The Best Medicare Supplement (Medigap) Plans in New Mexico

Original Medicare provides basic coverage for a variety of medical services, but many of those services require you to pay a copay, a deductible or coinsurance. For example, most Part B services require 20% coinsurance for most covered services, meaning you may owe hundreds of dollars after Medicare pays its portion of your bill.

If you're concerned about these out-of-pocket costs, consider buying a New Mexico Medigap plan. Medigap pays for many of the out-of-pocket costs associated with Medicare coverage, leaving you with more money in your pocket.

Despite the advantages of signing up for Medicare Supplement Insurance, many New Mexicans have yet to enroll in this supplemental coverage. Over 71,000 New Mexico Original Medicare enrollees — 29% — are also enrolled in a Medigap plan. If you have Original Medicare and don't have the extra protection of Medigap in place, keep reading to learn more about your Medicare Supplement Insurance options.

What Are the Best New Mexico Medicare Supplement Plans?

In New Mexico, there are 10 Medigap options for adults enrolled in Original Medicare. Each plan is designated by a capital letter. The chart below lists the plans available and explains what each one covers.

Because Medigap plans are standardized, all 10 cover your coinsurance requirement if you're hospitalized and need to use your Medicare Part A benefits. If you develop a serious illness, every one of these plans covers 365 days' worth of additional hospital costs once you've exhausted your Original Medicare coverage. Each plan also includes some level of coverage, ranging from 50% to 100%, for your Medicare Part B coinsurance and copays.

Plan F is one of the most popular plans, but this plan isn't available to anyone who became eligible for Medicare after January 1, 2020. Plan G also has low premiums, making it one of the most popular choices. It also has a high deductible, so it's not the right choice for every Medicare enrollee.

Plan N typically covers 100% of your Part B copays and coinsurance. You may be asked to pay a copay of $20 for a doctor visit and up to $50 for an emergency room visit, however.

How Do I Enroll in a New Mexico Medigap Plan?

You'll be eligible to enroll in a New Mexico Medigap plan once you reach your 65th birthday and sign up for Medicare Part B coverage. This starts the clock on your Medigap open enrollment period, which lasts for six months. If you sign up during this period, you'll have guaranteed issue rights. When you have these protections, you can't be turned down for Medigap insurance, and insurance companies can't refuse to cover your pre-existing conditions or charge you a higher premium because you have a chronic illness.

If you don't enroll in New Mexico Medicare Supplement Insurance during your Medigap open enrollment period, you may lose these guaranteed issue rights. When that happens, insurance companies are allowed to reject your application or charge higher prices for coverage based on your medical history.

In some cases, you maintain your guaranteed issue rights even if you didn't sign up for supplementary coverage during your Medigap open enrollment period. Your guaranteed issue protections remain intact in the following circumstances:

• You lose secondary insurance coverage that has been helping to reduce your out-of-pocket costs after Medicare pays.
• You lose your Medicare Advantage coverage because you move out of the plan's service area, the insurance company stops participating in the Medicare Advantage program or the insurance company stops offering the plan in your area.
• You drop your existing Medigap coverage or Medicare Advantage Plan because the insurance company wasn't following the Medicare rules.
• You want to switch from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare within your first year of coverage.
• Your Medigap coverage ends through no fault of your own.