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Medicare Part B Premiums Decrease
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced the 2023 premium amounts for Medicare Part B. For only the third time in the program’s history, Part B premiums will decrease by approximately 3% in 2023. Participants will pay $164.90 per month starting in January 2023, down from the $170.10 monthly premium in 2022.
Additionally, the Part B annual deductible is decreasing from $233 in 2022 to $226 in 2023. This is also a 3% decline year over year.
Services covered by Part B include physician visits, outpatient hospital services, and certain medical equipment & home health services. CMS cited the lower projected spending on the Alzheimer’s drug, Aduhelm, and other services resulted in larger reserves for Part B. These reserves may be used to help lower future costs for Medicare participants.
These reductions will be welcome news for Medicare participants who are faced with higher costs since the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, Social Security is expected to announce next month one of the largest costs of living adjustments (COLAs) in the program’s history. While the official COLA amount is unknown, it should be viewed as a positive for seniors, especially with Medicare premiums set to decline in 2023.
Open Enrollment
Medicare Open Enrollment begins October 15th through December 7th. This is the window where Medicare participants can compare pricing between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans, along with shopping their Part D prescription drug plans.
If you need any Medicare enrollment guidance, please contact your financial advisor today. We’re here to help!
For more information on 2023 Medicare premiums:
https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2023-medicare-parts-b-premiums-and-deductibles-2023-medicare-part-d-income-related-monthly
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