No. of Recommendations: 3
I'm intrigued by Medigap, but it seems if you didn't do that first, you're out and can't do it.
That's not exactly it. If you have an Advantage plan, and you develop a problem that the insurance company starts denying (and denying, etc), you have a "pre-existing condition" for any Medigap provider. And they can discriminate against you for that. But if you have no problems, and just want to switch, they probably won't want to reject you because there aren't any pre-existing conditions.
Medicare doesn't really pay for everything. A & B cover hospitalizations and about 80% of other things. The Medigap policy is intended to fill that 20% hole. There are several Medigap options. I think 1poormom had the "G" option, which has since been removed (it was the best option). I'll have to start sorting that out in about 2 years. IIRC, 'F' is the next best option for most people. But don't quote me on that.
The safest bet is to skip the Advantage plans. They're money-makers for insurance, and they can deny you coverage just like any other insurance. The little bennies (like optical or dental) aren't worth it. Just get separate plans for those yourself.
