NAHU Washington Update - 09/30/2022 (Plain Text Version)
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Medicare Part B, Part D and Medicare Advantage Premiums Decline in 2023The standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B enrollees will be $164.90 for 2023, a decrease of $5.20 from $170.10 in 2022. The annual deductible for all Medicare Part B beneficiaries is...
For the first time in a decade, CMS announced that premiums for Medicare Part B beneficiaries will be lower than the previous year: Part B premiums will decrease to $164.90. The annual Part B deductible will also dip to $226 from $233. Each year the Medicare Part B premium, deductible and coinsurance rates are determined according to the Social Security Act. The standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B enrollees will be $164.90 for 2023, a decrease of $5.20 from $170.10 in 2022. The annual deductible for all Medicare Part B beneficiaries is $226 in 2023, a decrease of $7 from the annual deductible of $233 in 2022. The 2022 premium included a contingency margin to cover projected Part B spending for Aduhelm, a new drug meant to treat Alzheimer’s. Lower-than-projected spending on Aduhelm and other Part B items and services resulted in much larger reserves in the Part B account of the Supplementary Medical Insurance (SMI) Trust Fund, which can be used to limit future Part B premium increases. The decrease in the 2023 Part B premium aligns with a CMS recommendation in May that excess SMI reserves be passed along to people with Medicare Part B coverage. Regarding Medicare Part A, the inpatient hospital deductible that beneficiaries pay if admitted to the hospital will be $1,600 in 2023, an increase of $44 from $1,556 in 2022. The Part A inpatient hospital deductible covers beneficiaries’ share of costs for the first 60 days of Medicare-covered inpatient hospital care in a benefit period. The Biden administration also announced that 2023 premiums for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans will decrease. The projected average premium for 2023 Medicare Advantage plans is $18 per month, a decline of nearly eight percent from the 2022 average premium of $19.52, while Part D premiums are projected to be $31.50, a slight decrease from $32.08 in 2022. On top of the
premium and deductible decreases, beginning in 2023, certain Medicare enrollees
who are 36 months post-kidney-transplant (and therefore no longer eligible for full Medicare coverage)
can elect to continue Part B coverage of immunosuppressive drugs by paying a
premium. For 2023, the immunosuppressive drug premium is $97.10. Additionally,
Medicare beneficiaries who take insulin through a pump won’t have to pay a
deductible beginning July 1, and cost-sharing will be capped at $35 for a
one-month supply of covered insulin. This benefit will be available to people
with pumps supplied through the durable medical equipment benefit under Part B.
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