A "$0 premium" is only part of the picture. What a Medicare path really costs depends on how heavy a health year you have — and the paths trade off in opposite directions. Here's the same three paths in a light year and a serious year, so you can see the trade for yourself.
There's no path that's cheapest in every year. In a light year, Medicare Advantage usually costs the least. In a serious year, a Supplement caps what you owe — while Original Medicare alone has no limit at all. So the real question isn't "which is cheapest?" It's which kind of year are you planning for — and we keep two things separate below: what you pay every month (premium), and what you'd owe only if you needed care (out-of-pocket).
Tap each one — the cards update, and watch the cheapest path shift as the year gets heavier.
The out-of-pocket figures above use illustrative care costs. Premiums are personal — enter the monthly premiums you've actually been quoted and we'll fill the premium row with your numbers, alongside the out-of-pocket for whichever scenario you've picked above. Leave any blank to skip it; this is optional.
Part B premium is the shared floor on all three paths and is shown on each card. Premium and out-of-pocket stay on separate rows — we never blend them into one number.
The numbers show the shape of it — but which risk you'd rather carry depends on your health, your savings, your doctors, and your medications. That's a conversation, not a calculation.
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Is a $0-premium Medicare Advantage plan actually free?
No. You still pay your standard Part B premium, and you pay as you use care — copays and coinsurance up to the plan's yearly out-of-pocket maximum. In a healthy year that can cost very little; in a heavy year it can run into the thousands.
Which costs more, Medicare Advantage or a Medigap plan?
It depends on the kind of year you have. Advantage usually costs less in a light year; a Medigap plan costs more each month but caps what you owe in an expensive year. The choice is less about which is “cheaper” and more about which risk you'd rather carry.
Why keep Part B premiums and care costs separate?
Because blending them hides the trade. Everyone pays the Part B premium on all three paths, so it's the shared floor; what actually differs is the monthly plan cost versus what you'd owe only if you needed care.
Built from the Tool 3 spec (no prototype). The most even-handedness-sensitive tool in the suite — rebuild in Astro with real Brevo + analytics + server validation; this file is the behavior + design spec.
ANNUAL. The MA MOOP and Part D max in particular must be confirmed via the Fact Log (brief §7.2). This tool carries the most dated figures in the suite — flag it as the heaviest October-maintenance item.SCENARIOS — they're modeling assumptions, not claims; tune with the founder but keep them realistic and labeled illustrative.#fernLink = /fern; confirm the canonical member-page URL. The conversion action.// STUB; POST email + the chosen scenario + figures, tag to the lead-gen track, ideally email the comparison.track() fires scenario_switched, calculator_opened, show_my_numbers, consult_fern_clicked, keep_copy_submitted.