Starting next year outpatient care premiums for those who are on Medicaid will jump up 14.6%. This is doubling the estimate of a jump of 6.2% that was predicted earlier in the year.
The standard premium for Part B, which covers outpatient care and durable equipment, will be $170.10 next year, up $21.60 from $148.50 this year, said a senior official for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Friday. The program’s trustees had estimated this summer that the premium would rise to $158.50.
In order to meet the deductible for Part B will rise to 233 dollars which is up 30 dollars from 2021.
The bigger than expected increase is partly attributed to rising prices and utilization across the health care system and congressional action that limited the increase in the 2021 Part B premium.
The higher prices are in part due to the new Alzheimer’s drug that was approved by the FDA earlier this year that has been reported to cost more than 56,000 dollars. Along with the new drug there is the continual care needed for COVID-19 patients.
Additionally, contingency reserves have been increased to account for potential new treatment costs incurred by the program.
Meanwhile, the deductible for Medicare Part A that covers hospital coverage per benefit period that generally starts when you are admitted to the hospital will be $1,556 in 2022, up $72 from this year’s $1,484.
