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The standard Medicare Part B premium will increase to $202.90 per month in 2026, up $17.90, or 9.7%, from $185 per month in 2025, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The increase marks the second-highest Part B premium increase in dollars, according to Mary Johnson, an independent Social Security and Medicare analyst. The highest increase of $21.60 per month happened in 2022.
Retirees may see this as a “continuation in relentless cost increases,” Johnson said via email.
Medicare Part B is medical insurance that covers both medically necessary and preventive services.
Part B premiums are typically deducted directly from Social Security checks. Any increase to those monthly premium payments affects how much of an increase Social Security beneficiaries may see in their monthly checks in 2026.
The Social Security Administration has announced a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment for 2026, which is expected to add about $56 per month on average to retirement benefits.
The Part B premium for 2026 may be seen by beneficiaries as “taking a significant chunk of or even most of their COLA,” Johnson said.
A hold harmless provision ensures that Social Security benefit payments do not decrease from one year to the next as a result of Medicare Part B premium increases.
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