Medicare Supplements for Mass Mutual Retirees

Are you one of the many senior MassMutual retirees that have been offered limited Medicare Supplement choices with AON? AON does not have to be your only choice as there are many options available to you. In this post, we’ll walk you through what’s available and how you can probably save some of your hard earned money.

Medicare Supplement Choices For MassMutual Retirees

Did you know that there are other Medicare Supplement choices for MassMutual retirees? Although the cost of your Medigap insurance Premium is subsidized through a MassMutual Health Retirement Account (HRA), the price of your Medicare Supplement insurance may be higher when shopping with AON. There’s no need to pay more, especially when you’ve worked so hard to protect your financial future in retirement.

We have seen this with our AT&T retirees and GE retiree clients who wanted more options than what their Health Exchanges offered.

If you ask AON about their premiums, they will tell you that a retiree purchasing individual Medicare Supplement insurance will pay the same premium no matter who the broker/agent is. This is actually true.

However, what you may not be told is that AON is not shopping the entire Medicare Supplement insurance marketplace for you.

This simply means that your Medigap choices will be limited with AON.

Medicare Supplement insurance plans (also known as Medigap) are standardized by CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services). This means that Medigap Plan F with “Insurance Company X” is the same Medigap Plan F with “Insurance Company Z”. You get the same benefits no matter what company you go with as long as you’re comparing the same plan letters.

The only difference is price

The Medigap plans that are offered by AON will be the same exact Medigap plans that you’ll find in the independent marketplace. Unfortunately for you, AON is contracted with only a few insurance carriers. When you shop the independent Medicare market, you will have access to dozens of insurance companies for the same Medigap benefits that AON offers. There is no difference in benefits!

Does price matter?

Your Medicare Supplement premium is based on your age, where you live, and if you use tobacco. AON cannot give special Medigap pricing for MassMutual retirees. It’s the law. As a Medicare Beneficiary, you will be offered the same Medigap premiums as any other Medicare eligible person. Shopping the independent market will make sure you are receiving the best priced premium.

Here are a few tips on getting the most out of your HRA dollars.

You are required to purchase only one plan through AON in order to activate your HRA account — either a Drug or Medicare Supplement.
Choose ONE plan to buy outside of AON and then shop the entire Medicare Supplement market using an independent agent to help you compare prices.
Use HRA to pay for both premiums (Drug and Medigap).

A Real Example

Here’s a likely scenario that could occur:

Buy a drug plan through AON.
Contact an Independent Agent to shop the Medicare Supplement market for the Medigap Plan you want (for example, Plan F).
Compare AON’s quotes for Plan F with Independent Market Quotes.
Purchase Plan F at the lowest premium available using your HRA for the premiums.

In conclusion

AON is a private health exchange vendor who has brokered a relationship with MassMutual. You may be one of many seniors offered limited Medicare Supplement plans with AON. In reality, there are other Medicare Supplement choices for MassMutual retirees.

If you want the freedom of shopping the independent market for your Medigap Plan, you have options outside the private health exchange.

Please contact me if you would like to know your Medicare Supplement options. My cost comparison service is completely free.

I will gladly provide you rates for Plans F, G, and N and answer any of your questions.

Call me at 888-411-1329 or complete the request form on this page.

Michael Quinn

Michael Quinn is a licensed Medicare insurance expert and cofounder of REMEDIGAP. With over a decade of experience, he helps people compare coverage options with clear, unbiased guidance. His insights have been featured by USA Today, NerdWallet and many other publications.