Medicare Premiums in 2012

For the majority of Medicare enrollees (those that were held harmless in 2011), the basic 2012 monthly premium for Part B will increase by only $3.50 to $99.90, compared with $96.40 in 2011. The law prevents a hike in the Part B premiums for Social Security recipients who have not had their benefits increased; these so called “hold-harmless” recipients had not had an increase in Social Security benefits for 3 years. However, about 27% of Medicare enrollees, however, are not hold-harmless recipients because they are new enrollees or because they are covered by Medicaid. For them, the monthly premium in 2012 is $130.90, up from $115.40 in 2011.

In 2012, high-income enrollees will pay up to $319.70 per month in Part B premiums. The higher Part B premiums in 2012 are based on an enrollee’s adjusted gross income (AGI) in 2010. A single person with AGI over $85,000 and a joint filer with AGI over $170,000 will be subject to a monthly premium higher than the basic amount. The premium scales up and reaches the maximum when AGI tops $214,000 for a single filer and $428,000 for a joint filer.

Part D. The basic coverage for 2012 is estimated to be $30, which is slightly lower than the actual average in 2011 of $30.76. The estimate for the average supplement coverage is $8, making the total Part D premium of $38.

Part D enrollees with income over threshold amounts (the same as those for Part B) pay an income-related monthly adjustment amount, in addition to the total Part D premium. Depending on income, this can be as much as $66.40 per month.

Source: Fact Sheet, CMS 10/27/11