CMS NEWS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 12, 2018
Contact: CMS Media Relations
(202) 690-6145 | CMS Media Inquiries
CMS
announces 2019 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles
Today, the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the 2019 premiums,
deductibles, and coinsurance amounts for Medicare Parts A and B.
“CMS is committed to
empowering beneficiaries with the information they need to make informed
decisions about their healthcare,” said CMS Administrator Seema
Verma. “In addition to the information we recently released for
Medicare Advantage, the program through which private plans provide
Medicare benefits, today we are releasing information for fee-for-service
Medicare, so enrollees understand their options for receiving Medicare
benefits.”
As announced earlier this
month, CMS launched the eMedicare Initiative that
aims to modernize the way beneficiaries get information about Medicare
and create new ways to help them make the best decisions for themselves
and their families. Ahead of Medicare Open Enrollment – which begins on
October 15, 2018 and ends December 7, 2018 – CMS is making improvements
the Medicare.gov website to help beneficiaries compare options and decide
if Original Medicare or Medicare Advantage is right for them. Among the
tools released as part of the eMedicare Initiative is a stand-alone,
mobile optimized out of pocket cost calculator that will provide
information on both overall costs and prescription drug costs.
Medicare Part B
Premiums/Deductibles
Medicare Part B covers
physician services, outpatient hospital services, certain home health
services, durable medical equipment, and certain other medical and health
services not covered by Medicare Part A.
The standard monthly premium
for Medicare Part B enrollees will be $135.50 for 2019, a slight increase
from $134 in 2018. An estimated 2 million Medicare beneficiaries (about
3.5 percent) will pay less than the full Part B standard monthly premium
amount in 2019 due to the statutory hold harmless provision, which limits
certain beneficiaries’ increase in their Part B premium to be no greater
than the increase in their Social Security benefits.
CMS also announced that the
annual deductible for Medicare Part B beneficiaries is $185 in 2019, an
increase from $183 in 2018.
Medicare Part A
Premiums/Deductibles
Medicare Part A covers
inpatient hospital, skilled nursing facility, and some home health care
services. About 99 percent of Medicare beneficiaries do not have a Part A
premium since they have at least 40 quarters of Medicare-covered
employment.
The Medicare Part A inpatient
deductible that beneficiaries will pay when admitted to the hospital is
$1,364 in 2019, an increase of $24 from $1,340 in 2018.
Medicare Advantage
Premiums
Medicare beneficiaries can
choose to enroll in fee-for-service Medicare (Parts A and B) or can
select a private Medicare Advantage plan to receive their Medicare
benefits. Premiums and deductibles for Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription
Drug plans are already finalized and are unaffected by this announcement.
Last month, CMS released the benefit,
premium, and cost sharing information for Medicare Advantage plans in
2019. On average, Medicare Advantage premiums will decline while plan
choices and new benefits increase. On average, Medicare Advantage
premiums in 2019 are estimated to decrease by six percent to $28, from an
average of $29.81 in 2018.
For a fact sheet on the 2019
Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles, please visit: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2019-medicare-parts-b-premiums-and-deductibles.
For more information on the
2019 Medicare Parts A and B premiums and deductibles (CMS-8068-N,
CMS-8069-N, CMS-8070-N), please visit https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection.
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