Overview
- CMS set the standard Part B premium at $202.90 per month for 2026, a 9.7% increase from $185 this year.
- Social Security benefits will get a 2.8% COLA for 2026, about $56 on average, but Part B premiums are deducted from checks and will trim the net raise, with hold-harmless preventing an outright benefit reduction for those protected.
- Analyst Mary Johnson said the $17.90 jump is the second-largest dollar increase on record, trailing the $21.60 rise in 2022.
- Medicare actuaries cite higher spending for outpatient hospital care and Medicare Advantage as key drivers, with Part B revenue projected to climb by roughly $14 billion next year.
- The administration said a recent payment change for skin substitutes held the monthly increase down by about $11 compared with what it otherwise would have been.