Covers medical-related treatments such as:
- Doctor and other healthcare provider services (office visits)
- Outpatient care (treatment in a hospital without an overnight or prolonged stay)
- Home health care (skilled nursing care, physical and occupational therapy, etc.)
- Durable medical equipment (walkers, crutches, oxygen, etc.)
- Some preventive services (flu shots, vaccines, mammograms, colonoscopies, etc.)
Unlike Part A, most people DO pay a standard monthly premium [$148.50 in 2021] for Part B coverage. You may be required to pay more each month if your modified adjusted gross income (AGI) for the past 2 years is greater than $88,000 per year if filing as an individual or married filing separately – or $176,000 if married filing jointly.
Part B also includes a deductible [$203 in 2021]. After meeting this deductible, patients typically continue to pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount of each Part B covered service.
Many Capital Realm Insurance clients choose to delay Part B coverage until they retire and their employer-sponsored insurance plans expire – and then apply for Part B. The goal is to make this transition seamless to avoid the Part B penalty below.
Part B Penalty
You may receive a late penalty premium of 10% for every full 12-month period that you qualified for Medicare Part B but did not take it. This penalty is added on top of your baseline premium amount for as long as you have Part B.
Contact Alex for information about your Part B premium in relation to your income and how to avoid a Part B penalty.