Seven things to know:
1. The CMS rule boosts the standard Medicare Part B premium to $170.10 a month, up $21.60, or 14.5 percent. It also increased Part B standard deductibles by $30, up 14.8 percent to $233 in 2022.
2. The increase translates to nearly $14,000 in annual costs for the wealthiest senior couples, according to Forbes.
3. Despite a boost in emergency Medicare spending last year, CMS raised Part B premiums less than $4, according to CNN.
4. Part B premiums have risen 226 percent since 2000, making them one of the fastest growing costs for older Americans, according to Forbes.
5. This year, CMS attributed the Part B price hikes to rising healthcare prices and utilization, congressional efforts to limit 2021’s increase and the potential to cover Biogen’s expensive Alzheimer’s drug, Aduhelm.
6. CMS said the price hikes will be mitigated by a higher annual Social Security cost of living increase. But CNN reported that the Medicare increase will eat up most of the record-high Social Security cost-of-living jump.
7. CMS also is increasing the Medicare Part A deductible, upping the cost per benefit period $72 to $1,556, a 4.9 percent increase.
