Committee hears bill to reinstate guaranteed‑issue rights for Medigap plans

Representative Brad Elkins on March 25 asked the House Commerce Finance and Policy Committee to lay over House File 2,335, a bill to rescind a 2023 change and restore the prior guaranteed‑issue rules for Medicare supplement (Medigap) plans.

The measure would return Minnesota to the pre‑2023 enrollment approach under which newly Medicare‑eligible people had a guaranteed‑issue window during which insurers could not charge higher premiums or require medical underwriting. Elkins said the choice between a Medicare Advantage plan and a Medigap plan is consequential and often permanent because moving from Advantage back to a supplement can trigger medical underwriting.

Why it matters: Committee members and testifiers said the bill affects Minnesota seniors on fixed incomes. Seamus Dolan, director of government relations for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, told the committee that his company’s actuarial analysis and membership data show large…