Medicare Supplement Plan C: 2026 Coverage and Costs

What Medicare Supplement Plan C covers

Medigap Plan C is a standardized plan, which means the benefits are set by federal and state law and are identical no matter which insurance company sells it. Only the price and the company change — the coverage does not. Plan C is one of the more generous standardized designs because it is one of only two plans (the other is Plan F) that pays the annual Part B deductible.

Plan C works alongside Original Medicare. Medicare pays its share first, then Plan C pays your share of covered costs. It does not add new types of coverage — it reduces what you pay out of pocket for services Parts A and B already cover.

• Part A coinsurance and hospital costs, plus up to 365 extra days after Original Medicare benefits are used up — 100%
• Part B coinsurance or copayment — 100% (covers the standard 20% you would otherwise owe after the Part B deductible)
• Blood (first 3 pints) — 100%
• Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment — 100%
• Skilled nursing facility (SNF) care coinsurance — 100% (this is the $217/day charge for days 21–100 in 2026)
• Part A deductible — 100% (the $1,736 per benefit period charge in 2026)
• Part B deductible — 100% (the $283 annual deductible in 2026)
• Foreign travel emergency care — 80% of approved costs after a separate $250 yearly deductible, up to a $50,000 lifetime maximum (standard Medigap terms)
• Part B excess charges — NOT covered (this is the one benefit Plan C lacks compared to Plan F)

Who can still buy Plan C in 2026

A 2015 federal law (the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act, or MACRA) barred Medigap plans sold to people newly eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020 from covering the Part B deductible. Because paying the Part B deductible is a defining feature of Plan C, the plan is effectively closed to anyone who became eligible for Medicare on or after that date.

You may still be able to buy Plan C only if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020 — for example, you turned 65 before then or qualified through disability — even if you have not yet enrolled. People newly eligible on or after January 1, 2020 cannot buy Plan C or Plan F, but they have the right to buy Plan D or Plan G, which offer comparable coverage minus the Part B deductible.

Because Plan C is a closed plan, the pool of enrollees no longer includes new, younger members. Over time this can push premiums higher for closed plans, so anyone still eligible should compare prices carefully before buying.

What Plan C costs in 2026

There is no single national price for Plan C. Because benefits are standardized, insurers compete on premium, and what you pay varies by insurance company, your state, your age, your sex, whether you use tobacco, and the pricing method the policy uses. The same Plan C benefits can cost very different amounts from one carrier to the next, so it pays to compare multiple quotes.

Medigap policies are generally priced one of three ways: community-rated (the same premium regardless of age), issue-age-rated (based on your age when you buy, and it won't rise just because you get older), or attained-age-rated (based on your current age, so it rises as you age). Knowing which method a policy uses helps you predict how the premium will change over time.

Remember that the Medigap premium is on top of your Part B premium, which is $202.90 per month in 2026, and any Part D drug plan premium. Plan C does not include prescription drug coverage, so you would buy a separate Part D plan if you want it.

Plan C vs. Plan F vs. Plan D

Plan C is easiest to understand by comparing it to the plans most similar to it. The differences are narrow but matter for both cost and eligibility.

• Plan F — Covers everything Plan C covers PLUS Part B excess charges. Like Plan C, it pays the Part B deductible and is closed to people newly eligible on or after January 1, 2020.
• Plan C — Covers both deductibles but NOT Part B excess charges. Closed to people newly eligible on or after January 1, 2020.
• Plan D — The closest plan still open to everyone. It matches Plan C's benefits except it does NOT pay the Part B deductible. This is the natural alternative if you can't buy Plan C.
• Plan G — Open to everyone; covers Part B excess charges but not the Part B deductible. Often the most popular pick for people newly eligible after 2020.

How to decide if Plan C fits you

If you are eligible to buy Plan C, the key question is whether paying for the Part B deductible coverage is worth the premium. The Part B deductible is $283 in 2026 — a relatively small, predictable amount — so a plan that covers it is mainly buying you convenience and budget certainty rather than large savings. Compare the annual premium difference between Plan C and a plan like Plan D against that $283 to see if the extra cost makes sense.

The best time to buy any Medigap policy is during your Medigap Open Enrollment Period — the six months beginning when you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During this window insurers cannot deny you coverage or charge more for health conditions. Outside it, you may be subject to medical underwriting. Coverage rules and protections can also vary by state, so confirm the specifics where you live.

Medicareloginguide.com is an independent education resource and is not affiliated with the federal government or the Medicare program. Always verify plan details and current figures with the official sources before enrolling.