Can I Buy a Medicare Supplement Plan at Any Time?

The best time to buy Medigap is when you are first eligible.

Everyone gets a six-month window after enrolling in Medicare Part B, during which they can apply for a Medicare Supplement, or Medigap, policy.

During this time, the medical underwriting process is waived. Medical underwriting allows private insurance companies to ask you questions about your health.

If you’re in poor health or have preexisting conditions, an insurer can deny you coverage or force you to pay higher premiums for a policy.

Those rules don’t’ apply when you’re first eligible for a Medicare Supplement plan. During your Medigap open enrollment period, you can buy any policy for the same price as people in good health.

This six-month period can’t be changed or repeated.

Medicare supplement plans help pay costs not covered by Original Medicare. This can include deductibles, copayments and coinsurance.

There are two other situations when you can buy a Medigap policy without undergoing medical underwriting.

Technically, you can still apply for a Medigap policy any time after enrolling in Medicare.

But if you do so after your six-month open enrollment window, there’s no guarantee an insurance company will sell you a policy if you don’t meet the medical underwriting requirements.

You may purchase a Medigap policy only to realize it doesn’t provide the coverage or benefits you need.

If you want to switch to a different supplement plan, it may be easiest do so within your six-month open enrollment period.

If you join a Medigap plan during this six-month window and decide you don’t like the policy, you can switch to a different supplement plan and retain your guaranteed issue rights.

If your six-month period has already ended and you want to make a switch, you may face medical underwriting restrictions. Your premiums may be higher if you have health problems — or your application could be denied outright.

But don’t let these obstacles deter you, as many people change plans during the year and go through the underwriting process successfully.

If you’re in good health and comfortable answering medical questions, you can apply to change Medigap plans at any time of the year.

Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare Part D prescription drug plans can only be changed during certain times of year, but Medicare supplements are different.

Medigap plans are standardized under federal law so consumers can easily compare benefits and premiums across plans.

There are 10 Medicare Supplement plans to choose from.  Each has a specific letter, such as Plan F and Plan A. You pay the insurer a monthly premium for the policy.

Many states provide additional Medigap rights and protections.

States can create their own consumer protections for Medigap that go beyond minimum federal standards set by the Centers for Medicare &  Medicaid Services.

In certain states and situations, insurance companies must offer you Medigap policies even if your initial six-month guaranteed issue rights window has ended.

However, only a handful of states require continuous or annual guaranteed issue Medigap protections to all Original Medicare beneficiaries ages 65 and older, regardless of medical history.

Several other states have expanded guaranteed issue rights by including additional qualifying events.

For example, in 2022, if you live in Massachusetts, Minnesota or Wisconsin, you have guaranteed issue rights to buy a Medigap policy, but the Medigap policies are different.

To learn more about Medigap rights in your state, call your State Health Insurance Assistance Program.