Medicare News
| For Immediate Release: | Contact: |
| Thursday, October 16, 1997 | CMS Office of Public Affairs 202-690-6145 |
For questions about Medicare please call 1-800-MEDICARE or visit www.medicare.gov. |
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MEDICARE PART B PREMIUM UNCHANGED FOR 1998
The Department of Health and Human Services today announced that Medicare beneficiaries will see no increase in the Part B premium in 1998.
"The Clinton Administration's efforts to preserve and protect Medicare are helping to save this essential program for the future, and helping beneficiaries keep real money in their own pockets," said HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala.
The Part B premium covers physician services, hospital outpatient care, durable medical equipment, and other services outside hospitals. The Part B premium will stay at the 1997 rate of $43.80. Last year it rose by $1.30.
"This is good news for our beneficiaries. In addition to no increase in the Part B premium, there is only a slight increase in the Part A deductible," said Nancy-Ann Min DeParle, Deputy Administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration, which runs Medicare.
The Medicare Part A deductible for inpatient hospital care is rising by $4 -- only 0.52 percent -- to $764. The small increase largely reflects savings from a freeze on Medicare hospital payment and other important structural changes signed into law by President Clinton that help to protect and preserve the Medicare Hospital Trust Fund. Last year, the deductible rose by $24.
The Part A deductible is a beneficiary's only cost for up to 60 days of inpatient care. The cost to beneficiaries for hospital stays longer than 60 days is rising by $1 to $191 per day, and by $2 to $382 per day for stays longer than 90 days. The skilled nursing facility deductible, which must be paid after the first 20 days of such care, is rising by 50 cents to $95.50 per day.
The vast majority of Medicare beneficiaries do not pay premiums for Part A coverage. However,these premiums are actually dropping in 1998, saving the 353,000 beneficiaries who do pay them $10 million. The full monthly Part A premium is dropping by $2 to $309. It is paid by seniors with less than 30 quarters of Medicare-covered employment and by disabled individuals under 65 who lost disability benefits because of work and earnings. Seniors with from 30 to 40 quarters of Medicare-covered employment are entitled to reduced premiums that are dropping by $17 to $170.
