The problem: most people only hear “Part B went up”… and nothing else.

But your real question is:

“What does this actually mean when I go to the doctor or the hospital?”

Let’s walk through the 2026 Part A and B numbers and then plug them into simple scenarios you can actually picture.

Part A in 2026: Hospital & Skilled Nursing Numbers

Part A helps with:

• Inpatient hospital stays

• Skilled nursing facility care (after a qualifying hospital stay)

• Some home health

• Hospice care

In 2026, the key Part A costs: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1

• Hospital deductible per benefit period: $1,736

• Hospital coinsurance:

  • Days 1–60: $0 after deductible

  • Days 61–90: $434/day

  • Lifetime reserve days: $868/day

• Skilled nursing facility: $217/day for days 21–100

Most people pay $0/month for Part A, but if you didn’t work enough quarters:

• Reduced premium: $311/month (if you have 30–39 quarters of coverage or qualifying spouse)

• Full premium: $565/month (if you have <30 quarters)

Real-life scenario 1: A 5-day hospital stay in 2026

You’re hospitalized for pneumonia for five days.

• You pay the Part A deductible: $1,736

• Days 1–5: no daily coinsurance after that deductible

• If you go home after day 5: that’s it for that benefit period (excluding any doctor bills under Part B).

If you’re readmitted months later in a new benefit period, you could owe another $1,736. That’s why people often look at Medigap or a Medicare Advantage plan to cap these costs.

Part B in 2026: Doctor Visits, Outpatient, and More

Part B helps with:

• Doctor visits

• Outpatient surgery

• Preventive screenings

• Durable medical equipment

• Many infusion and cancer treatments

In 2026, Part B’s main numbers: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1

• Standard monthly premium: $202.90

• Annual deductible: $283

• After the deductible, you usually pay 20% of Medicare-approved amounts.

Real-life scenario 2: The “regular year” for a relatively healthy retiree

Let’s say in 2026 you:

• See your primary doctor twice

• See a cardiologist once

• Have some routine tests

If these together cost $800 in Medicare-approved amounts:

1. You pay your $283 Part B deductible first.

2. The remaining $517 is subject to 20% coinsurance = $103.40.

So in this simple year, you might pay:

• $202.90 × 12 = $2,434.80 in Part B premiums

• $283 deductible

• $103.40 coinsurance

Total Part B out-of-pocket: about $2,821 for the year (not counting any Medigap or Advantage coverage that could change the math). Problem people don’t consider is you likely will have very few “regular years.” When you stay with just Original Medicare you are taking on a lot of risk because there is no cap for your medical expenses.

Real-life scenario 3: Outpatient surgery

You need outpatient knee surgery in 2026, billed under Part B at $10,000 in Medicare-approved charges.

• First, any remaining portion of the $283 deductible is applied.

• After that, you owe 20% of the approved amount.

If your deductible is already met:

• 20% of $10,000 = $2,000

That bill often surprises people.

With Medigap Plan G, for example, that 20% can be fully or mostly covered (depending on the plan and state). A Medicare Advantage plan might instead apply copays or a percentage until you reach your plan’s out-of-pocket maximum.

What About High-Income Part B Premiums in 2026?

If your income is above a certain level, you’ll pay more for Part B through IRMAA.

In 2026, IRMAA surcharges start when: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1

• Single MAGI > $109,000

• Married filing jointly MAGI > $218,000

Your total Part B premium ranges roughly from $202.90 up to $689.90/month, depending on which bracket you fall into.

Remember:

• Medicare looks back at your 2024 tax return for 2026 costs.

• If you’ve had a qualifying life change (retirement, divorce, death of a spouse, etc.), you may be able to appeal using Social Security form SSA-44.

We’ll go deep on IRMAA in another post.

Why Planning Around A & B Matters

Most people focus on, “What’s my monthly premium?”

But with Part A and B, you also need to ask:

• “How many deductibles could I realistically hit in a year?”

• “If I had a bad year—hospital stay + outpatient surgery—what’s my worst-case scenario?”

• “Do I want to pay more monthly to make my worst-case smaller and more predictable?”

That’s the heart of the Medigap vs. Advantage decision.

Simple next steps

1. Pull your 2024 and 2025 medical history.

   • How many hospital stays?

   • How many specialists and tests?

2. Estimate your 2026 “normal” and “bad year” costs under Original Medicare only.

3. Then compare that to a Medigap or Medicare Advantage option with real 2026 numbers and your doctors/drugs.

👉 If you’d like help running those “what if” numbers using your own doctors and medications, our team at Mere can walk through it with you and show how Medigap or Medicare Advantage could change the picture.