Keep Original Medicare and add Medicare Supplement Insurance

Helps with some of the out–of–pocket
expenses not paid by Medicare Parts A & B

Offered by private companies

Enroll in Medicare Advantage plan Medicare Advantage (Part C)

Or

Combines Parts A & B and may cover prescription drugs
Additional benefits
If your Part C plan doesn’t

include prescription drugs,
consider adding Part D

Offered by private companies

And/Or Medicare Part D

Covers medications
your doctor prescribes

Offered by private companies

Medicare supplement plans only work with Original Medicare. If a private insurer knows that you are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, the insurer can’t sell you Medicare supplement insurance unless you are switching to Original Medicare.

How Medicare parts and plans work together

As this article shows, you can combine different Medicare parts and plans to meet your specific needs. Your choices depend on which path you take—Original Medicare or Medicare Advantage.

Some people who choose Original Medicare add prescription drug coverage (Part D) and Medicare supplement insurance, but it’s not required. Most Medicare Advantage plans include prescription drug coverage plus additional benefits like vision, dental and hearing coverage—all in one plan.

If you have a Medicare Advantage Private Fee-for-Service plan (PFFS) that does not include prescription drug coverage, you can buy a standalone Part D prescription drug plan. This is the only type of Medicare Advantage plan that allows you to do this.