The standard monthly Medicare Part B premium will rise to $96.40 next year, up 3.1% from the current $93.50, Kerry Weems, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced in a teleconference with reporters.
That amount will be paid by individuals with an annual income of $82,000 or less, or couples with $160,000 or less a year—approximately 95% of all Medicare beneficiaries, according to the agency.
Next year, Part B premiums again will be tied to beneficiary income, as required by the Medicare Modernization Act. For example, for beneficiaries in the top bracket (annual income above $205,000, or above $410,000 for couples), the amount will increase to $238.40, up from this year's $161.40. The Part B deductible also will rise to $135 from the current $131.
The increases reflect higher fee-for-service costs—including for home health services and physician-administered drugs, and for the Medicare Advantage program—as well as the need to increase contingency reserves in the Part B trust fund, Mr. Weems said.
Dr. Edward Langston, chair of the American Medical Association Board of Trustees, expressed concern in a statement that government is cutting payment to doctors who care for the majority of Medicare patients who are in effect “helping subsidize overpayments to private insurance companies” that provide Medicare Advantage plans.
The AMA is urging Congress to eliminate overpayments to Medicare Advantage plans. CMS also announced increases in the Medicare Part A deductible and in the premium for those who must “buy in” for coverage. Beneficiaries who have less than 30 quarters of coverage would have to pay $432, up $13 from the current $419. The Part A deductible, payable at first hospital admission, will rise to $1,024, up $32 from the current $992, Mr. Weems said.