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The figures below are Medicare's own for {{ figures.year }}, from Medicare.gov and CMS, in one place. What they mean for you depends on which route you take: Original Medicare with a Medigap policy, or a Medicare Advantage plan.
In 2026 the standard Part B premium is $202.90 a month and the Part B deductible is $283. Part A is premium-free for most people, with a $1,736 deductible per hospital benefit period and $434 a day for days 61 to 90. The Part D deductible can be no more than $615 and out-of-pocket drug costs are capped at $2,100 for the year. Original Medicare has no cap on the 20% you pay for Part B services; that gap is what a Medigap policy or a Medicare Advantage plan's yearly maximum covers. Higher incomes pay an IRMAA surcharge on Part B and Part D from $109,000 single or $218,000 joint. For 2027, the Part D cap rises to $2,400; the Part B and Part A figures are announced by CMS in the fall.
The 2026 figures
| Item | 2026 | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Part B premium, standard | $202.90 a month | Deducted from Social Security if you receive it; higher for higher incomes (IRMAA, below) |
| Part B deductible | $283 a year | Then Medicare pays 80% of approved amounts and you pay 20%, with no yearly cap on Original Medicare alone |
| Part A premium | $0 for most people | Premium-free with 40 quarters of Medicare taxes; otherwise $311 (30–39 quarters) or $565 a month |
| Part A hospital deductible | $1,736 per benefit period | Covers days 1–60 of a hospital stay; a new benefit period (and deductible) starts after 60 days out of hospital |
| Part A coinsurance, days 61–90 | $434 a day | Then $868 a day for up to 60 lifetime reserve days, then all costs |
| Skilled nursing facility, days 21–100 | $217 a day | Days 1–20 are covered in full after a qualifying hospital stay; nothing after day 100 |
| Part D deductible, maximum | $615 | Plans may charge less or none; check the plan, not the maximum |
| Part D out-of-pocket cap | $2,100 a year | Covered drugs cost nothing after this; applies inside Advantage plans too. $2,400 for 2027 |
| Medigap high-deductible Plan G | $2,950 deductible | The lower-premium version of Plan G; you pay Medicare's cost-sharing up to this amount first |
| Medigap Plans K and L out-of-pocket limits | $8,000 / $4,000 | The two cost-sharing Medigap plans; after the limit they pay 100% |
| IRMAA, first income threshold | $109,000 single / $218,000 joint | Above this, Part B and Part D premiums carry a surcharge, based on the tax return from two years earlier |
Federal figures from Medicare.gov and CMS as of September 16, 2026; they are the same in every state. Medigap premiums, Advantage plan premiums and copays are set by each carrier and plan and are not on this page.
The number that isn't in the table
Original Medicare pays 80% of Part B services and leaves 20% to you, with no yearly limit. For a year of routine care that 20% is small. For a year with a cardiac workup, chemotherapy infusions or a joint replacement it is not, and it keeps going. Almost nobody stays on Original Medicare alone for that reason; the choice is how to cover the gap.
- Original Medicare with a Medigap policy. Plan G pays everything Medicare doesn't after the $283 Part B deductible; Plan N does the same with small office and emergency copays. You pay a monthly premium, which in New York is the same at every age and can be bought in any month. Albany-region premiums are on the rates page; the plan letters are compared in Medigap plans A to N.
- A Medicare Advantage plan. Replaces the 20% with copays and puts a yearly in-network maximum on them, set by each plan and filed with Medicare, usually with drug coverage built in and often for a $0 premium on top of Part B. The trade is a network and prior authorization. Every plan sold in Albany, Saratoga, Schenectady and Rensselaer County is on the county plan lists.
The comparison that matters is not premium against premium; it is what each route costs in a bad year for your doctors and your prescriptions. Advantage vs Medigap in New York works through it in dollars.
Higher incomes: IRMAA
From $109,000 of modified adjusted gross income for a single filer or $218,000 joint, Social Security adds a surcharge to the Part B premium and a separate one to Part D, in brackets, using the tax return from two years ago. New retirees are the usual victims: the surcharge is set by the last working year's income. It can be appealed with form SSA-44 when income has dropped because of retirement, and the brackets are in the IRMAA guide.
Lower incomes: help with every line of the table
The Medicare Savings Program pays the Part B premium (and, at the QMB level, the deductibles and coinsurance too) for New Yorkers under its income limits, and New York has no asset test for it. Extra Help lowers Part D premiums, deductibles and copays. EPIC, the state program, cuts drug costs further for residents over 65. Many people qualify without knowing; the limits and how to apply are on help paying for Medicare.
What is already known for 2027
CMS published the 2027 Part D parameters in April 2026: the out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400. The Part B premium and deductible and the Part A amounts are announced in the fall, after the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment; this page and every figure on the site are updated when they are. Your plan's own 2027 changes arrive in the Annual Notice of Change letter by September 30; how to read it is its own guide, and the enrollment check says when you can act on it.
- Medicare costs (Medicare.gov) — Part A and Part B premiums, deductibles and coinsurance, 2026
- Final CY 2026 Part D redesign program instructions (CMS) — $615 maximum deductible, $2,100 out-of-pocket cap
- Contract year 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D rate announcement (CMS, April 6, 2026) — 2027 Part D out-of-pocket cap $2,400
- CY 2026 out-of-pocket limits for Medigap Plans K and L (CMS)
- Medicare Savings Programs 2026 (NY Department of Health)
- Protections for Medicare beneficiaries residing in New York (NY DFS) — Medigap community rating and any-month enrollment
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Common questions
Short answers to what people ask before they call.
What is the Medicare Part B premium in 2026?
$202.90 a month for most people, deducted from Social Security if you're receiving it. People with higher incomes pay more through the IRMAA surcharge, starting at $109,000 of modified adjusted gross income for a single filer or $218,000 for a joint return, based on the tax return from two years earlier. The Part B deductible is $283 for the year.
Is Medicare Part A free?
For most people, yes: no premium if you or your spouse paid Medicare taxes for 40 quarters, about ten years of work. If you have fewer quarters you can buy Part A for $311 a month with 30 to 39 quarters or $565 with fewer. Premium-free doesn't mean cost-free: each hospital benefit period carries a $1,736 deductible, then $434 a day from day 61 to 90 and $868 a day for the 60 lifetime reserve days after that.
What is the Part D deductible and out-of-pocket cap in 2026?
Plans may charge a deductible of up to $615, and many charge less or none. Once your out-of-pocket drug spending reaches $2,100 in the year, covered drugs cost nothing for the rest of the year; that cap applies to stand-alone Part D plans and to drug coverage inside Medicare Advantage plans alike. For 2027 the cap rises to $2,400, per CMS's April 2026 rate announcement.
What does Original Medicare not cap?
The 20% coinsurance on Part B services, which has no yearly limit. A long illness with imaging, infusions or surgery can run that into five figures. A Medigap policy pays it (Plan G pays everything after the $283 Part B deductible; Plan N adds small office and ER copays), or a Medicare Advantage plan replaces it with copays under a yearly in-network maximum set by the plan. That gap is the reason almost nobody stays on Original Medicare alone.
When are the 2027 Medicare costs announced?
The Part D figures came in CMS's April 2026 rate announcement: the out-of-pocket cap is $2,400 for 2027. The Part B premium and deductible and the Part A amounts are announced by CMS in the fall, usually October or November, after the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment. This page is updated when they are published; the same figures feed every page on the site.
Does New York change any of these figures?
The federal figures are the same in every state. What New York changes is around them: Medigap premiums are community-rated (the same price at every age) and you can buy or switch a policy in any month with no health questions; the Medicare Savings Program pays the Part B premium for people under its income limits and New York has no asset test; and EPIC, the state prescription program, lowers Part D costs for residents over 65 under its income limits. The help-paying page has the 2026 limits.
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