Dear AMAC,
I have a Plan G, but my buddy is telling me to check out Plan N. He has one and his premium is much lower than mine. I would consider switching to Plan N if it saves me some money. Can you tell me what the difference is between Plan G and Plan N?
-Dan (Lancaster, PA)
Hello Dan,
Plan G is one of the most comprehensive Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plans—but it often comes with higher premiums. If you are comfortable with some occasional copays, Plan N could offer meaningful savings.
With Plan G, your Medicare approved services are 100% covered for the year once you meet your Part B deductible ($283 in year 2026). However, once you meet that same deductible with Plan N, you will then have copays up to $20 for some doctor’s visits and up to $50 for some emergency room visits.
Additionally, Plan N does not cover excess charges. So, if you receive care from a provider that does not accept Medicare Assignment (the amount Medicare agrees to pay for services), the provider can charge you up to 15% more than the Medicare-approved amount.
Excess charges are not common since only about 2% of providers nationwide are allowed to bill them. Some states prohibit excess charges altogether or place limits on them. Excess charges can be avoided by asking your provider ahead of time if they accept Medicare assignment.
Finally, Plan N offers the same nationwide coverage as Plan G. Besides the lack of coverage for excess charges and occasional copays after the deductible is met, they offer identical benefits for all other Medicare-approved services.
Switching to Plan N can potentially save you hundreds each year in premiums. Keep in mind that copays and excess charges factor into your overall savings. If you’re interested in Plan N, we can help you explore options in your area and see if it makes sense for you.
Thank you for taking the time to write to us. We look forward to hearing from you soon Dan!
—Your Medicare Advisor
For help with Medicare plans – or any questions you may have about Medicare – contact AMAC’s Medicare Advisory Service at 1-855-611-4856 or request a quote below.
Americans are being penny wise and pound foolish when they chose Managed care plans. Managed care plans no matter how good they claim to be and the so called “freebies” you get are a formula for disaster if you have and involved illness or injury. Full Medicare and a Supplemental Plan are the way to go. Very sad that more Medicare recipients are not informed of the advantage vs. disadvantages of Medicare but are sold a plan by an unscrupulous agent to get paid for their enrollment. The managed care agents all make a large reimbursement when a member goes from Medicare to Mange care and they even lie to them and tell them it is Medicare. IT IS NOT!
This would be a study in itself. Some of us are conservative but with these two plans I think the conservatives would go with knowing it’s paid for up front. Where as the other plan “could” be cheaper if you have a heathy year or only minor illnesses that you can deal with yourself. Which is a set up for not getting care when it’s questionable because of the copay involved. It’s a formula for putting off care that could have taken care of a problem that has the potential to become slowly worse as a result of not being treated – cancer, diabetes, infection, cardiac, pulmonary, etc. And It requires us to have funds available which is probably why we went with plan N, We need insurance but don’t have the funds to pay for G and don’t have funds available for the copay for N. But we’re going to Mars anyway/