Medicare premiums info

[Undercurrent]

I'm on SSDI (100% disabled) and Medicare. I don't pay for Part A, as it is covered. I pay the minimum for part B.


Medicare Premiums for 2010:


Part A: (Hospital Insurance) Premium

Most people do not pay a monthly Part A premium because they or a spouse has 40 or more quarters of Medicare-covered employment.

The Part A premium is $254.00 per month for people having 30-39 quarters of Medicare-covered employment.

The Part A premium is $461.00 per month for people who are not otherwise eligible for premium-free hospital insurance and have less than 30 quarters of Medicare-covered employment.


Part B: (Medical Insurance) Premium

Most beneficiaries will continue to pay the same $96.40 premium amount in 2010. Beneficiaries who currently have the Social Security Administration (SSA) withhold their Part B premium and have incomes of $85,000 or less (or $170,000 or less for joint filers) will not have an increase in their Part B premium in 2010.

For all others, the standard Medicare Part B monthly premium will be $110.50 in 2010, which is a 15% increase over the 2009 premium. The Medicare Part B premium is increasing in 2010 due to possible increases in Part B costs. If your income is above $85,000 (single) or $170,000 (married couple), then your Medicare Part B premium may be higher than $110.50 per month.



2010 Part B Premium Amounts for Persons with Higher Income Levels:


If Your Yearly Income Is:

$85,000 or less
$96.40 if beneficiary has SSA withhold in 2009
$110.50 for all others

$85,001-$107,000
$154.70

$107,001-$160,000
$221.00 (edited: cut & pasted wrong number)

$160,001-$214,000
$287.30

Above $214,000
$353.60

[livetohike]

1. Thanks for this info

:hi: It is much, much cheaper than what my husband and I pay now for a high deductible plan. We are 57 and 55.

[doc03]

2. I have fully paid for Union negotiated health insurance

that I will either be taxed on or forced out of and dumped on Medicare. I have had years of experience with my parents on Medicare, it is not the great plan people on DU think it is. If it was so great why do we have to buy supplemental insurance or be driven into bankruptcy?

[JuniperLea]

4. I think you need to read up...

Because that's just not so. One of the many provisions in the current unfinished sausage of a bill is that you can't be dumped from your insurance when you reach 55, and if your union pays for your coverage, you aren't going to be taxed.

[doc03]

9. I didn't fall off a turnip truck, if they get this through

on our next Union contract the company will try and dump us on Medicare. My Union doesn't pay for my coverage, our insurance was negotiated as part of our labor contract and the company pays for it. I don't know, do they still plan on taxing our premiums as income? This fiasco changes everyday, personally I am sick and tired of hearing about health care. I work in the steel industry, if one steel company takes concessions the rest want it. If another industry say autoworkers take concessions the steel industry want the same. If the company sees they can dump their highest cost older workers on Medicare they will do it.

[JuniperLea]

3. Thanks!

$110.50 sure beats the heck out of $550! That's how much it would cost me to pay for my current plan with my employer. I pay $50 a month, which is a bargain! Only because my employer is uber awesome.

[Undercurrent]

6. Yes, for those of us who have

less than $85,000 in income, and qualify for subsidized Part A coverage it's great!


If you have less that 40 quarters of Medicare covered employment (mostly younger people) then Part A is $254.00

If you have less that 30 quarters of Medicare covered employment (again, mostly young people) then Part A is $461.00

Add this to the $110.50, and the premiums are 364.50 or 571.50 (for young people or those who have not worked much under Medicare covered employment).

Add to this the additional premium amount if you make more than $85,000.



PS: Now I need to go back and correct one of my cut and paste numbers in the OP.



typo edit

[Clio the Leo]

5. Thank you. NT

[DURHAM D]

7. Some reminders - Medicare covers 80% of "covered" procedures.

You pick up the other 20% of covered procedures unless you buy a supplemental private insurance policy. The cost of the supplemental varies greatly depending on which plan you choose, what state you live in and your age.

Neither A or B covers medication..

Part A has an annual deductible of $1,068.

Part B has an annual deductible of $135.

If you need a non-covered procedure you pick up the entire tab.

I have paid into Medicare since 1966. Has it been stated that the 55 to 64 year olds will not pay anything for Part A or have you assumed it will be the case if they have paid in for at least 10 years? Also, has it been stated for instance that someone 55 will only pay $110 (or whatever the increased rate will be in 2011) or will they be required to pay more for each year they are under 65?

[Undercurrent]

11. I don't know how the proposed buy-in

included in the Senate proposal will work. The numbers I posted are for people on SS or SSDI.

You are correct about the deductibles. Personally, I still self ration my health care access. because of the fact that the vast majority of my income comes from SSDI. Even when supplemented by my silversmith work it's still very low. Now with the economy in the tank, it's under 1000.00 a month.

[sandnsea]

8. My husband and I pay $53 for both of us

This would be a huge step backward. We would be uninsured again.

[monmouth]

16. Me too. The decision between food and premiums? I'm going

for the food..I've been uninsured for years,it's scary.

[sandnsea]

17. We have a subsidy

As I've said a cazillion times. My husband cut his finger last week. What a relief to worry about his finger and not how we were going to get treatment if he needed it, (he didn't). He did get treatment for a hernia last year, triple hernia surgery. And he got treatment for Hep C and is clear for almost a year. He's got treatment for a back injury that he's had his whole life. I think people who just willy-nilly along with some of this, without giving a thought to the actual monthly premium, are more interested in ideology than health care.

My best friend died from cancer last week. She had no health care and didn't go to the doctor. She was diagnosed about a month ago. She was 45. Even if she were 55, being able to buy into Medicare at $500 a month wouldn't help her a bit.

[monmouth]

19. Sorry for the loss of your friend. I've been in good health and go to

the doctor every two years as he instructed and pay out of pocket, about $300 or so. Blood work, etc. So far so good but I know that isn't going to last forever.

[JimWis]

10. Thanks. Very helpful information.

[phoenixriz]

12. I just retired this year

All the years I worked I had great coverage with my employers. I picked a plan that I did have to pay $10 for an office visits and needed an approval from my primary doctor for a specialist which was $20. I always had a small fee after procedures etc.

Now that I am retired, I have Medicare with the Part B taken out of my Social Security payments each month. As mentioned above Medicare only pays 80% of medical bills. I therefore purchased a secondary insurance plan and also a Medicare D to pay part of my medications.

Adding all this together costs me about $340.00 per month. I could lower it by purchasing a lower costing Medicare D plan but am sticking with this for now.

I have had two cataract surgeries without paying 1 penny. All doctors that I see I pay nothing. I also don't pay for any lab or procedures that I have which includes a basal cell cancer removed from my face.

I do have to pay when I pick up prescriptions since Medicare D does not pay 100%. My prescriptions run from 75 cents to $37 dollars per month. Generics are next to nothing but some of my drugs cost more because there is not a generic available.

I just wanted to post this so people will realize that Medicare only pays 80% and that 20% could really cost a lot of money if it came out of my pocket. I wouldn't be able to afford it. I don't like paying the supplement of $340 per month but with 3 outpatient surgeries this year, I am sure I would be in debt covering the 20%.

[Undercurrent]

13. Sounds like you have a workable plan. Smart thinking.

I have not used Part D either. My meds are stupidly expensive if I were to buy them on the US market. Since US meds are for the most part made in Mexico, Pakistan, or India, I just buy mine dirt cheap directly from Mexico. It means I can stay on my meds and avoid life threatening complications.

It's really disgraceful that an American citizen is forced to circumvent the shark infested US drug racket to buy the medication they need to stay healthy or alive.

[Undercurrent]

14. info bump

Good morning! :)

[xsquid]

15. I have experience with medicare and opm insurance.

First off I have been lurking and thought I would post my experience with medicare and opm picked insurance that I have read will be forthcoming in the health plan. I am disabled/retired with early retirement from the usps, also a veteran. The info I post is not a position on the forthcoming healthcare package, but info from experience.

Medicare will be better than nothing certainly, but it's a hard go without a supplement. Deductibles, items not covered and finding physicians to accept it has become increasingly hard. For example I have rheumatoid arthritis and none of the rheumatologists in my city take medicare, the number of physicians not taking it are rapidly increasing. I have had to change several times and have to travel for some specialists.

I have insurance from opm, which as I understand opm insurances will be an option, and take blue cross federal care. My premium for self and wife is 400.00 a month, but it's needed to work with medicare. I have complete coverage with these and premiums for both are 500.00. My offset retirement from the opstal servive is almost all eaten up by the blue cross insurance so I basically gert nothing there, with the increases as they are I will be paying more in premiums than my offset retirement from there is. Offset means till I hit 65 I get a percentage of my retirement, I'm in my 50's.

My wife only has the blue cross and she can rarely go to the dr as with deductibles, percentages not covered, etc. we cannot afford it. The insurances through opm used to be good, just an office visit co pay and thats it. Now premiums jumping up, deductibles and ti only paying a percentage.

I am covered well so I can't complain, with the 2 insurances, it's just with 500.00 premiums I am paying about 25% of my income for premiums. Not including perscriptions, the wifes costs from deductibles, etc.

Yes, i know I am better off that those not covered and I am not whining. Just thought someone might be interrested as we have experience with both medicare and opm insurance. Actually blue cross has plans here non opm for about the same price as my premiuma, but if I drop mine and change I can't go back. Hope this gives anyone interrested some info, good luck to everyone needing insurance.

[sandnsea]

18. I don't know what opm stands for

I also don't know how you pay 25% of your income to health insurance. How do you pay your mortgage/rent, utilities and food?

[xsquid]

21. Office of personell management

Just like is mentioned in this story, they negotiate federal insurance and will be negotiating the oncoming insurance choices.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121277071

I hope you are not insinuating I am being dishonest, I have no mortgage but pay 605.00 for rent and 500 for insurance. I have an old paid for car and only pay for liability insurance. The rest, about 900, goes for food, electricity (heat set on 68), water, etc. A week from payday, broke and no gas in the car as usual. Insurance increase of 44.38 (blue cross) and no cola increase in income for 2010. I'm not as bad off as those that have around 900 or so a month to live on though. Wake up and see a lot of retirees live like this. My wife is originally from mexico, we have plans to move there as she has a small house and there are places that take blue cross, the kids are there already. She's pretty good at taking a little of nothing and stretching it. Right now I am out of some perscriptions that I MIGHT be able to refill in a week, have to pay the bills and buy food first to see.

Sorry for the long rant, but it irritates me when I feel someone insinuates I am being dishonest when I am not. Sorry if I interpreted that wrong.

This will probably be my last post, just wanted to post some info pn prices. I will leave the bickering to you young guys, bad heart can't push it. Good luck to all of you.

[sandnsea]

22. I thought maybe you had paid off a house

I live on about the same, a little more sometimes. There's no way my husband and I could pay that much for a premium, that's insane. Although we are paying $100+ a month for our car insurance because coming up with money to replace a car is terrifying. I have 3 medications that are $10 for 3 months so I can usually get those. My husband has a bunch and has to juggle them around like you are. We struggle without the $500 health insurance, I seriously don't know how you do it. That's why the subsidy is the most important part of health reform to me, it's got to be affordable or most people will start screaming.

[xsquid]

23. Sweet post sand and sea

Thank you for the sweet post, sorry I misread your question. Hard to tell on the internet.

It's tough, it's causing some problems with us thats why we are planning on going to mex. I switched my rhumatoid arthritis med to intravenous in the clinic so it is all covered. I have heart meds, diabetes, etc., etc. and its getting hard to juggle them. If they don't have a generic version I usually don't get them. I am out of one of my 4.00 meds but only have 3.00 and change, the wife needs milk more anyway. I think for me it will just get worse, premiums going up. Sorry I sound like i am whining, take care and good luck.

[amandabeech]

20. It's not clear to me that the 55-64 group will pay the same as older folks or those on disability.

It is my understanding that the 55-64 group will pay full freight.

These numbers reflect at least some subsidy from the Medicare payroll tax that each of us pays as soon as we can work.

The cite and site do not say anything about how much the subsidy in the post numbers is nor does the site say that these are the amounts that the 55-64 plus group will pay.

In threads over the last few days, prices quoted have been in the $650-850 range. Apparently, a CBO preliminary investigation came up with $654, but it is unclear just what that covers. Presumably, it covers Part A, but what about Parts B and D? Then of course, the Medigap insurance is very important.

[Undercurrent]

24. See post #7.

:)

I don't know how the Senate proposal will shake out for the 55-64 age group. I posted this info on the current rates of Medicare premiums as a base line reference for being able to compare/contrast the Senate plan. It seems there are a lot of folks who don't know what the Medicare premiums are, and how they're structured.

[Cha]

25. kr

:hi:

[Undercurrent]

26. Hey!

Hope you stay warm and cozy.

It's in the single digits hear at night. Brrr... It's really pretty, but I've had to cut a lot of wood for my cook stove. Now looks like it may snow again.

[Cha]

27. Sounds real bucolic

out there in the Pacific Northwest!

That smiley is priceless!

[Undercurrent]

28. Yes, it's a beautiful corner of this

great country.

Is it snowing in your part of NY?

[Cha]

29. Yeah, I walked home from

work in big flakes about 9pm.

I only live 3 blocks away. We're suppose to have a mild winter in upstate New York this year so we'll see. It will be my last winter here as I retire to Kaua'i next October.B-)