I start Medicare Feb 1, 2020 so I've been shopping and learning.
I've decided on a Medigap Plan G. I thought I was all decided on AARP/United HealthCare for $114.22/mo. I liked that they use Community Pricing. Then I talked to Boomer Benefits. They were very helpful, answered a lot of questions and sent me an email with a .pdf of all my plan options and rates.
Boomer Benefits recommended Mutual Of Omaha Plan G $112.70/mo. which has Attained Age pricing. Highly rated according to Boomer Benefits. I asked about the AARP Plan G and the Community pricing. He told me that Ohio is an attained age state and that all companies raise their rates due to inflation.
So I'm a bit confused. I was liking that AARP has a large discount that gets smaller every year and that they are open about their prices. I've heard great stuff about Boomer Benefits so I want to seriously consider their advice to go with Mutual of Omaha.
So with all the folks on Medicare here, what's your experience with rate increases for these 2 companies? Is Attained Age pricing vs Community pricing going to make a difference over many years? If Ohio is an "attained age state" what does that mean for AARP/UnitedHealthCare Community pricing? I wish I would have asked that when I had the Boomer Benefits guy on the phone.
And another thing I'm dealing with is that many of these companies offer a 5%-7% discount of another person in your household enrolls with the same company. DH starts Medicare in April, 2020 but he has to go through his pension plans connector Via Benefits in order to get his HRA allowance. It looks like he has options form only 7 Medigap insurers and my choices for me of Mutual Of Omaha or AARP/UnitedHealthCare are not in his options.
Hi Sue-
Here's some feedback for you as I believe some of what you were told was incorrect:
1) Ohio is not an "attained age" state. AARP/UHC Medigap is Community Rated in Ohio according to their 2019 Agent guide.
That said, because of how AARP/UHC uses the enrollment discount, you'll still see a rate table in a UHC enrollment kit that looks similar to the attained age rate tables in Mut of Omaha kit or any other attained age table from another carrier.
I think what is missing from the "attained age" vs "community" rating discussion that's more important is when do the rates level off? For AARP, as of 2020 rates at least, it's at age 80+. Meaning someone who is age 82 pays the same as age 90, etc.
Most carriers using "Attained age" rating won't have level rates until the insured reaches age 90 or even 100.
I am by no way advocating that one of the aforementioned carriers is "better" or worse than the other. They just use different methodologies and it's up to you to decide which one you're more comfortable with.
2) All carriers publish their rates for every plan and age, so to your comment about a carrier being more "open", you should always request to see the complete rate table in the "Outline of Coverage" for whatever carrier and plan you are considering. It will show rates for every age and every plan offered by that carrier in your state. It's a required document that any agent is supposed to give you (but many don't in my experience).
The internet has been great for information access, but I've noticed that online quoting makes it easier for companies to hide how rates change over the life of a policy. So do your homework by asking for the Outline of Coverage and looking at those rate tables!
3) As you probably recognize, Medigap plans are basically commodities. A plan G in your state is going to cover gaps in medicare the same as any other plan G by law. Some carriers do add bells and whistles like a Fitness program (although not that common on Medigap but some like AARP do have it in most states).
What you are buying then is basically financial strength of issuer and their ability to underwrite effectively plus customer service. Yes, underlying Medical cost inflation in US is 5-6% per year, so every carrier is dealing with that. But because carriers in many states can underwrite applicants applying outside Medigap open enrollment or a Guarantee Issue period, the companies do wield some power in trying to keep claims costs down. Some do it better than others.
There is some data out there about rate increase history depending upon the state and company. But that's still backward looking. I will tell you that as someone who works in the industry a carrier's rate increase history can vary significantly between the same product offered in two different states. My advice is to not try to look out too far and pick the best thing for you over the next 3-5 years. Something will likely change -- usually in the industry -- in an unexpected way over that horizon so even the best laid plans today may not be valid in the future.
Hope this is helpful to you! Best of luck in making your decision.
