IRMAA Part B & D Surcharges
aka. Income-Related Monthly Adjusted Amount
2024 IRMAA Brackets Below*
What are 2024 IRMAA Part B & Part D surcharges?
What is a Part B IRMAA surcharge? How is 2024 IRMAA calculated? What is a Part D IRMAA surcharge? Are you charged for both, Part B and D? These are common questions associated with the acronym– Income-Related Monthly Adjusted Amount. Unfortunately, it means you will be charged more for your Medicare premiums. These surcharges will be added to your Part B and D premiums if you, or you and your spouse, have an income above the standard income set by Social Security.
In the case of a Part B IRMAA surcharge, it will be added to the standard Part B Medicare premium of $164.90 in 2023. As for a Part D IRMAA surcharge, it will be added to your Medicare Prescription Drug Plan premium, which varies depending on the Part D plan you’ve selected for that calendar year. See tables below for a breakdown.
These surcharges apply to Medicare beneficiaries who earn over $97,000 or $194,000 married filled jointly and are enrolled in Part B and/or Part D. You cannot avoid these charges if you are enrolling/enrolled in Medicare and your income falls within, or over these income brackets. However, you can file a IRMAA redetermination of your income to see if you or you and your spouse/partner fall in a lower bracket–see Mentor One Insight below for more information on the redetermination SS-44.
High income earners- IRMAA
IRMAA surcharges applied to Part B
IRMAA surcharges applied to Part D
Confirm or contest IRMAA with redetermination form SS-44
Part B IRMAA is based on your MAGI.
The income-related monthly adjusted amount increases with higher levels of income. Income is broken down into 6 income brackets ranging from $244.60 for to $594.00 for the higher income earners in the highest bracket for Part B premiums– see Table 1.1. IRMAA is calculated on the your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) from 2 years prior. So, if you fall in this category, take a look at your 2022 MAGI to see where you fall. The Part B IRMAA income brackets and associated surcharge for 2024 are presented below.
| Individual | Filled Joint Return | Monthly Part B Premium + IRMAA |
|---|---|---|
| $103,000 or less | $206,000 or less | $174.70 |
| > $103,000 to $129,000 | > $206,000 to $258,000 | Part B + IRMAA = $244.60 |
| > $129,000 to $161,000 | > $258,000 to $322,000 | Part B + IRMAA = $349.40 |
| > $161,000 to $193,000 | > $322,000 to $386,000 | Part B + IRMAA = $454.20 |
| > $193,000 to $500,000 | > $386,000 to $750,000 | Part B + IRMAA = $559.00 |
| Greater than $500,000 | Greater than $750,000 | Part B + IRMAA = $594.00 |
How will my Part B surcharge be billed?
The 2024 Part B premium starts at $174.70 for Medicare beneficiaries. Therefore, the 2024 Part B IRMAA can be calculated by adding the additional income-related monthly adjusted amount or surcharge to the standard Part B premium ($174.70 + “X surcharge” = total premium).
If you are already receiving your Social Security retirement benefit, this additional surcharge will be withdrawn from your monthly benefit amount automatically. It’s important to monitor this is you’ve made a redetermination for yourself and/or you think your income has recently changed. It’s likely you’ll be the one that finds you’re being over charged, not Social Security.
If you are delaying your Social Security retirement benefit, this additional surcharge will be billed along with the Part B premium in the quarterly statement sent by Social Security. If you have this payment setup on an automatic withdrawal from checking account or credit card, the corresponding drafts with be billed monthly from the account. Again, this is something you’ll want to monitor annually.
To confirm the 2023 IRMAA surcharge amount, refer to your monthly or quarterly Part B billing statement. There should be a breakdown of the Part B premium with the applicable IRMAA surcharge that corresponds with the income bracket you, or you and your spouse fall under.
What is Part D IRMAA?
What is Part D IRMAA? Part D IRMAA will fall under the same income bracket as Part B. Yes, it’s an additional charge to your Part D Rx Plan. If you, or you and your spouse filled jointly, have an income above the standard limits set by Social Security the Part D plan will cost more than the standard premium being charged by the insurance company. This is not the insurance company charging this fee. Rather, it is Social Security, however, you pay the surcharge to the insurance company (yes, very odd). Medicare Part D IRMAA applies to Medicare beneficiaries who earn over $103,000 or $206,000 married filled jointly and are enrolled in a Part D plan (any drug plan). You cannot avoid the surcharges if you are enrolling/enrolled in a Medicare Prescription Drug Plan and your income falls within, or over these brackets. You can make a redetermination of your income to see if you or you and your spouse/partner fall in a lower bracket– see Mentor One Insight below for more information.
Part D IRMAA surcharges are based on your MAGI.
The income-related monthly adjusted amount increases with income and is broken down into 5 set income brackets– the higher the income, the higher the bracket for 2024 IRMAA Part D surcharges–see Table 1.2. Part D IRMAA is calculated based on your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) from 2 years prior. If you fall in this category, take a look at your 2022 MAGI to see where you fall. The 2024 Part D IRMAA surcharges for the corresponding income brackets are presented below.
Note: Your corresponding Part D IRMAA surcharge (any IRMAA bracket) is applicable to all Part D plans as well as Part D plans included in the Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C). Since the Part D plan is “bundled” within the Part C plan, the same Part D IRMAA surcharges apply to the corresponding income bracket you fall under.
| Individual | Filled Joint Return | Monthly Part D Plan Premium + IRMAA |
|---|---|---|
| $103,000 or less | $206,000 or less | Plan Premium Only |
| > $103,000 to $129,000 | > $206,000 to $258,000 | Plan Premium + $12.90 |
| > $129,000 to $161,000 | > $258,000 to $322,000 | Plan Premium + $33.30 |
| > $161,000 to $193,000 | > $322,000 to $386,000 | Plan Premium + $53.80 |
| > $193,000 to $500,000 | > $386,000 to $750,000 | Plan Premium + $74.20 |
| Greater than $500,000 | Greater than $750,000 | Plan Premium + $81.00 |
How will my Part D surcharge be billed?
Part D plan monthly premiums vary from plan to plan. The way in which the IRMAA surcharge is applied to Part D plans is different than Part B. Since the premiums of Part D plans vary plan to plan (22 plans in CA in 2024), the surcharge is added to whichever drug plan you choose for your coverage. Hence, the plan premium + IRMAA is how this is calculated. This surcharge, just like with Part B, has no effect on the coverage. Rather, it is billed in addition to premium, based on the same income bracket you fall under for Part B.
Note: Although the Part D IRMAA surcharge is added to your Part D plan premium. The surcharge cannot paid to the insurance company along with your Part D Drug plan premium. Your Part D IRMAA surcharge will be billed just as the Part B IRMAA is billed. This will depend on whether or not you’ve taken your Social Security benefit, or if you’ve decided to delay your benefit. If you’re currently taking your benefit, the surcharge will be withdrawn monthly from your Social Security check (just as your Part B is currently withdrawn).
If delaying your Social Security benefit to a later date, the Part D IRMAA bill will correspond with how you choose to set up your payment to Medicare Part B (auto draft checking account or quarterly paper billing). Having two different surcharges applied to your Medicare bill is very frustrating and confusing for many of my clients. I get it!
If you are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage Plan (MAPD), you’ll have a Part D plan “bundled” within the Part C plan, right? So, this means the Part D IRMAA surcharge will be billed in addition to the Medicare Advantage Plan premium. This additional Part D IRMAA surcharge will be billed however you’re currently paying for your Medicare Part B premium.
If you’re currently taking your Social Security and having the Part B automatically withdrawn from your monthly check, the Part D IRMAA on the MAPD plan will be automatically withdrawn from your check just as your Part B premium and Part B IRMAA are paid.
If you’re delaying your Social Security and paying Medicare Part B through a monthly draft or direct quarterly paper billing, the Part D IRMAA on the MAPD plan will be billed/withdrawn according to how you have your Part B premium and Part B IRMAA billing setup.
Contact my office if you’d like for me to run through your Medicare premium/ IRMAA payments to stay organized with where and how your Medicare premiums are being billed.
Mentor One Insight
Filing a IRMAA Redetermination – If you find yourself being charged IRMAA, you have the option of filing a redetermination if you believe that your calculation is not accurate according to your MAGI two years prior to your current year’s IRMAA charge. If you disagree with the filing, you may file third level appeal through the office- Decision by Office of Medicare Hearing and Appeals.
Did you recently have a Life Changing Event? You may also refile for a IRMAA redetermination based off a life changing event such as a loss of income or divorce, etc. Use Social Security Form – SSA-44.
SSA Form – SSA-44 (IRMAA redetermination) is located under Medicare Forms & Documents under the Resources tab. Download and print here, or access the form from ssa.gov.
Considering your IRMAA is based off calculations from two years prior, be sure to update your MAGI with SSA. Simply updating your MAGI can drastically reduce your IRMAA surcharge if you had a large lump sum payment/bonus in recent years. Have any of the following events taken place that would affect your MAGI?
– Home Sale or sale of property?
– Large investment distribution?
– Income reduction due to retirement or another life changing event?
If so, refile to keep your MAGI up to date to avoid any surcharges that you may not need to pay. Going through the process will not only keep your records up to date, but you’ll be more informed on the process if you have future events that could affect your MAGI, and thus, cause you to pay surcharges on your Part B and Part D premiums. Contact my office if you have any further questions on IRMAA and how it applies to your Medicare coverage.
