Medicare premiums set to rise 10% next year, CMS says

Dive Brief:

Medicare beneficiaries will see their premiums increase 10% next year as the massive federal insurance program braces for higher spending — especially on outpatient hospital services and on the privatized Medicare Advantage program.

Medicare Part B will have a standard monthly premium of $202.90 in 2026, an increase of $17.90 from this year, according to the CMS. The Trump administration said the hike would have been worse if Medicare hadn’t tweaked how it pays for skin substitutes in a recent final rule. Without that change, the Part B premium increase would have been about $11 higher each month.

Still, climbing premiums will pressure finances for the more than 33 million seniors in traditional Medicare, and could drive more to switch to MA plans, which are managed by pr