Medicare Plans
Medicare Advantage vs. Medicare Supplement in Palm Beach County
Once Part A and Part B are in place, people in Palm Beach County usually go one of two ways. A Medicare Advantage plan puts everything on one private plan, often with a low premium and a local network. A Medicare Supplement, or Medigap, sits behind Original Medicare and pays most of what Medicare leaves unpaid.
The right pick turns on a few things: which doctors you want, what you take, how many months you spend away from Florida, and whether you'd pay more each month to know your costs in advance.
- Two ways to cover what Original Medicare leaves to you
- Your doctors and your travel usually decide it
- The premium is only one part of the yearly cost
- Free side-by-side pricing for Palm Beach County residents
See both options priced for your doctors and drugs
Give us your doctors, your hospital and your prescriptions. A licensed insurance agent prices an Advantage plan and a Medigap plus Part D setup from the companies we represent, then calls you back during business hours with the yearly difference.
What to expect
Free review- A licensed agent calls you back during business hours, Mon-Fri, 9:30am-6:30pm ET
- Your doctors and prescriptions get checked before any plan is suggested
- No fee for our help, and your premium is the same either way
- No obligation to enroll, and no pressure if you'd rather stay put
Reviewed by the licensed insurance agents at Palm Beach Senior Insurance. Last reviewed: October 2026. Office hours: Mon-Fri, 9:30am-6:30pm ET.
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Side by side
Where the two options differ
| Compare | Medicare Supplement Medigap · pairs with Original Medicare | Medicare Advantage Part C · all-in-one private plan | Part D Drug Plan Prescriptions only · add-on |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it covers | Your share of Part A and Part B costs, including deductibles, copays and coinsurance. | Hospital, medical and usually drugs, bundled into one plan with one card. | Prescription medications only. Nothing medical. |
| Doctor networks | None. Any provider in the U.S. who accepts Medicare. | HMO or PPO network. Confirm your Boca Raton Regional or Jupiter Medical Center doctors are in it. | Pharmacy network only. Preferred pharmacies usually cost less. |
| Monthly premium | Highest of the three, plus your Part B premium. | Often $0, plus your Part B premium. | Low monthly premium, plus your Part B premium. |
| Costs when you use care | Little to nothing after the Part B deductible on Plan G. | Copays per visit and per service, capped by an annual out-of-pocket maximum. | Deductible and tiered copays based on the plan's drug list. |
| Prescription drugs | Not included. You add a separate Part D plan for that. | Included in most Palm Beach County area plans. | This is the drug coverage. |
| Extras (dental, vision, hearing) | Not included. Buy standalone if you want them. | Commonly included, with allowances that vary a lot by plan. | Not included. |
| Health questions to enroll | None during your 6-month open enrollment; underwriting applies later. | None. Acceptance is guaranteed during a valid enrollment period. | None. |
| Best if you | Travel often, see specialists frequently, and want predictable bills. | Are settled with your local providers and want low premiums plus extras. | Chose Medigap or Original Medicare and need drug coverage. |
| Read more | Medicare Supplement details | Medicare Advantage details | Part D Drug Plan details |
Medicare Supplement
Medigap · pairs with Original Medicare
- What it covers
- Your share of Part A and Part B costs, including deductibles, copays and coinsurance.
- Doctor networks
- None. Any provider in the U.S. who accepts Medicare.
- Monthly premium
- Highest of the three, plus your Part B premium.
- Costs when you use care
- Little to nothing after the Part B deductible on Plan G.
- Prescription drugs
- Not included. You add a separate Part D plan for that.
- Extras (dental, vision, hearing)
- Not included. Buy standalone if you want them.
- Health questions to enroll
- None during your 6-month open enrollment; underwriting applies later.
- Best if you
- Travel often, see specialists frequently, and want predictable bills.
Medicare Advantage
Part C · all-in-one private plan
- What it covers
- Hospital, medical and usually drugs, bundled into one plan with one card.
- Doctor networks
- HMO or PPO network. Confirm your Boca Raton Regional or Jupiter Medical Center doctors are in it.
- Monthly premium
- Often $0, plus your Part B premium.
- Costs when you use care
- Copays per visit and per service, capped by an annual out-of-pocket maximum.
- Prescription drugs
- Included in most Palm Beach County area plans.
- Extras (dental, vision, hearing)
- Commonly included, with allowances that vary a lot by plan.
- Health questions to enroll
- None. Acceptance is guaranteed during a valid enrollment period.
- Best if you
- Are settled with your local providers and want low premiums plus extras.
Part D Drug Plan
Prescriptions only · add-on
- What it covers
- Prescription medications only. Nothing medical.
- Doctor networks
- Pharmacy network only. Preferred pharmacies usually cost less.
- Monthly premium
- Low monthly premium, plus your Part B premium.
- Costs when you use care
- Deductible and tiered copays based on the plan's drug list.
- Prescription drugs
- This is the drug coverage.
- Extras (dental, vision, hearing)
- Not included.
- Health questions to enroll
- None.
- Best if you
- Chose Medigap or Original Medicare and need drug coverage.
Local networks
What it means at Palm Beach County hospitals
-
Medigap: any provider that takes Medicare
Jupiter Medical Center, St. Mary's, Boca Raton Regional Hospital, and a hospital near your summer home all treat it the same. No referrals and no network list. -
Advantage: the network and service area decide
Plans sold here don't all contract with the same hospital systems, and networks can change every January. Routine care outside the plan's area is limited. -
Drug coverage works differently
Most Advantage plans include Part D. With Medigap you choose a separate Part D plan and can shop it again each fall, which often helps if you take a pricey brand-name drug.
In Palm Beach County, the network question is usually about which hospital system a plan includes. St. Mary's, Good Samaritan, Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center and Delray Medical Center are in one system. Boca Raton Regional Hospital and Bethesda Hospital East are in another, and HCA Florida JFK Hospital, Jupiter Medical Center and Wellington Regional Medical Center each sit outside both. Anyone seeing an oncologist should check that doctor by name. Veterans who use the Thomas H. Corey VA Medical Center or the VA clinics in Boca Raton and Delray Beach can keep VA care on either route, but the VA doesn't bill Medicare, so think about where you'd go for care outside the VA. Check whether we cover your town on the service areas page.
Part-year residents
If you live here only part of the year
An Advantage plan belongs to the county where you live permanently. Away from that area, it covers emergencies and urgent care, and a PPO may cover other visits at its out-of-network rate. If you're gone more than six months in a row, the plan has to drop you, unless it offers a visitor or traveler benefit that stretches the limit to 12 months.
Medigap has none of those limits. It pays at any doctor or hospital in the U.S. that accepts Medicare, in Wellington or in Michigan, and you can keep it if you move. If you're still in your first six-month window, or you can pass the health questions, it's worth pricing before you settle on a plan.
Choose Advantage if
When Medicare Advantage is the better fit
- You want the lowest premium, sometimes $0 beyond Part B
- Your doctors and hospital are already in the plan's network
- You live in Palm Beach County year-round
- You'd use the dental, vision, hearing or fitness benefits
- You're fine with copays as you go, backed by a yearly cap
Choose Medigap if
When a Medicare Supplement is the better fit
- You spend part of the year in another state
- You see specialists in more than one hospital system
- You want any doctor who accepts Medicare, with no referrals
- You're in ongoing treatment and copays would pile up
- You're in your six-month Medigap window and can join without health questions
The timing rule that catches people
You can join or switch Advantage plans every fall during Open Enrollment. Buying a Medigap plan later usually means health questions, and Florida has no yearly Medigap switching window, so the company can say no. Weigh that before your first choice.
Total cost
Count the whole year, not only the premium
You still pay when you use a $0 premium plan. Add up likely copays for checkups, specialist visits, scans and any surgery you expect. Set that total next to a year of Medigap and Part D premiums. For a healthy 66-year-old in Royal Palm Beach who rarely sees a doctor, Advantage often comes out ahead. For someone with a long-term condition who sees two specialists a month, Medigap often costs less over the year.
We run those numbers with your own doctors and drug list. Start with the Medicare checklist, or read the mistakes to avoid before you enroll in anything. For free, unbiased counseling on every plan in the county, call SHINE (Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders), Florida's free Medicare counseling program, at 1-800-963-5337.
Questions
Advantage vs. Medigap questions from Palm Beach County
Can I keep a Medigap plan and a Medicare Advantage plan together?
Which one costs less in Palm Beach County?
I split the year between Florida and another state. Does that change the answer?
Do I pay the Part B premium either way?
Does Medigap pay for prescriptions?
If I start with Advantage, can I switch to Medigap later?
Still weighing the two?
Send us your doctors and prescriptions. We'll price both options for a full year and show you the difference in dollars.