Insider’s Report: Medicare Part B Premium Hike Largest Since 2016

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The nearly 67 million Americans who depend on Medicare will ring in the new year with an unwelcome cost increase. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that Part B premiums ( [link removed] ) will rise to $202.90 per month from $185 in 2025. That $17.90 (or nearly 10%) increase will consume about one-third of the average Social Security Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA).

“The average COLA will be $56 per month before the $18 Medicare Part B premium hike, leaving the average Social Security beneficiary with an effective monthly increase of $36 next year,” noted National Committee President and CEO Max Richtman in a news release.

Advocates and health care experts alike are worried about the impact on seniors’ ability to make ends meet. The meager COLA, less the Medicare Part B premium hike, leaves millions of seniors struggling to cover basic necessities like food, transportation and utilities — let alone out‑of‑pocket health expenses.

“This premium jump will really pinch older Americans where it hurts,” says Anne Montgomery, our senior health policy expert. “An almost $18 premium increase may not sound huge on paper, but for people on fixed incomes, it’s a big chunk of their limited budgets.” ( [link removed] )

This is one of the largest spikes in Part B premiums since 2016. While not entirely unexpected, it underscores deeper issues. As Montgomery points out, “Part B premiums are rising in part because of broader medical inflation and the cost of moving many treatments out of hospitals and into doctors’ offices and outpatient settings.” ( [link removed] )

With so much at stake, please make your voice heard loud and clear in Washington by signing the National Committee’s EMERGENCY PETITION TO CONGRESS TO PROTECT SENIORS’ EARNED BENEFITS ( [link removed] ) today! ( [link removed] )

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Make a donation now to help us keep the pressure on Congress. Your continued support is essential to the National Committee's mission. ( [link removed] )

New Podcast Episode: My Mother’s Money: Author Beth Pinsker on “Financial Caregiving”

Check out the National Committee’s latest “You Earned This” podcast episode. ( [link removed] ) You may find yourself as the “financial caregiver” for an aging parent. Most people are thrust into this role with little preparation or warning. Certified Financial Planner Beth Pinsker has written a new book, “My Mother’s Money,” bursting with great advice for adult children who — sooner or later — may need to take responsibility for their parents’ finances. She was inspired to write the book after serving as financial caregiver for her own mother, who passed away in 2021. In this episode, Beth reveals strategies for dealing with powers of attorney, banking, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security and end of life planning. A must listen!

Ask Us!

Whether you’re retired or approaching retirement, our team of experts in the field of Social Security policy is available to answer your questions about benefits.

You can either search our archives ( [link removed] ) for valuable advice on a broad range of concerns or submit your question here ( [link removed] ).

This week’s question is: 
My 82-year-old mother is living at a seniors' housing apartment in another state. She has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and is getting progressively worse. She will soon need a home where she can be taken care of. I am retired, living on a fixed income, and am unable to personally care for her. What, if any, options do I have for her and where do I start?

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Social Security Benefits

Learn more about the Social Security program and the policies the National Committee supports that would strengthen your earned benefits.

How rising Medicare premiums could impact your 2026 Social Security check ( [link removed] )

The Medicare premium increase means that seniors may not have much room to keep up with inflation, Max Richtman, the President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, told CBS News. (November 24, 2025, MoneyWatch, Mary Cunningham)

Read More → ( [link removed] )

Social Security to increase age for those eligible for retirement checks in 2026 ( [link removed] )

“Raising the retirement age is an effective cut in lifetime benefits for younger baby boomers, members of Gen X, and all the generations after,” Max Richtman, CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, informed CBS News. (November 25, 2025, MSN, Niti Majethia)

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Congresswoman Torres Introduces Repairing Social Security After Trump and DOGE Act ( [link removed] )

U.S. Representative Norma Torres (CA-35) announced the introduction of the Repairing Social Security After Trump and DOGE Act, a new bill to restore benefits and justice for Americans who were robbed of their Social Security by the Trump Administration’s chaos and cruelty. The legislation has been endorsed by the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare. (November 20, 2025, house.gov, Press Release)

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New Bill Eases Restrictions on Social Security Survivor's Benefits ( [link removed] )

New legislation, the Surviving Widow(er) Income Fair Treatment (SWIFT) Act, would offer significant additional protections to surviving widows and widowers whose Social Security benefits are limited and even denied because of long-standing provisions within the Social Security Act," says NCPSSM President Max Richtman. (November 26, 2025, Think Advisor, Melanie Waddell)

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Newly released facts from Social Security demolish Elon Musk's fraud claims – again ( [link removed] )

The Trump–Musk claims of massive Social Security fraud yielding $1 trillion in savings were baseless, with actual recoveries amounting to only modest sums that expose the promised budget “pot of gold” as nonexistent. (November 28, 2025, MarketWatch, Brett Arends)

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Medicare announces price cuts for 15 prescription drugs, including Ozempic ( [link removed] )

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced lower prices on 15 costly prescription drugs under Medicare, including Ozempic and Wegovy. The price cuts come through the Medicare drug price negotiation program created under the Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022. (November 25, 2025, NBC News, Berkeley Lovelace Jr)

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