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In choosing a Medicare supplement policy, one of the first steps is determining not only what you need, but also what you can afford. Medicare supplement premium rates are primarily determined by the following factors:

Age at Time of Application:  Premiums are based upon your age at the time you sign the application.  The longer you wait to apply for a medigap policy, the higher your premium will be.  Attained age is accompanied by attained risk.

Gender:  Females may have lower rates than males of the same age under certain providers in some states.

Tobacco usage:  Premiums of those who have used tobacco in the past year tend to be higher (in most states with most providers) than those who have not.

Health at Time of Application:  Those who are in good health are at a lower risk for future health problems and are more easily accepted to policies at lower premiums.

Place of Residence: Different states have varied regulations of supplemental Medicare insurance.  These variations in states' treatments of medigap policies is additionally reflected in premium prices. There are also three different methods that Medicare supplement providers can utilize to set their pricing in regards to rate increases:

Attained Age Pricing: This is currently the most common method of price setting for Medicare supplement insurance.  In this price system, your premium increases as you age.  However, please keep in mind that age is not the only factor that is factored into a rate increase.  Companies use age and medical inflation (the increase in cost of medical treatments) to derive each year's annual premium increase percentage.

Issue Age Pricing: A few companies offer this pricing model in which you set your rates at a certain age and will always get rates as though you were the age at which you took the policy.  Although they do not use increased age as a factor in their annual rate increases they can still use medical inflation to increase rates each year. These policies tend to be more expensive to begin with then an age-attained plan.

Community Rating: The Community Rating pricing model provides the same rate for a particular plan for everyone in a certain area without consideration of age, gender, or tobacco usage. This type of pricing tends to run high for those who are on the younger side of the Medicare spectrum and do not use tobacco, but may be a good option for those who are on the older side of the spectrum and use tobacco.

If you ever see your premium increase to a point at which you are uncomfortable, please do not hesitate to contact your GoMedigap agent.  Your agent can help you look at other Medicare supplemental insurance companies that can provide the same plan you currently have and help you find the best rate available to you .