Medicare Learning Center
How Medicare Supplement Pricing Methods Work
Medicare Supplement (Medigap) premiums are set with one of three rating methods: community-rated, issue-age-rated, or attained-age-rated. Understanding which method a policy uses tells you how the base premium is calculated today and what can change it later.
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Which Medicare Supplement will cost the least in 10 years?
No one can tell you that, and no rating method or carrier can guarantee the lowest ten-year cost. Premiums and plan availability vary by carrier, by location, by plan letter, by available discounts, by future approved rate changes, and by your own eligibility at the time you apply. Any claim that a specific method or company will be cheapest a decade from now is a prediction, not a fact.
What you can do is understand the mechanics, and that starts with separating two different things. The base rating method tells you whether your age is part of the calculation. Issue-age and community-rated base rates are not age-driven the way attained-age rates are: the base rate is not recalculated each year as you get older. Attained-age base rates are, by design.
The second thing is everything that sits on top of the base rate. Under every method, your total premium can still change from approved general rate changes filed with your state insurance department, driven by inflation, medical-cost trends, and claims experience, and from discounts that change or end, such as a household or spousal discount you no longer qualify for. So a non-age-driven base rate is not a promise of a flat bill, and no path here is promised to cost less. This page is education, not a recommendation, and it makes no savings, rate, or carrier-performance promises.
The three Medigap pricing methods
Issue-Age
Also called Entry-age-rated
The base rate is set from your age when the policy is purchased, so age is not recalculated as you get older. That is a statement about the base rate, not the final bill: your total premium can still change through approved general rate changes and through discounts that change or end.
Community-Rated
Also called No-age-rated
The base premium generally is not based on age, so everyone in that policy class is generally charged the same base premium. That is not the same as a permanently flat total premium: approved general rate changes and discounts that change or end can still move what you pay.
Attained-Age
Also called Current-age-rated
Your current age is part of the base rate, so the base premium is designed to rise as you get older. On top of that, it can change for the same two general reasons that affect the other methods: approved rate changes and discounts that change or end.
Read those two rows on the left as base-rate descriptions. Under all three methods, the total premium can still move from approved general rate changes and from discounts that change or end, which is a separate mechanic from age-based rating. None of these methods is promised to cost less than another.
How age factors into each method
The lines show structure only, not dollar amounts, not quotes, and not a comparison of what any policy costs. Issue-age moves as a modest smooth line for general rate and discount changes. Community-rated follows a gentle irregular path with small bumps for the same general changes and for discounts that change or end. Attained-age is the clearest staircase, because current age is part of its base rate.
Illustrative only. Any pricing method can change because of approved general rate changes and changing discounts. Attained-age policies may also increase as the policyholder gets older.
What to compare before choosing
Current premium
What the policy costs today for your exact age, ZIP code, tobacco status, and plan letter. Ask for the quote in writing.
Rating method
Community-rated, issue-age-rated, or attained-age-rated. This is disclosed in the outline of coverage and shapes how the premium behaves over time.
Discounts, and whether they can change
Household, spousal, enrollment, or electronic-payment discounts vary by carrier and state. Ask whether a discount is guaranteed for the life of the policy or can be modified.
Carrier rate history
Ask what rate changes the carrier has filed in your state in recent years. Past filings are history, not a forecast, and they do not predict future increases.
Standardized plan benefits
In most states, Medigap plans are standardized by letter, so Plan G is Plan G no matter who sells it. Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin standardize differently.
Timing and underwriting
Your Medigap open enrollment window and any guaranteed-issue rights affect whether health questions apply. Outside those windows, carriers in most states can use medical underwriting.
Keep reading
- Medicare Supplement (Medigap) basics - how Medigap works alongside Original Medicare.
- Medicare Supplement costs by state - how premiums differ by where you live.
- Compare standardized Medigap plan letters - what each lettered plan covers.
- Medicare Advantage vs Medicare Supplement - the two different coverage paths.
- Medicare enrollment windows and deadlines - when underwriting applies and when it does not.
- Medigap Plan G vs Plan N - a side-by-side of the two most popular plans.
- Medicare Supplement plans in Omaha - local context for Nebraska shoppers.
- Medicare Enrollment Blueprint - answer a few questions and get your timeline.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
Written and reviewed by Nick Depke
Nick Depke is a Licensed Independent Insurance Agent (NPN 19158595) with Depke Insurance Agency, 17310 Wright Street, Suite #100, Omaha, NE 68130. He works with Omaha-area individuals, families, and Medicare beneficiaries and reviews this page for accuracy against current federal guidance. Questions about your own situation? Call (402) 680-6171.
Last reviewed: August 12, 2026
This page is general education, not a plan recommendation or a statement of what any specific plan covers. Always confirm plan details, provider participation, and deadlines with the carrier or the government agency involved before you make a decision.
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