Tag Archives for Medicare Part B premiums

Shoring Up the Nation’s Fraying Social Safety Net

Last week, AARP Foundation announced its analysis of newly released Census data on poverty, income and health insurance coverage in 2025.

“At first glance, it sounded like good news,” observed AARP Foundation President Claire Casey during an 18-minute virtual media briefing on Sept. 24. “Poverty fell, and household income hit a record high, but the headlines can be deceiving and not reflect what is happening to older Americans,” she said.

Casey stressed to attending journalists that the key takeaway was that senior poverty, measured using the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM), has risen for the fifth consecutive year, a trend not seen by any other age group. The SPM accounts for unavoidable costs like housing and health care.

According to the SPM, more than 10 million people age 65 and older are living in poverty, a number that has jumped roughly 45% since 2019. “And for perspective, we’re talking about an incredibly low bar. For a single renter, the poverty line starts at just over $19,000 a year,” Casey said.

Between 2020 and 2025, the percentage of Americans 65 and older living in poverty increased from 9.4% to 15.4%, according to the SPM, the largest increase for any age group measured.

Casey also highlighted the continuing economic disparities facing older women, whose poverty rate is about 17%. She attributed this, in part, to lifetime inequalities, including the gender pay gap and career interruptions for child care and elder care.

Taking a Look at Poverty Before Retirement

To better understand why senior poverty keeps rising, Casey argues that we have to look at what happens before people turn 65.

While discussing the newly released Census data, Casey compared it with findings from AARP Foundation’s new Economic Security Monitor, a quarterly survey tracking financial stability among adults age 50 and older living on low incomes.

The latest Monitor found significant hardships among adults ages 50 to 64, a group traditionally considered to be in their peak earning years.

Nearly one-third reported running out of food before they had money to buy more, 70% said their household expenses had increased in just the last three months, and one-third could not cover an emergency expense of more than $100.

Many assume that employment in their 50s brings peak financial stability, but for millions of Americans preparing to retire, the numbers tell a different story.

More than 7 million people between ages 50 and 64, about one in eight, are already living in poverty, Casey pointed out.

“That’s our warning sign. If people are already struggling this much before retirement, we know where they are headed,” Casey said, noting that “we have to act now or senior poverty will keep rising.”

“But what’s even more troubling is that you don’t have to be in poverty at 55 to age into it,” Casey warned. An individual can work full-time throughout a career, do everything right, and still end up impoverished in retirement. Only one in four older adults with low incomes has access to a workplace retirement plan, she noted.

Casey also pointed to problems facing low-income workers between ages 50 and 64, particularly those who lose jobs or work in low-paying occupations because of age discrimination or early health complications. They are more likely to experience long-term unemployment, and only 10% will find a new job with equal or higher pay, she said.

Programs exist to help seniors facing poverty, but getting those benefits can be difficult. “Older adults miss out on an estimated $58 billion in benefits each year because the system is hard to access,” Casey said.

“As Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid requirements change, I worry that eligible people, especially those 55 to 64, will lose access,” Casey said, stressing the importance of maintaining these lifeline benefits and helping states deliver them more effectively.

“Each year since 2020, more and more older adults have fallen into abject poverty,” Casey said. “Today’s release confirms what we see every day in our work—that rising prices, an eroding social safety net, and diminishing access to quality jobs are creating extreme precarity for older adults in our communities.”

Advocacy Groups Weigh In

Max Richtman, President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, says the Census numbers underscore the need to protect Social Security as Congress considers how to address the program’s long-term financial shortfall.

“The 2025 Census poverty data and AARP analysis make one fact unmistakable: retirees and future retirees are being pushed into deeper economic insecurity,” Richtman said. “Cutting earned benefits would intensify the crisis,” he cautioned.

The National Committee believes Congress should require wealthy Americans to contribute more to extend Social Security’s solvency while improving benefits for current and future generations.

Here in Rhode Island, advocates say the numbers tell a similar story.

Carol Anne Costa, Executive Director of the Senior Agenda Coalition of Rhode Island (SACRI), points to Census data, the Elder Index, and United Way of Rhode Island’s ALICE report as evidence that many older Rhode Islanders struggle to pay for housing, food, health care, utilities, and transportation.

“The data tells a troubling story,” Costa said. “The share of older Rhode Island households living below the federal poverty level rose from 8.9 percent in 2019 to 12.3 percent in 2024. This is not an abstract statistic, she said, noting it represents older adults having to make impossible choices between paying rent, filling prescriptions, keeping the heat on, or buying groceries.

Costa added that one in four older Rhode Island households has income below $25,000 a year. According to the 2026 Elder Index figures cited by SACRI, an older adult renter in good health needs approximately $34,152 annually to meet basic expenses. An older couple in poor health who own their home needs approximately $45,996.

But poverty statistics alone do not tell the whole story.

“The federal poverty measure does not capture the full extent of hardship facing older adults,” said Maureen Maigret, SACRI Policy Advisor. She pointed to the recent United Way of Rhode Island ALICE report, which found that 53% of older Rhode Islanders do not have enough income to meet necessities.

“This situation is getting worse, not better,” Maigret said. “Rhode Island must treat affordability impacting older adults as an urgent public policy priority.”

SACRI is urging state policymakers to move forward with its Older Adult Affordability Agenda, beginning with eliminating the asset limit for the Medicare Savings Program.

“Eliminating the asset limit would allow thousands more eligible older Rhode Islanders and people with disabilities to qualify for help with their Medicare Part B premiums,” Maigret said. For eligible individuals, she noted, that can mean savings of at least $2,400 each year because the federal government pays the Part B premium.

Costa calls it a practical solution that would put money back into the pockets of low-income older adults while bringing additional federal dollars into Rhode Island.

The Economic Progress Institute (EPI) also warns that the federal poverty numbers do not fully capture the financial squeeze facing Rhode Islanders.

Nina Harrison, EPI’s Policy Director, points out that although the Census Bureau’s Official Poverty Measure fell by 0.5 percentage points nationally in 2025, the broader Supplemental Poverty Measure did not change significantly. She contends that even though incomes may have risen, they did not rise enough to offset higher costs.

Harrison also warns that changes in federal healthcare and food assistance policies will put additional pressure on low-income Rhode Islanders. She cited the loss of enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits and federal changes to SNAP and Medicaid as particular concerns.

EPI’s 2026 Rhode Island Standard of Need report, scheduled for release Monday, takes a closer look at what Rhode Island households need to cover basic living expenses. Harrison says its findings show that nearly 40% of Rhode Island households cannot afford their basic needs, including many older residents. More than half of Rhode Island women age 65 and older who live alone cannot meet their basic needs, she said.

“Without significant intervention and harm reduction, OBRA and related federal policies are sure to increase the poverty rate and human suffering,” Harrison warned.

She is urging the General Assembly to find ways to protect food and healthcare assistance for Rhode Islanders who lose federal benefits and to strengthen other programs serving low-income residents.

A Final Note…

As previously stated, the numbers the Census Bureau released tell us something important. The nation’s overall poverty rate may have fallen in 2025, but millions of older Americans are being left behind.

Casey’s warning at the start of the press briefing deserves the attention of Congress and state legislatures. Since millions of older Americans face financial difficulties, it is no surprise that many ultimately end up in poverty after retirement.

For many, the financial problems begin years before they collect their first Social Security check. They retire with little savings, no pension or workplace retirement plan, and not much room in their monthly budget to cover increased rent, a broken refrigerator, or an unexpected medical bill.

AARP Foundation efforts to call attention to senior poverty should serve as a troubling warning to Congress as it debates the future of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Older Americans Act, and SNAP.

Congress must address Social Security’s long-term financial problems before automatic cuts to program benefits take place in 2032.  Tens of millions of retirees, disabled individuals, and survivors already living on the financial edge would see their situation worsen. Congress must also ensure that changes to the nation’s social safety-net programs don’t make it harder for eligible older Americans to get the help they need.

Rhode Island lawmakers also have their work to do. Eliminating the asset limit for the Medicare Savings Program would be one concrete step toward helping low-income older Rhode Islanders stretch their limited monthly incomes.

To review AARP Foundation’s June 2026 Economic Security Monitor (full report), go to  AARP Foundation Economic Security Monitor Fact Sheet.

To review AARP Foundation’s June 2026 Economic Security Monitor (fact sheet), go to AARP Foundation Economic Security Monitor Fact Sheet

Download the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2025 Poverty Report,  go to Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2025

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Medicare Drug Savings Eclipsed by Part B Premiums, COLA Challenges and ACA’s Rising Costs

Published in RINewsToday on January 5, 2026

The official arrival of the New Year was marked by millions of viewers channel surfing between ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN, eager to watch the ball drop in Times Square and ring in 2026. The iconic New York City ball—12,000 pounds and adorned with 5,280 Waterford Crystal discs and LED lights—descended a 139-foot flagpole atop One Times Square. In just 60 seconds, it reached the bottom at midnight on New Year’s Eve, signaling the beginning of 2026.

Just two days before January 1—when Medicare-negotiated prices for 10 prescription drugs take effect—AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer, Nancy LeaMond, shared good news. As the clock struck midnight, she announced that older Americans would see lower prices for the first 10 Medicare-negotiated drugs, which would take effect on January 1, 2026. AARP quickly issued a statement, celebrating the first-ever Medicare-negotiated drug prices and estimating a whopping 50% reduction in out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries.

“For millions of older Americans managing chronic conditions, prescription drugs are not optional—they are a lifeline. But medicine doesn’t work if people can’t afford it,” said LeaMond in a Dec. 29 statement. She emphasized that AARP has been at the forefront of advocating for drug pricing reforms since 2022. The nation’s largest aging advocacy group, representing nearly 38 million members, shared their stories, conducted national research on drug costs, and urged lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to support legislative efforts to lower drug costs.

According to LeaMond, this advocacy has delivered significant progress. On January 1, negotiated prices will take effect for the first time, marking a major milestone for both patients and taxpayers. “Older Americans will see real results and billions in savings as the first Medicare-negotiated prices take effect,” she stated, pledging that “AARP won’t stop fighting to lower drug prices until every American can get the medications they need at a price they can afford.”

“These drugs are used by nearly 9 million Medicare beneficiaries and treat conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune disorders, and cancer,” she noted.

While Medicare beneficiaries are set to see substantial savings, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) anticipates that the Medicare drug price negotiation program will save billions. CMS, a federal agency providing health coverage to over 160 million people through Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Marketplace, expects the program to save enrollees roughly $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket costs in 2026 while saving the Medicare program $6 billion per year.  The negotiated prices are a minimum of 38% off the 2023 list price.

On the Other Hand

Though Medicare beneficiaries will benefit from lower out-of-pocket costs on 10 Medicare-negotiated drugs in the new year, the 2026 Social Security COLAs will barely cover Medicare Part B premiums and rising inflation.  Meanwhile, older Americans who are not eligible for Medicare coverage will face soaring health insurance premiums due to the Senate’s failure to extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Tax Credits.

Max Richtman, President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare, stressed the importance of ACA marketplace coverage for older adults, who often struggle to find affordable health insurance. “It’s not only cruel to let their premiums skyrocket; it costs everyone in the long run,” observes Richtman. “Older patients without insurance will be forced to use emergency rooms for care, which drives up costs for all healthcare consumers,” he says in a statement released on Dec. 11, 2026.

“They’ll also arrive at Medicare sicker or more disabled, which not only costs taxpayers more but raises premiums for all older Americans on Medicare,” warns Richtman.

Richtman pointed out that 40% of ACA enrollees are between the ages of 45 and 64. Without the extended tax credits, many of these individuals—including farmers, ranchers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners—will face unaffordable premium increases and may be forced to drop or downgrade their health care coverage. “Extending these tax credits to prevent premium hikes would have made simple common sense,” Richtman argued. “Why would Senators vote to push people off health insurance instead of widening the safety net when the ACA is so clearly beneficial, especially for older, vulnerable enrollees?,” he asked.

Additionally, this year’s premium increase for the standard Medicare Part B program, while not as high as originally projected, will still affect beneficiaries, too. They will face an increase of nearly $18 per month, marking roughly a 10% hike in 2026. In a statement on Nov. 17, 2025, Richtman said that this rise basically cancels out one-third of the average beneficiary’s cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2026.

The standard Part B premium for 2026 will be $ 202.90 a month, which is $17.90 more than last year’s $ 186.  The average COLA will be $ 56 a month in 2026. After accounting for the $18 Part B premium increase, the average Social Security beneficiary will be left with an effective monthly increase of only $36 next year, notes Richtman.

Richtman pointed out that the 2.8% COLA for 2026, announced in October, was already modest before the Medicare premium hike. “In this economy, an extra $36 per month will provide only marginal relief for Social Security beneficiaries,” he said, stressing that seniors with below-average benefits will see even less of a benefit increase once Medicare Part B premiums are deducted.

“Some in lower-income brackets may experience an effective COLA of zero,” predicts Richtman.

A Final Note…

Yes, Medicare beneficiaries will see a decrease in Medicare-negotiated prices for 10 prescription drugs that took effect last week.  But, with inflation rising and older adults struggling to afford basic needs such as food, rent, utilities, and healthcare costs, aging advocates urge Congress to  take action to mitigate the negative impacts of HR 1, the 2025 budget reconciliation bill, on the Medicare drug price negotiation program.  It’s also crucial that Social Security COLAs accurately reflect the out-of-pocket expenses faced by beneficiaries, they say.

“Unfortunately, the 2025 budget reconciliation bill—HR 1—further limits the drugs that can be negotiated under the IRA’s negotiation program, reducing its effectiveness,” warns Julie Carter of the Medicare Rights Center in an October 9, 2025, blog post for Medicare Watch. “KFF, an independent health policy and research organization, estimates that this change will increase Medicare spending by at least $5 billion. As always, increases in Medicare spending lead to higher out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries,” she says.

“At Medicare Rights, we strongly oppose efforts to scale back the IRA’s negotiation framework. We believe more drugs should be subject to negotiation, not fewer. We also advocate for expanding other cost-saving aspects of the law to reduce expenses for those covered by other forms of insurance,” Carter adds.

“Social Security COLAs are meant to offset the impact of inflation on beneficiaries. However, they are clearly insufficient for many seniors living on fixed incomes,” argues NCPSSM’s Richtman. He explains that this is why his organization has been pushing for an improved COLA formula—the CPI-E (Consumer Price Index for the Elderly). The CPI-E would more accurately reflect the inflationary effects on the goods and services seniors rely on, he says.

“We support legislation that would adopt the CPI-E for determining COLAs, but Congress has yet to take action. Adopting this formula would be a reasonable step toward expanding benefits and truly meeting the needs of 21st-century seniors,” Richtman concludes.