New Jersey Medigap is Filling in Gaping Gaps

NJ Medigap has a big hand in securing the health of retirees in New Jersey. NJ Medigap has many Plans to its credit though the coverage, rules and costs of the Plans are liable to change every year. This makes the process of comparing and choosing the correct Medicare Supplement Insurance Plan very tiring for most individuals.

This is where the Medigap of NJ comes into picture; it fills in the gaps left by the Original Medicare. Medicare is a health insurance for individuals above the age of 65, disabled individuals below 65 or any other individual suffering from end-stage renal failure (failure of kidneys).

Medicare pays for a lump sum percentage of your medical expenses the rest out of pocket costs have to be borne by you, these are the “gaps” left by Medicare. These gaps can be filled in by Medigap or Medicare Supplement Plans.

Medigap Supplement Plans are sold by many Private Insurance Companies. The benefits being more or less the same the premium rates vary from company to company. You should make it a point to compare rates with patience and expertise such that you do not pay more for same benefits or miss out on some advantage while buying. So, you should compare the rates of all possible companies and then move on to investing in the Supplement Plan.

How the New Jersey Medigap Supplement Works

New Jersey Medicare Supplement Plans or Medigap is sold by private Insurance Companies. They are designed to take care of out of pocket expenses that an individual has to cover.This is because the Original Medicare (Medicare Part A and Part B)covers only a fraction of the expenditure.

The benefits that a Medigap Insurance Company provides its consumers with are almost the same for all companies. The differences however come with the rates as they may vary between companies.

For registering with Medigap, all you have to do is be alert in the Open Enrollment Period. After you have turned 65 and have registered with Medicare Part B you have 6 months to enroll yourself for Medicare Supplement Plan in New Jersey. If you are able to successfully register yourself within these 6 months in an Insurance company, then it cannot refuse to cover you. The Company might put you in a waiting period of 6 months for your coverage to commence in case you have any existing issues as per the norms of the Insurer.

New Jersey Medigap Statistics

Given below are some statistics and facts regarding Medigap in NJ:

  • There are 323922 Medicare Supplement (Medigap) consumers in New Jersey
  • There is a 25% share of New Jersey Medicare Beneficiaries with Medicare Supplemental Policies
  • There is a 33% share of New Jersey Medigap Policy Holders with First Dollar Coverage Plan C insurance
  • There is a 21% share of New Jersey Medigap Policy Holders with First Dollar Coverage Plan F insurance
  • There is a 46% share of New Jersey Medigap Policy Holders with plans other than Plan C or Plan F
  • Average Premium amount of $222 for New Jersey Medigap Policy Holders with First Dollar Coverage Plan C plans
  • Average Premium amount of $206 for New Jersey Medigap Policy Holders with First Dollar Coverage Plan F plans
  • Average Premium amount of $193 for other New Jersey Medigap Plans

The data has been provided by Kaiser Family Foundation for 2011.

dg-565-65-12/7/2012