My 90 year old Mom is at home on hospice. We believe she will live for several years yet and that her hospice will renew every 6 months or perhaps she might even 'graduate'. Should we cancel her supplement? She has BCBS plan F and it's very costly. The money we save could be put to use for her caregivers.
When someone elects Medicare hospice, Medicare Part A generally covers the hospice-related care for the terminal illness (and related conditions) through the hospice benefit. That often means the Medigap plan has far less day-to-day cost-sharing to pay for those hospice-related services. So the premium can feel wasted in the short run.
The caution is the "what if" side: Medigap Plan F is a closed/grandfathered plan for most people. If you cancel it and later need Original Medicare cost-sharing again — for example if she graduates from hospice, pauses hospice, or needs care that is clearly unrelated to the hospice diagnosis — getting a similar Medigap back can require medical underwriting and may not be available at the same price (or at all), depending on your state.
Before canceling, ask BCBS (and the hospice social worker/billing contact) two practical questions: (1) what, if anything, Plan F is still paying while she is on hospice, and (2) what hospital/Part B bills would look like without the supplement if she left hospice or needed unrelated care. Keep a short written note of those answers.
I share public Medicare education only and am not a licensed insurance agent or broker — just outlining how hospice and Medigap usually interact so the tradeoff is clearer.
They would have information that they need to help make a decision. The condition she has, the possibility she would not be recertified for Hospice, medications Hospice may not provide that you would have to pay out of pocket for.
Co-pays that the plan covers that you / she would have to pay if you were to drop the plan.
Medigap is nice because it goes from State to State. So if a person tends to travel, this is what they need. Other supplimentals stay in State and won't cover you if your out of State and need hospitalization. Medigap does have cheaper plans.
Mom is not suppose to go to the hospital or see a doctor if on Hospice. So there is no need for a suppliment I guess. Is she still on Meds that Hospice does not cover, if so she needs to still carry a prescription plan. Vision or dental, not so much. You may want to see if you Counties Office if Aging has someone who can help you decide what you can do.
If they fail to meet Medicare guidelines on the disease progression they will not be "recertified" this is commonly called "graduating" out of Hospice.