For the first time in a decade, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) announced that premiums for Medicare Part B beneficiaries and the Part B deductible will both be lower than the previous year.
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 will be $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. The decrease in the 2023 Part B premium aligns with CMS’s recommendation that excess SMI reserves be passed along to those with Medicare Part B coverage.
The Biden administration also announced that 2023 premiums for Part D plans will decrease. Average 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.
For more information please visit: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2023-medicare-parts-b-premiums-and-deductibles-2023-medicare-part-d-income-related-monthly