Key takeaways:
Medicare supplement Plan G is the most generous and costly Medigap plan.
Depending on how much you access healthcare, the high-deductible version of Plan G may be a better deal. But it requires you to pay $2,950 out of pocket in 2026 before Medigap coverage begins. After that, almost all your care and cost sharing is covered at 100% except for the Part B deductible.
By law, all plans with the same letter name must offer the same benefits. That’s why it’s important to compare premiums and ask the insurance company for its record of price increases.
Medigap plans are insurance supplement policies. They cover out-of-pocket costs that original Medicare doesn’t — including copays, coinsurance, and the Part A deductible. You need to have original Medicare’s Part A and Part B to buy a Medigap plan.
Medigap plans are organized by letter names: A, B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M, and N. All plans with the same letter name have the same benefits. Some Medigap plans cap your expenses with annual out-of-pocket limits. After that the insurance company pays for 100% of approved services.
Among original Medicare enrollees in 2025, 43% had a Medigap plan. Of Medigap enrollees who had one of the 10 standardized plans in 2023, 39% had Plan G. The Medigap plans with the most comprehensive coverage can have the highest premiums. If you access healthcare often, one way to make the most of your costs up front and savings later is to choose a plan with a high deductible, which offers lower premiums.
Search and compare options
For people in most states, that means choosing Plan G — the only high-deductible option available to new Medicare enrollees. (Plan F also has a high-deductible version in some states. But it’s available only to people eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020. And before June 1, 2010, an older Plan J was sold with a high-deductible option.) If you live in Massachusetts, Minnesota, or Wisconsin, your Medigap options aren’t standardized by letter name, and you have fewer options.
What is Medigap Plan G?
Medicare supplement Plan G has been the most comprehensive Medigap plan available to enrollees new to Medicare since January 1, 2020. It’s also the only Medigap plan with a high-deductible option available to enrollees new to Medicare since January 1, 2020.
There’s no Plan G option in Massachusetts, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
What is a high-deductible Medigap Plan G?
High-deductible Plan G is a lower-premium option with Plan G benefits. It requires you to pay a certain amount out-of-pocket — excluding premiums — before the plan pays benefits. The high-deductible Plan G deductible is $2,950 in 2026. A Plan F high-deductible option is available in some states for enrollees eligible through January 1, 2020.
What are the pros and cons of Medigap Plan G?
Medigap Plan G pros and cons
Advantages | Disadvantages |
Breadth of coverage | Cost of plan premiums |
Covers Part A deductible | High-deductible options requires hefty out-of-pocket expenses to start paying |
Covers Part B excess charges | Doesn’t cover Part B deductible |
Pros
The biggest advantage of Plan G is its breadth. As long as Medicare covers your conditions and your preferred healthcare professional or facility accepts Medicare, Plan G will pay its share. Plan G — the regular version or the high-deductible option — seems costly compared with other Medigap plans and Medicare Advantage coverage. But if you need healthcare often or develop a condition that requires extensive medical care, Plan G could be very beneficial to you. It covers most out-of-pocket costs where you need care because original Medicare doesn’t have network limits like Medicare Advantage plans.
Cons
The downside of high-deductible Plan G is your up-front cost before you receive help with out-of-pocket expenses. Assuming you have this Medigap plan and receive a Medicare Part B-covered service, you’ll be responsible for the Part B deductible, which is $283 in 2026. Then Medicare will pay 80% of covered services and you will pay 20%. Your out-of-pocket spending in 2026 must reach $2,950 before Medigap covers 100% of your share of Part B charges. (With the regular Plan G, you have higher premiums, but your Part B 20% — known as excess charges — are covered without having to meet the high deductible.)
The situation changes if you’re hospitalized because Medicare Part A in 2026 has a $1,736 deductible per benefit period or episode of illness. That cost alone is more than half of the high-deductible Plan G deductible. But you’ll need to pay the Part A deductible plus about $1,200 more in out-of-pocket costs before your high-deductible Plan G plan pays 100% of your share of Part A charges.
Another drawback of high-deductible Plan G is that you’re stuck with that plan if your health worsens. That’s because in most states, if you switch to a regular Plan G, you’ll be subject to medical underwriting after your initial Medigap open enrollment period. That process can include the insurance company reviewing your medical records and the results of a physical to determine your premium — or opting not to cover you. Even if you’re approved, you could face very high premiums.
What does Medigap Plan G cover?
Plan G covers all of your out-of-pocket costs for:
Part A coinsurance and hospital costs, up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up
Part B coinsurance or copays
First 3 pints of blood
Part A hospice care coinsurance or copays
Skilled nursing facility care coinsurance
Part A deductible
Part B excess charge
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Plan G also covers 80% of your out-of-pocket costs for emergency healthcare during foreign travel, up to your plan’s limits. You have a $250 annual deductible before this coverage begins. High-deductible Plan G coverage matches regular Plan G once you meet your deductible.
What doesn’t Plan G cover?
Plan G doesn’t cover the Part B deductible, which is $283 in 2026.
How much does Medigap Plan G usually cost?
Premiums for regular Plan G and high-deductible Plan G vary based on factors including:
Whether your plan offers discounts for being a nonsmoker, paying the yearly cost up front, or other reasons
Whether you have a guaranteed issue right, which means an insurance company must sell you a Medigap plan that covers all your preexisting conditions and can’t charge you more because of past or present health issues
Whether you are subject to medical underwriting, which can consider your health in a decision to deny coverage or charge a higher premium
Whether you choose the high-deductible option
Use this Medigap plan finder to look for plans and compare costs in your ZIP code.
Premiums will rise, sometimes annually, based on inflation and other factors. Insurance companies can base your monthly cost on one of three factors:
Community rated: The same premium is charged to everyone in an area, regardless of age.
Issue-age rated: These premiums are based on your age when you buy the policy and increase as you get older.
Attained-age rated: These premiums are based on your current age.
Cost comparison
Let’s look at a sampling of 2026 monthly premiums for a 70-year-old man who doesn’t smoke (preferred rate), which may also include a household discount. It’s important to note that rates for women are typically lower. Sample rates are selected from companies that sell a regular and a high-deductible Plan G:
Plan G monthly premiums: A selected state sampling
State | Insurance Company | Plan G | High-Deductible Plan G |
Connecticut | Healthspring (formerly Cigna National) | $297.75 | $84.80 |
Iowa | $2,934 (annual rate), which is $244.50 per month, plus a onetime $20 policy fee | $627 (annual rate), which is $52.25 monthly, plus a onetime $20 policy fee | |
Maryland | $319 | $57 | |
New Hampshire | $462 | $90 | |
New York | Globe Life for Rochester ZIP codes | $384 | $76 |
How to choose a Medigap Plan G
How do you choose? Generally, community-rated plans are more expensive in the beginning, but their cost rises more slowly. Issue-age-rated and attained-age-rated plans start out less expensive, and their cost rises steadily. No matter which plan you choose, the only thing you can count on is eventual premium increases.
Before you buy any Medigap plan, ask the salesperson how much the cost of the policy has increased in the last 10 years. If the company’s initial price looks low, consider whether the insurer has a history of low premium price increases. You can get this information from:
Your local nonprofit State Health Insurance Assistance Program, known as SHIP
Your insurance salesperson
Who should consider Medigap Plan G?
An ideal Medigap Plan G enrollee is seeking predictable healthcare expenses and has the resources to pay another insurance premium. Medigap is available only with original Medicare, so enrollees have the broadest access to any healthcare professional or facility that accepts Medicare. You also have protection against the 20% coinsurance that comes with most Medicare Part B expenses. Finally, if you’re new to Medicare, this is the most comprehensive Medigap plan available since you can’t sign up for Plan F.
How does Medigap Plan G compare with other supplement plans?
When comparing Medigap plans, it’s important to note that Plan A also doesn’t cover the Part A deductible, which is $1,736 for every hospital benefit period. If you’re trying to save on monthly premiums, look at Plan K and Plan L. Both cover Part A coinsurance and hospital costs as Plan G does, but they cover a lower percentage of other benefits. They do, however, have out-of-pocket limits. Plan K limits your costs to $8,000 in 2026. Plan L’s limit is $4,000 in 2026.
It’s important to note that Plan G and Plan N are very similar in offering broad coverage. But some key differences are outlined in the chart below:
Medigap Plan G vs. Plan N compared
Plan G | Plan N |
Higher premiums for regular option | Lower premiums compared with Plan G |
Covers Part B excess charges | Doesn’t cover Part B excess charges |
Part B coinsurance fully covered | Part B coinsurance covered except for copays on certain office visits and ER visits |
Has a high-deductible option | Doesn’t have a high-deductible option |
Medicare Advantage
You might also consider Medicare Advantage plans to replace your Part A and Part B coverage because their up-front costs can be low, although ongoing costs can be much higher than original Medicare with Medigap. One reason is because you can’t cover Medicare Advantage out-of-pocket costs with a Medigap plan.
But Medicare Advantage plans also have an out-of-pocket maximum. In 2026, this is $9,250 for in-network services or $13,900 for in-network and out-of-network services combined. This doesn’t include what you’ve paid for Part D prescription medications, which have their out-of-pocket costs tracked separately and a $2,100 limit in 2026.
Other programs
If you have limited income, these programs may help you cover your Medicare out-of-pocket costs:
Medicare Savings Programs, which are run by the states and territories
Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, known as PACE
If you’re a U.S. military veteran, see if you qualify for Veterans Health Administration benefits.
The bottom line
In the long run, a healthy original Medicare enrollee may find a sweet spot for care and affordability with the Medigap high-deductible Plan G. That’s because premiums are significantly lower than with the regular Medigap Plan G option. In 2026, the high-deductible version of Plan G requires you to pay $2,950 out of pocket before Medigap coverage begins — but then almost all your care is covered at 100%.
Where you live makes a difference too. Medigap Plan G high-deductible plans aren’t available in every state, and premium prices can vary greatly between states and even regions in a state — or among companies offering the same coverage in a region or state. You may also consider other programs that can help you afford Medicare out-of-pocket costs.
Why trust our experts?
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