澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网

Medicare Hold Harmless Provision: What It Is, How It Works

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澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Julia Kagan
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澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Full Bio

Julia Kagan is a financial/consumer journalist and former senior editor, personal finance, of Investopedia🔯.

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Updated December 09, 2024
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Anthony Battle
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Anthony Battle is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional. He earned the Chartered Financial Consultant® designation for advanced financial planning, the Chartered Life Underwriter® designation for advanced insurance specialization, the Accredited Financial Counselor® for Financial Counseling and both the Retirement Income Certified Professional®, and Certified Retirement Counselor designations for advance retirement planning.
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Jen Hubley Luckwaldt has over 15 years of experience writing and editing personal finance content. Her passion is making information about finance and investing accessible to everyone. Prior to joining Investopedia as an editor, Jen worked as a contractor or staffer for MarketWatch, Finimpact, Payscale, and other outlets.
Learn about our 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:editorial policies
Part of the Series
Guide to Medicare
What Is Medicare? How It Works, Who Qualifies, and How To🎃 Enroll
Medicare Basics
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Do You Need All 4 Parts?
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Eligibility Age
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part A Definition
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part B Definition
How Medicare Works
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare After Retirement
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网✃: How Medicare Work൩s If You're Not Retired
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Hold Harmless Provision
    CURRENT ARTICLE
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Star Ratings
  5. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Wages
  6. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: When Doctors Don't Take Medicare
Medicare Part D (Prescriptions)
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part D Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Avoid the Part D Premium Penalty
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Creditable Coverage
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Best Part D Providers
Medigap Insurance
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medigap Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开🔯奖结果体彩网: Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Who Needs Medigap
Medicare Advantage (Part C)
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Advantage Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medigap vs. Medicare Advantage
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Pitfalls
Medicare vs. Medicaid
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare vs. M𝔍edicaid: What's the D👍ifference?
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: How Much Medicaid and Medicare ꦰCost
An older woman sits at a kitchen table looking at bills

Natalia Gdovskaia / Getty Images

What Is the Medicare Hold Harmless Provision?

The Medicare hold harmless provision limits the annual rise in Medicare Part B premiums deducted from 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Social Security benefits. Due to this provision, premium increases are limited to no more than the cost of living increase 🦩provided to the beneficiary in a given year.

The rule ensures that the dollar amount of Social Security benefits paid out after deductions does not decline from one year to the next due to an annual increase in the Part B premium. The hold harmless provision limits the financial strain on Social Security recipients when Medicare costs rise.

Key Takeaways

  • The Medicare hold harmless provision prevents a recipient's Social Security benefits from declining year-over-year due to increased deductions for the Medicare Part B premium.
  • People who pay Part B premiums directly to Medicare, those whose premiums are paid by Medicaid, and others subject to premium surcharges based on income do not qualify for the hold harmless provision.
  • To qualify, recipients must have Part B premiums deducted from Social Security benefits received in December of the prior year and January of the current year.
  • The hold harmless provision compares the net amounts paid out after premium deductions, ensuring the monthly payouts in January and the remainder of the year are no lower than during the prior year.

Understanding the Medi෴care Hold Harmless Provisionꦫ

The Medicare hold harmless provision is a statutory restriction that prevents Medicare from raising most Social Security recipients’ Medicare Part B premiums by more than the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:cost of living adjustment (COLA) provided by Social Security in a given year. The 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Social Security Admi📖nistration (SSA) cost of living adjustment is 2.5% for 2025.

🐠 Meanwhile, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid💙 Services (CMS) sets the standard premium for Medicare Part B insurance annually.

The standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B is $185 for 2025. The annual Part B deductible is $257 for 2025.

Important

By law, Medicare must collect a portion of its Part B costs from beneficiaries. Because low COLA increases may limit the share of the costs offset by the standard premium, they can impose an increased burden on the high earners not eligible for relief under the hold harmless provision.

Requirements for the Hold Harmless Provision

To qualify for protection under the Medicare hold harmless provision in a given year, you must have Part B premiums deducted from the Social Security payments you receive in December of the prior year as well as January of the current year. The Social Security Administration ensures that the monthly payout does not decline as a result of an increase in Party B premiums for those covered by the hold harmless provision.

The provision does not apply to those who make payments for Part B insurance directly to Medicare and those who have premiums paid by Medicaid.

Income-Related Monthly Adjustments

Also not eligible for the hold harmless provision are the approximately 7% of Part B participants who pay premium surcharges known as income-related monthly adjustments because their income exceeds a threshold set by Medicare. For 2025, that group includes individuals with a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) of $106,000 or more and joint filers with a MAGI of $212,000 or more.

Examples of Income-Related Monthly Adjustments

In 2025, beneficiaries who earn between $106,000 and $132,999 as single filers will pay an extra $74 as a monthly adjustment, in addition to the standard premium of $185, bringing their total premium to $259 per month. Single filers who earn at least $500,000 will pay an extra $443.90 per month, bringing their total monthly premium to $628.90.

Important

Part B premium surcharges are based on modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) as reported on the beneficiary's federal tax return two years earlier. For example, the 2025 income-related monthly adjustments are based on MAGI in 2023.

Special Considerations

By law, Social Security cost of living adjustments are based on changes in the Consumer Price Index for Urban W꧋age Earners and Clerical Worker🐼s (CPI-W). COLAs compensate beneficiaries for the loss of purchasing power due to inflation. That means COLAs are a crucial "hold harmless" safeguard in their own right.

The Medicare hold harmless provision for Part B premiums only ensures Social Security benefits don't decline in nominal terms from one year to the next for most recipients as a result of increases in the premiums deducted from their monthly benefit checks. That means higher premiums can still erode the inflation protections afforded by COLAs, leaving retirees with less disposable income.

In years when the COLA falls to zero, as it did in 2015, the Medicare hold harmless provision shifts more of the cost-sharing burden to those ineligible for the provision’s protection.

How Much Will My Medicare Costs Increase Each Year?

The Medicare Part B standard premium, a key medical expense for beneficiaries, is set annually by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to cover 25% of the program's costs in the next year, as projected by the agency's actuaries.

Since program costs and projections fluctuate, the standard Medicare Part B premium does vary from year to year as well. In addition to premiums and deductibles, Medicare beneficiaries without Medigap coverage face out-o🍌f-pocket costs such as coinsurance and copayments.

How Can I Qualify for the Hold Harmless Provision?

In order to qualify, individuals must have their Medicare Part B premiums deducted from the Social Security payments they receive in December of the prior year and January of the current one. Those who pay Medicare premiums directly or pay higher premiums based on income do not qualify.

Is There Any Other Help Available for Medicare Premiums?

Medicare savings programs provide financial assistance for premiums and other program costs to about 15% of Medicare beneficiaries. To qualify, you must have income below certain limits, which can vary by state.

The Bottom Line

The Medicar🍒e hold harmless provision ensures that the value of Social Security income does not decrease for retirees by limiting the annual rise in Medicare Part B premiums. Retirement can sometimes be difficult to ma🅷nage and budget for. The Medicare hold harmless provision seeks to reduce the financial strain for retirees.

Article Sources
Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.

  1. Social Security Administration. "."

  2. Social Security Administration. “.” 

  3. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “.”

  4. Social Security Administration. "."

  5. Medicare.gov. “.”

  6. The Boards of Trustees, Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds. "," Page 205.

  7. Medicare.gov. "."

  8. Social Security Administration. "."

  9. Congressional Research Service. "," Page 20.

  10. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "."

  11. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "."

  12. Medicare.gov. "."

Part of the Series
Guide to Medicare
What Is Medicare? How It Works, Who Qualifies, and How To🀅 Enroll
Medicare Basics
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Do You Need All 4 Parts?
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Eligibility Age
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part A Definition
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part B Definition
How Medicare Works
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare After Retirement
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: How Medicare Work🐽s If You're Not Retired
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Hold Harmless Provision
    CURRENT ARTICLE
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Star Ratings
  5. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Wages
  6. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: When Doctors Don't Take Medicare
Medicare Part D (Prescriptions)
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Part D Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Avoid the Part D Premium Penalty
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Creditable Coverage
  4. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Best Part D Providers
Medigap Insurance
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medigap Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Supple🐎mentary Medical In💖surance
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Who Needs Medigap
Medicare Advantage (Part C)
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medicare Advantage Definition
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Medigap vs. Medicare Advantage
  3. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Pitfalls
Medicare vs. Medicaid
  1. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Med🦄icare vs. Medicaid: What's the Differen🐻ce?
  2. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: How Much Medicaid and Med𓄧icare Co💜st
Read more

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