texas regulators all reset on their own schedules — and none of them line up neatly with Medicare's Oct. 15–Dec. 7 Annual Enrollment Period.

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Here is a plain-language guide to what is changing, what is not, and where to check the numbers for yourself.

What Medigap actually is (and what it is not)

Medigap, also called Medicare Supplement Insurance, is a private policy that helps pay some of what Original Medicare (Parts A and B) leaves behind — things like coinsurance and hospital costs. It is standardized by the federal government, which means a Plan G from one Texas insurer covers the same medical items as a Plan G from another. What differs is the price and the company behind it.

Medigap does not include prescription drug coverage. If you want Part D, you enroll in a separate stand-alone drug plan.

Plan-letter eligibility: who can buy what

The rule that trips people up most in Laredo is this one: Plans C and F are closed to anyone who became eligible for Medicare on or after Jan. 1, 2020. If you were eligible before that date, you may still be able to buy or keep them. Everyone else chooses from the currently open letters: A, B, D, G, G-HD, K, L, M and N.

That is why Plans G and N get so much attention — they are the mainstream options for newly eligible enrollees who want comprehensive coverage.

The table below lists every insurer selling Medigap in Texas and the plan letters each one offers. You will see, for example, that AARP - UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company, BlueCross BlueShield of Texas, Humana (Emphesys Insurance Company) and Mutual of Omaha (Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company) each offer more than one letter, while smaller carriers like Texas Farm Bureau Health Plans and USAA Life Insurance Company have shorter lineups.

The Part B deductible reset that shapes Plans G and N

Plans G and N are built around a simple structure: you pay the annual Part B deductible yourself, and after that, the plan picks up your share of most Part B services. That deductible is a federal number set by Medicare, and it resets every January.

For 2026, the current-year figure is published on medicare.gov. Check it before you renew, because it is the out-of-pocket amount that hits your wallet first each year — regardless of which insurer's Plan G or Plan N you carry.

Plan N works a little differently: after the Part B deductible, you may still owe small copays for some office and emergency room visits, and it does not cover Part B "excess charges." Plan G does. That is the practical difference between the two most common letters.

Rate-filing season in Texas

Here is a point many Laredo readers miss: Medicare does not set Medigap prices. Each insurer files its rates with the Texas Department of Insurance, and those filings are typically adjusted once a year. Two policies with identical letters can carry very different prices from two different companies.

If you already have a Medigap policy and get a renewal notice showing a change, you can:

• Look up the insurer's filing on the Texas Department of Insurance website.
• Call the company and ask how they price — some use "attained age" (rates rise as you get older), others use "issue age" or "community" pricing.
• Compare quotes from other carriers on the Medicare.gov Medigap policy search.

Switching Medigap policies outside your initial six-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period usually means answering health questions, so weigh that before you move.

Insurers in the Texas market

The MEDIGAP DATA list above shows every carrier currently selling in Texas, in alphabetical order — from AARP - UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company through Woodmen Of The World Life Insurance Society and WoodmenLife. Companies do enter and exit state markets from time to time; the medicare.gov Medigap policy search is refreshed regularly and is the cleanest way to see who is offering coverage in your ZIP code right now.

If a carrier stops selling new policies in Texas, existing policyholders are generally allowed to keep the coverage they already have. That is a federal protection — but if you want to switch, medical underwriting may apply.

How this connects to AEP and other 2026 Medicare changes

Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. That window is for Medicare Advantage and Part D — not Medigap. You can apply for a Medigap policy any time of year, but your strongest guaranteed-issue rights are during your six-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period, which starts the month you are 65 and enrolled in Part B.

A few other 2026 program facts worth knowing while you plan:

• Part D has a $2,100 out-of-pocket cap for covered drugs in 2026.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $615.
• The old "donut hole" is gone; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year.
• IRMAA surcharges begin above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.