BartInLA said:

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I was given and have spoken to an agent, but my concern is the commission they make. Does anyone have an idea of how you can cut out the middleman? Probably an impossibility. TIA

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I was actually a licensed and certified agent and Medicare Expert in a prior life.

All of the Medicare Supplements of the same letter are the same, by design. There is no difference between one company's plan G vs another company's plan G, besides the rates and the perception of the company.

The G Plan is the best one out there for a new enrollee, because it covers the Part B Excess. This means that if a provider charges more than Medicare allows, the Supplement will pay an additional 15%. Unfortunately, you will have a $257 annual deductible when going to the doctor. Hospital charges are covered 100%, with no deductibles or copays. There is no network, so you can go to any doctor or hospital you want. Some may choose to not accept Medicare billing, which just means you'd file the claim yourself, but it's not that hard.

Without getting long-winded, I strongly recommend against Medicare Advantage Plans. You are disenrolling from Medicare, and putting your future completely into the hands of the health insurance company, their HMO style network, their plan design, etc. The only time I ever recommended MA was people on Welfare and Medicaid, because it gave them a few more options than the county hospital. Agents will try to sell you on some perks and such, but everyone that I've ever known to go on MA and then needed to use it, regretted it. And by that point, their health didn't allow them to go back onto Medicare with a Supplement.