Is Medigap the Same Thing as Supplemental Insurance?
Yes, and no. You may have heard of Medigap insurance as well as of Supplemental Medicare Insurance, or a Medicare Supplemental Insurance Policy. When the plans were first introduced in the 1990’s they were referred to as Supplemental Medicare Insurance. More recently the generally accepted term has been Medigap Insurance. So "Medigap" and Supplemental Medicare Insurance are the exact same thing and interchangeable. However Medigap and Supplemental Insurance are not.
Medigap is only one type of supplemental insurance. There are other types of supplemental health insurance - meaning health benefits in addition to your regular health insurance coverage. For example, a famous annoyingly quacking duck should come to mind. AFLAC offers another kind of supplemental coverage other than Medigap, in this case supplemental disability insurance.
Other Types of Supplemental Health Insurance
In general then "supplemental health insurance" is any kind of health insurance that is designed to pick up where other medical converge leaves off. As in the idea of Medigap insurance, other kinds of supplemental health insurance are designed to cover or minimize "out-of- pocket" expenses such as copays and deductibles.
Supplemental health insurance policies can also be plans that are intended to cover specific conditions or situations that are not covered by your standard healthcare plan. Dental insurance or a vision plan would be an example of this type of supplemental policy, as would be Cancer Insurance.
There are many, many types of supplemental health insurance plans available. Long term care insurance, that pays for a nursing home or home healthcare should that become necessary, is another popular one, as are indemnity plans that provide fixed cash benefits for covered services such as extended hospital stays.
Know Your Options
You should have an insurance professional look at you family’s current health insurance plans and your lifestyle. He or she will find where there may be "gaps" in your coverages, and discuss with you the various affordable options that may be available to fill them.