The Insurance Producers Guild
The Insurance Producers Guild is a strategic briefing for insurance professionals, focused on Medicare, ACA, life insurance, and the evolving insurance landscape. Each episode distills complex industry changes into clear, practical intelligence.
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The Insurance Producers Guild
EP25 Medigap Rates Went Up: How to Keep Your Clients
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CSG Actuarial’s January through August 2026 review of about 780 Medicare Supplement filings, covering more than 100 carriers, found an average increase of about 15%, a median around 14.5%, and about one in five filings at 20% or higher. Plans G, F, and N sat in the 15 to 17% range. A national average is not that household’s premium.
Medigap clients do not get an ANOC. They get a rate letter and a new draft. They pay, they like their doctors, and they rarely call. That quiet book is where silent attrition happens.
This episode explains how to turn those rate letters into review appointments before the anniversary, without quoting 15% as the client’s new premium.
🔑 Key Topics Covered
- 2026 Medigap rate filings
- Why G, F, and N are taking the larger increases
- Rate letter versus ANOC
- Retention before the anniversary
🎯 What This Means for Agents
- Pull every G, F, and N renewal in the next 90 days
- Do not quote a national average as their premium
- Compare same-letter options allowed in that state
- Call before the draft hits, not after the complaint that never comes
🔗 Sources
CSG Actuarial
https://www.csgactuarial.com/news/medicare-supplement-rate-increases-what-the-market-has-shown-throughout-2026
ValuePenguin
https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-medicare-supplement-plans
📌 GO-DO: Book Medigap Reviews
Identify every Medicare Supplement client with a renewal in the next 90 days, G, F, and N first. Send one compliant heads-up asking them to book a 20-minute review before the anniversary. Bring their rate letter. Put same-letter options on the table. Confirm state replacement and underwriting rules before you promise a move.
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Slides: https://www.psmbrokerage.com/hubfs/The%20Insurance%20Producers%20Guild/IPG_EP25_Slides-1.pdf
Learn more: https://www.psmbrokerage.com
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You look at your Medigap book of business right now, and um you you probably feel pretty secure. Why? Well, because your phone is not ringing. Nobody is calling you complaining.
SPEAKER_00Right. But you are confusing silence with retention.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. I mean your Medigap book looks safe because nobody's complaining, but silence is exactly why clients leave. They get a piece of mail, they experience this massive sticker shock, and you know, instead of calling you, they call the 800 number on a television commercial.
SPEAKER_00Yep. They are out the door before you even know they were upset.
SPEAKER_01So welcome to our latest market analysis. We're cutting straight to the point today to prepare you for immediate action so you can intercept that silence.
SPEAKER_00We really have to look at the actual numbers driving this behavior. Because if you do not understand the math hitting your clients' mailboxes, well, you just cannot protect your book.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell So to get ahead of this, let us look at the rate reality. We have the latest CSG actuarial data, and this covers January through August 2026.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Right. And it is a huge data set.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, a massive comprehensive sample. We are looking at roughly 780 individual company, state, and plan adjustments. And it this spans more than a hundred carriers across nearly every jurisdiction.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell And the reality of the market is uh it is pretty aggressive right now. Across all of those filings, the average rate increase is sitting at about 15 percent.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Wow, 15 percent? That is steep.
SPEAKER_00It is. But you have to look at the extremes to understand the true risk to your business. Roughly one in five of those filings came in at 20 percent or higher.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Wait, 20 percent or higher? I mean, 15 percent as an average sounds apocalyptic enough, but I am looking at the spread here, and some of these plans are barely touching seven percent.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Exactly. It is a wide range.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell So what is skewing the math so heavily at the top? Like why are some clients feeling immense pain while others seem, you know, relatively insulated from all this?
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Well, you have to break the data down by plan type to really see the story. The rate pressure is absolutely not even across the board. The traditional richer benefit plans are getting hit much, much harder.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Okay. So you mean like the core letters?
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Right. I am talking about plans G, F, and N. Those three letters make up the bulk of in-force Medigap business, and they are carrying average increases in the 15 to 17 percent range.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Let us unpack the mechanism there. It basically comes down to utilization, right?
SPEAKER_00Trevor Burrus, Jr. Precisely. Think of a rich benefit plan like uh like an all-you-can-eat buffet. Oh, I like that analogy. Yeah. If you've already paid the entry fee, you are going to go back for a third plate of food just to get your money's worth. When a client has a plan G or a plan F, their out-of-pocket exposure is minimal.
SPEAKER_01Trevor Burrus, Jr.: So they just go to the doctor more.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. Therefore, they utilize the healthcare system more frequently, they schedule more visits, more tests, and more claims get filed.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell And someone has to pay for that.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Right. The carrier has to absorb those claims, and the mathematical result is a higher rate adjustment for that specific pool of policyholders.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Meanwhile, if you look at the other side of the spectrum, the numbers tell a very different story. High deductible plan G, plan K, and high deductible plan F are trending much lower.
SPEAKER_00Much lower, yeah. Trevor Burrus, Jr.
SPEAKER_01We are seeing averages of roughly 7 to 11 percent for those specific blocks. So that is like the a la carte menu. You only order the tests and scans you actually need because, well, you are paying for each one out of pocket until you hit that cap.
SPEAKER_00Right. And that behavioral shift protects the risk pool. The financial exposure for the carrier is lower, so the necessary rate increases just remain lower.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell And this all perfectly lines up with the sample data value Penguin just put out for 2025 to 2026. Their plan G sample showed about a 13% increase.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, which is right in that danger zone.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. They modeled a 65-year-old non-smoking woman. Her monthly premium jumped from about $159 a month up to about $180 a month.
SPEAKER_00That gives you a very clear human picture of what a 13% increase actually looks like in real life.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell $21 extra a month.
SPEAKER_00Right. And an extra $21 a month might not sound catastrophic to, you know, a working professional, but when it hits a fixed budget, that is grocery money. That is a utility bill over the course of a year.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Yeah, it really adds up for them. And across all plan letters in their sample, the national average increase was about 10%. Plan F rose about 14%. Plan N rose about 13%.
SPEAKER_00So the data is very consistent.
SPEAKER_01It is. And mirroring the CSG data perfectly, high deductible plan G rose the least in that set, coming in at about a 6% increase.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell The patterns are undeniable regardless of which data set you review. The heavy utilization letters are bearing the brunt of the rate pressure.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell So I need to stop right here and establish a critical rule for how you interpret this information. A national average is not their premium.
SPEAKER_00That is such a vital distinction to make.
SPEAKER_01Every single rate increase is entirely specific to the carrier, the state, and the specific risk pool of that plan. You cannot take a broad 15% average and assume your client is getting a 15% hike.
SPEAKER_00You just cannot do it. The true point of looking at this data is to understand the volatility. You can have two clients in the exact same lettered plan seeing vastly different renewal numbers purely because of their carrier and location.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. You never quote that 13% or that $180 as a client's new bill. We are stopping at the national figures today.
SPEAKER_00We are not listing individual states.
SPEAKER_01Right. No state lists. Yeah. Because your focus needs to be entirely on the volatility underlying these averages.
SPEAKER_00Aaron Powell Because the volatility is the threat.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And that brings us to the client reality. You understand the math now, but math does not panic. People panic.
SPEAKER_01Oh, they definitely do.
SPEAKER_00You have to understand how your client actually experiences this data. Let us compare this to the other side of the Medicare aisle. Think about your clients on Medicare Advantage.
SPEAKER_01Aaron Powell Right. Well, they have a highly structured renewal season.
SPEAKER_00Right. They receive an annual notice of change, or ANOC. They get a formalized, regulated document explaining exactly how their plan will operate in the upcoming year.
SPEAKER_01Everyone is talking about it.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. The industry talks about it, the news talks about it, and agents are primed to discuss it. It is an expected structured event. Medigap clients do not get an NOC.
SPEAKER_01No, they just get a surprise in the mail.
SPEAKER_00They simply receive a rate letter from the carrier and a notice of a new draft amount. There is no formalized season for it at all. It just arrives on a random afternoon weeks before their policy anniversary.
SPEAKER_01And that creates an immediate emotional reaction. I mean, a client living on a fixed income opens an envelope and suddenly their primary health expense is jumped by 15 or 20%.
SPEAKER_00It is terrifying for them.
SPEAKER_01They feel panic and then they feel frustration. They think they did something wrong, or even worse, they think you put them in a bad product. If you are silent during that exact moment, they will find an agent who is loud.
SPEAKER_00And that shock is the exact reason you must proactively book the appointment. You have to intercept the letter.
SPEAKER_01You really do.
SPEAKER_00You have to be the one controlling the narrative rather than playing defense after they have already seen a commercial promising lower rates.
SPEAKER_01And we are going to equip you to do exactly that. When you make this proactive call, you need a precise message. You need to establish authority, lower their defense mechanism, and create a clear next step.
SPEAKER_00They need a plan.
SPEAKER_01So I'm going to give you one specific script to use. I will say it once. Yeah. I will not quote 15% as your number. Give me 20 minutes before your anniversary. We put your letter next to same letter options. If we keep it, we keep it on purpose.
SPEAKER_00That is just brilliant. Let us break down the psychology of why that works so well. First, you are acknowledging the market reality without making a false claim about their specific bill.
SPEAKER_01You are addressing the elephant in the room right away.
SPEAKER_00Right. Second, you are asking for a very small commitment of just 20 minutes, which lowers their barrier to say yes. Third, you are reassuring them by mentioning same letter options so they know they are not losing benefits.
SPEAKER_01And most importantly, you are framing the relationship correctly. If we keep it, we keep it on purpose. That final sentence transforms the client from a victim of a rate increase into an active decision maker.
SPEAKER_00Yes. You are sitting on the same side of the table as them looking at the options together.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. It completely changes the dynamic.
SPEAKER_00So here is your action item for today. As soon as this briefing ends, open your CRM or your book of business. Pull all of your plan G, Plan F, and Plan N renewals coming up in the next 90 days.
SPEAKER_01Every single one of them.
SPEAKER_00Those are the individuals sitting right in the crosshairs of these highest average increases. You need to pull that list and start dialing.
SPEAKER_01And to execute this effectively, you need the right infrastructure behind you. You have two specific resources available that you need to be utilizing right now. First is PSM's contracting support.
SPEAKER_00This is huge.
SPEAKER_01If you pull a client's rate letter and realize they need to move to a more competitive carrier, you must be ready to write that business immediately. You do not want to convince a client to move and then realize you're not appointed with the best carrier in their zip code.
SPEAKER_00That is the worst feel.
SPEAKER_01It really is. Right. So get with contracting support and make sure your portfolio is up to date. Second, utilize the marketing hub with compliance review. When you are sending out correspondence or designing your outreach strategy for these renewals, you must remain compliant.
SPEAKER_00Non-negotiable.
SPEAKER_01Right. The marketing hub ensures your messaging is secure and effective.
SPEAKER_00You have the tools and you have the script. But uh, I need to issue a very firm warning before you start having these conversations.
SPEAKER_01Let us hear it.
SPEAKER_00You will be dealing with clients who want to move plans to escape a rate increase. Do not promise guaranteed issue if the state does not explicitly give it. You have to know the specific regulations in your jurisdiction. In most situations, moving from one Medigap policy to another requires medical underwriting.
SPEAKER_01They cannot just hop to a new carrier.
SPEAKER_00No, they cannot. A client might be furious about a 20% increase, but if their health has changed, they might not be able to pass underwriting for a new carrier. They might be trapped in that risk pool.
SPEAKER_01Which is a tough conversation to have.
SPEAKER_00It is. But you cannot let your empathy for their financial situation lead you to make false promises about their eligibility. If you hype them up to leave and then they get declined, you look incompetent and they are left feeling entirely hopeless. Know the underwriting rules cold.
SPEAKER_01Furthermore, you have to watch your tone when discussing these rate adjustments. It is um it is incredibly tempting to look at a steep increase and join the client in criticizing the carrier.
SPEAKER_00You must avoid that completely. Navigate these conversations without criticizing the carriers. These rate adjustments are not arbitrary penalties.
SPEAKER_01They are just math.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. They are a mathematical necessity driven by the claims data and the utilization we discussed earlier. If a carrier does not adjust rates to match the claims going out the door, they cannot pay the doctors.
SPEAKER_01Which hurts everyone.
SPEAKER_00Right. Your job is to be an objective advisor, not a critic of the system. If you bash the carrier, you undermine the very product you sold them in the first place.
SPEAKER_01You present the math, you present the alternative options, you guide the decision, you have the data on the 15% averages, you know which letters are targeted by the utilization trends.
SPEAKER_00You are fully equipped.
SPEAKER_01And you have the script to book the meeting and shift the client from panic to purpose. You should not feel any anxiety about making these calls. You are entirely prepared to reach out, provide massive value, and protect your book. Do not let silence be the reason they leave.
SPEAKER_00Just pick up the phone.
SPEAKER_01That's this episode of the Insurance Producers Guild. Stay tuned for the next one. If you're not already with PSM Brokerage, this is the intelligence our agents get. Talk to us about contracting.