Medigap Plan F is still available, but only to people who became eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020. If you turned 65 on or after that date, or first qualified for Medicare through disability or end-stage renal disease on or after that date, you cannot buy Plan F. For everyone else, existing policies remain active and new purchases are still possible.
Who Can Still Buy Plan F
The cutoff is based on when you became eligible for Medicare, not when you enrolled. If you turned 65 before January 1, 2020, you can still purchase a new Plan F policy even if you didn’t sign up for Medicare right away. This distinction matters: someone who turned 65 in 2019 but delayed enrolling in Medicare until 2022 would still qualify to buy Plan F.
People who were already enrolled in Plan F before the 2020 cutoff can keep their policies indefinitely. There is no sunset date forcing current enrollees off the plan. Nearly 4.9 million people still hold Plan F policies as of 2023, making it the second most popular Medigap plan in the country.
Why Plan F Was Restricted
Congress passed the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act in 2015, which prohibited Medigap plans from covering the Part B deductible for people newly eligible for Medicare starting in 2020. Because Plan F and Plan C both cover that deductible, neither can be sold to new beneficiaries. The reasoning was that first-dollar coverage (where the insurance pays everything from the first dollar of costs) can lead to higher overall Medicare spending, since enrollees have no financial reason to limit unnecessary care.
Plan F vs. Plan G: One Small Difference
Plan F and Plan G cover identical benefits with a single exception: Plan F pays the annual Medicare Part B deductible, and Plan G does not. In 2025, that deductible is $257. That’s the only gap in coverage. With Plan G, you pay $257 out of pocket each year before Medigap kicks in for Part B services. With Plan F, you pay nothing.
On paper, Plan F looks like the better deal. In practice, the math often works the other way. The average monthly premium for Plan F policyholders in 2023 was $274, compared to $164 for Plan G. That’s a difference of $110 per month, or $1,320 per year, to avoid paying a $257 deductible. Even accounting for regional variation and individual pricing factors, the premium gap between the two plans far exceeds the value of the extra benefit for most people.
Why Plan F Premiums Keep Rising
Since no one new to Medicare can join Plan F, the pool of policyholders is a closed group that gets older every year. As enrollees age, they use more medical services, which drives up claims costs. Insurers spread those higher costs across the remaining policyholders through premium increases. Meanwhile, Plan G continues to attract younger, healthier enrollees turning 65, which helps keep its risk pool balanced and its premiums more stable.
This dynamic is likely to accelerate. Plan G already overtook Plan F as the most popular Medigap plan in 2023, covering about 5.3 million people (39% of all Medigap enrollment) compared to Plan F’s 4.9 million (36%). As more Plan F holders switch to Plan G or pass away, the remaining Plan F pool shrinks and skews older, creating more upward pressure on premiums.
Switching From Plan F to Plan G
If you currently hold Plan F and want to switch to Plan G to save on premiums, the process depends on your state’s rules and your health status. Federal law does not guarantee you the right to switch between Medigap policies outside of specific situations, such as your initial six-month open enrollment period or certain guaranteed issue rights triggered by losing other coverage.
Outside those windows, insurance companies in most states can use medical underwriting when you apply for a new Medigap policy. That means they can review your health history and potentially charge higher premiums, add waiting periods for pre-existing conditions, or deny coverage altogether. However, many states have additional consumer protections that go beyond federal minimums. Some states require insurers to offer annual open enrollment windows or guarantee the right to switch to a plan with equal or lesser benefits. Contact your state insurance department to find out what rights apply where you live.
One important timing detail: if you’ve held your current Medigap policy for less than six months and switch to a new one, the new insurer may impose a waiting period before covering pre-existing conditions. If you’ve had your plan longer than six months, this typically isn’t an issue.
The High-Deductible Version
Plan F also comes in a high-deductible version, which charges lower monthly premiums in exchange for a higher annual deductible you must meet before coverage begins. This version follows the same eligibility rules as standard Plan F: it is only available to people who became Medicare-eligible before January 1, 2020. If you qualified after that date, the high-deductible Plan F is also off the table, though a high-deductible version of Plan G remains available.