Rhode Island Medicare Supplement: Annual Medigap Switch Right (2026)

Rhode Island Medicare Supplement law lets people in Medigap or Medicare Advantage since their Initial Enrollment Period, with no gap over 90 days, buy any Medigap plan each fall without underwriting.1 The annual right comes from R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3(h), it first applied to coverage starting in 2026, and it runs during the fall Medicare Annual Enrollment Period, October 15 to December 7.1 A separate Rhode Island rule requires insurers that sell Medigap Plan A to offer it to people under 65 who have Medicare because of a disability or end-stage renal disease and who apply within 6 months of first becoming eligible for Part B.1

In This Guide

• Do You Qualify for Rhode Island's Annual Medigap Right?
• How the Rhode Island Medicare Supplement Fall Right Works
• Under 65 With a Disability or ESRD: Plan A
• Turning 65 After Being on Plan A
• Federal Baseline vs. the Rhode Island Rule
• Medigap and Medicare Advantage in Rhode Island
• How Rhode Island Medicare Supplement Premiums Are Set
• Where to Get Help
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

Do You Qualify for Rhode Island's Annual Medigap Right?

The Rhode Island annual Medigap right has four conditions, and all four come from the statute's own wording. You qualify under R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3(h) if every line below is true:1

• You are enrolled now in either a Medigap (Medicare Supplement) policy or a Medicare Advantage plan.
• Your coverage reaches back to the start. You have been covered by a Medigap policy or a Medicare Advantage plan, or a mix of them, since your Medicare Initial Enrollment Period (IEP).
• No gap over 90 days. Rhode Island's statute allows breaks in that Medigap or Medicare Advantage coverage only up to 90 days.
• You apply during the fall window. The right lasts for the duration of the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP), for coverage that starts January 1 of the following year.

The Medicare Initial Enrollment Period is the 7-month window around your 65th birthday: the 3 months before the month you turn 65, the month you turn 65, and the 3 months after. The fall Medicare Open Enrollment Period, which Rhode Island's statute calls the Annual Enrollment Period, runs October 15 through December 7 each year, and changes made during it take effect January 1.2

Two hypothetical situations show how the conditions sort people. A 72-year-old in Warwick who joined a Medicare Advantage plan at 65 and has stayed in Medicare Advantage ever since meets every condition and can apply for a Medigap policy during the fall AEP, even if her health history would have mattered under medical underwriting. Someone who has had only Original Medicare, with no Medigap policy and no Medicare Advantage plan, is not enrolled in either, so Rhode Island's § 27-18.2-3(h) annual right, as written, does not describe that person.1

How the Rhode Island Medicare Supplement Fall Right Works

Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3(h), a qualifying Rhode Island enrollee has guaranteed issue rights for any Medigap policy that an insurer currently makes available in Rhode Island. The statute says the insurer cannot condition the policy on your medical or health status or on your receipt of health care, and no insurer may perform individual medical underwriting on you in connection with that policy.1

Two consequences follow from that wording:

• You can move up or across. The Rhode Island annual right reaches any Medigap policy the insurer sells in the state, not only a plan with equal or lesser benefits.
• You can leave Medicare Advantage for Medigap. The right covers people enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan who meet the same coverage-history condition, not only people who already hold Medigap.

The timeline is recent. Rhode Island's Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner (OHIC) says in Bulletin 2025-05 that the annual Medicare Supplement enrollment period was signed into law by the Governor on July 2, 2025. OHIC's December 2025 report to the Legislature says the new guaranteed issue rules went into effect on October 15, 2025 for plans beginning calendar year 2026.1

Under 65 With a Disability or ESRD: Plan A

Since July 1, 2023, R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3(g) has required every Medigap insurer to make each Plan A policy it sells in Rhode Island available to any applicant under 65 who is eligible for Medicare because of a disability or end-stage renal disease (ESRD).1

The Rhode Island Plan A rule has a deadline. An under-65 Rhode Island applicant with Medicare due to a disability or ESRD must apply for Plan A during the first 6 months immediately following initial eligibility for Medicare Part B, or during an alternate enrollment period set by the commissioner. During that application period, a Rhode Island Medigap insurer cannot condition Plan A coverage on the under-65 applicant's medical or health status or receipt of health care, and cannot use individual medical underwriting.1

Plan A is the only plan letter these under-65 rules reach. OHIC's December 2025 report states that in Rhode Island, enrollees under age 65 who are eligible for Medicare due to disability or ESRD may only enroll in Plan A.1 The annual fall right carries the same limit: for Rhode Island residents under 65 who are in a Medicare Advantage plan or Medigap Plan A because of a disability, the annual AEP right is to every Medigap Plan A policy an insurer sells in the state, not to every plan.1

A hypothetical 50-year-old on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) who was told Medigap "isn't sold under 65" has a Rhode Island answer: if he applies within 6 months of first becoming eligible for Part B, Rhode Island insurers that sell Plan A must offer it to him without underwriting.1

Turning 65 After Being on Plan A

A Rhode Island resident under 65 who enrolled in Medigap Plan A under § 27-18.2-3(g) because of a disability or ESRD gets a 6-month open enrollment period at 65 for any Medigap policy an insurer currently sells in Rhode Island. Rhode Island's at-65 window for people who enrolled in Plan A under 65 begins on the first day of the month in which the person both turns 65 and remains enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B.1

This is the point at which the Plan A-only limit falls away. Someone who started on Plan A at 50 can use the at-65 window to buy a plan with more benefits.

Federal Baseline vs. the Rhode Island Rule

Rhode Island's main departure from federal Medigap law is repetition: federal law gives a one-time 6-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period, while Rhode Island gives qualifying enrollees a guaranteed-issue window every fall.3,4,1,5

Medigap and Medicare Advantage in Rhode Island

Medigap and Medicare Advantage do not work together. Medicare's booklet "Understanding Medicare Advantage Plans" describes Medigap as extra insurance that helps pay your share of out-of-pocket costs in Original Medicare, and says you can't use Medigap to pay your Medicare Advantage plan's copayments, coinsurance, deductibles, and premiums.5

Federal guidance puts limits on selling Medigap to Medicare Advantage members. Medicare's booklet states that if you're in a Medicare Advantage plan, "it's illegal for anyone to sell you a Medigap policy unless you're switching back to Original Medicare," and that you should report someone who tries to sell you one when you aren't planning to drop your plan to your State Insurance Department.5

Dropping Medigap to join Medicare Advantage has a known risk. Medicare's booklet says that in most cases, if you drop your Medigap policy to join a Medicare Advantage plan, you may not be able to get the same policy back. It also describes a federal trial right: if you join a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time and aren't happy with it, you can buy a Medigap policy and a separate Medicare drug plan if you return to Original Medicare within 12 months of joining.5 Medicare.gov's switch or drop Medigap page covers the federal details.

Rhode Island adds a way back after the 12 months. During the fall Medicare Open Enrollment Period you can switch from a Medicare Advantage plan to Original Medicare, with the change effective January 1.2 In the same fall window, a Rhode Island Medicare Advantage member whose Medigap or Medicare Advantage coverage has had no gap over 90 days since the IEP has a guaranteed issue right to a Medigap policy for January 1 coverage.1 Medicare's booklet notes that some states provide additional special rights to buy a Medigap policy, and Rhode Island's § 27-18.2-3(h) annual right is one of them.5

How Rhode Island Medicare Supplement Premiums Are Set

OHIC regulates Medigap prices in Rhode Island. Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3.1, an insurer cannot deliver a Medigap policy to a Rhode Island resident unless the policy form has been filed with and approved by the health insurance commissioner. The commissioner may approve, disapprove, or modify the rates an insurer files, and a rate cannot be approved unless the commissioner finds it consistent with the interests of the public.6

Most Rhode Island Medigap plans are priced by age. OHIC's December 2025 report states that the majority of Rhode Island Medigap plans are currently offered under an attained age rating structure, in which rates increase each year based on a carrier-specific age curve.6 For how attained-age pricing compares with the other rating methods, see how Medigap premiums are priced.

Community rating was studied in Rhode Island. Section 27-18.2-3.1(e) directed OHIC to evaluate the impact of adopting a community rating structure for Medigap plans and to report to the General Assembly by January 1, 2026, and OHIC's December 2025 report is that response.6 Because most Rhode Island Medigap plans are priced on a carrier-specific age curve, compare quotes from several Rhode Island insurers before you use the fall right.

Where to Get Help

• Medicare: Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048. Medicare.gov says you can talk or live chat with a real person 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except some federal holidays.7
• OHIC: Rhode Island's Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner approves Medigap policy forms and rates in the state and issued Bulletins 2023-01 and 2025-05 on the two Rhode Island Medigap rights.6,1
• Rhode Island Medicare overview: Brevy's guide to Medicare plans and coverage in Rhode Island covers the rest of the state's Medicare choices.

Learn More

Find personalized help comparing Medicare Supplement plans in Rhode Island at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.