Medicare Costs in 2026: What You’ll Really Pay for Parts A, B, D & Advantage
You shouldn’t need a law degree to know what your healthcare will cost.
Every fall, Medicare releases a new set of numbers: premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, out-of-pocket limits, and drug caps. Most people see the headlines, feel their eyes glaze over, and hope for the best.
But one wrong assumption about your 2026 Medicare costs can throw off your entire retirement budget.
This guide walks you through the actual 2026 numbers in plain language, so you can:
Know what you’ll pay before you go to the doctor or pharmacy
Spot red flags in your coverage
Decide whether you need to make a change
And remember: you don’t have to figure it out alone. This is exactly what my team at Mere helps people with every day.
Part A in 2026: Hospital Coverage
Most people don’t pay a monthly premium for Part A because they (or a spouse) worked enough years and paid Medicare taxes.
In 2026, here’s what you’ll see for Part A: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1
Inpatient hospital deductible per benefit period: $1,736
Hospital coinsurance:
Days 1–60: $0 after you meet the deductible
Days 61–90: $434 per day
Lifetime reserve days: $868 per day
Skilled nursing facility coinsurance (days 21–100): $217 per day
If you don’t have enough work credits and have to buy into Part A:
Reduced Part A premium (30–39 quarters): $311/month
Full Part A premium (<30 quarters): $565/month Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Why it matters:
That $1,736 deductible isn’t an annual amount—it’s per benefit period. Multiple hospital stays could mean multiple deductibles in one year.
Part B in 2026: Doctor and Outpatient Services
Part B is where most people feel the increase, because it’s taken directly from Social Security for many retirees.
For 2026, Part B looks like this: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1
Standard Part B premium: $202.90/month
Annual Part B deductible: $283
After the deductible, you generally pay 20% of Medicare-approved amounts for covered services (unless you have a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medigap policy that changes this).
If your income is higher, you may pay more because of IRMAA (income-related monthly adjustment amounts). In 2026, surcharges start when individual income is above $109,000 or joint income above $218,000, based on your 2024 tax return. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+1
I’ll unpack IRMAA in detail in its own post in this series.
Part D in 2026: Drug Coverage and the New $2,100 Cap
This is the year a big change hits: your out-of-pocket drug spending will be capped.
For 2026, the standard Part D framework is: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services+2KFF+2
Standard Part D deductible: $615
After that, you and your plan share costs depending on the drug tier and plan design.
Out-of-pocket cap for covered Part D drugs: $2,100 for the year
Once your true out-of-pocket costs reach $2,100, you won’t pay any more copays or coinsurance for covered Part D drugs for the rest of 2026.
Why this is huge:
In previous years, people with expensive medications could pay thousands more after hitting the catastrophic level. In 2026, that pain finally has a ceiling.
Medicare Advantage (Part C) in 2026: Premiums & Max Out-of-Pocket
Medicare Advantage plans replace Original Medicare with a private plan. Costs vary by company and county, but Medicare sets an upper limit on how much you can be exposed to in a year.
In 2026: National Council on Aging+1
The maximum in-network out-of-pocket limit (MOOP) for Medicare Advantage plans is $9,250.
Many plans choose a lower limit, but they can’t exceed that maximum for approved Part A and B services.
Important:
Part D drug costs do not count toward this MOOP.
Some carriers are shrinking PPO options or tightening networks, especially in certain counties, which means your access to doctors may change even if your costs look similar on paper.
Medigap & 2026 Cost Limits (Quick Snapshot)
Medigap (Medicare Supplement) plans help cover the Part A and B deductibles and coinsurance. Premiums are set by private insurers and vary widely, but a few numbers are worth noting:
For 2026, CMS has set new out-of-pocket limits for the cost-sharing Medigap plans: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Medigap Plan K OOP limit: $8,000
Medigap Plan L OOP limit: $4,000
Traditional favorites like Plan G and Plan N don’t have an official CMS-set max like this, but they typically leave you with much lower and more predictable medical bills than Original Medicare alone.
We’ll break down each Medigap option in its own post later in this series.
What This Means for Your 2026 Budget
When you put all of these 2026 numbers together, a typical retiree might see:
Around $2,400+ per year in Part B premiums (standard rate)
A possible $1,736 hospital deductible if you’re hospitalized
Up to $283 Part B deductible
Up to $615 Part D deductible
A hard ceiling of $2,100 on out-of-pocket drug costs
And if you’re on Medicare Advantage, a potential $9,250 in medical out-of-pocket spending (or less, depending on plan)
That’s a lot of moving parts for someone just trying to plan for groceries, grandkids, and maybe a trip or two.
How to Make 2026 Medicare Costs More Predictable
Here’s a simple 3-step plan:
Find out what you have now.
Original Medicare only? Medicare Advantage? Medigap + Part D?
Are your doctors and drugs still covered in 2026?
Compare your worst-case scenarios.
What’s the maximum you could pay in 2026 for:
Hospital care
Specialist visits
Your most expensive medications
Talk with an independent agent who can show you multiple options.
A plan that looks “cheap” on the premium side may be very expensive at the pharmacy or if you end up in the hospital.
Someone who understands both Medicare and Social Security can help you see how these costs interact with your monthly check.
You don’t have to decode these numbers alone.
Medicare changes every year. Your health and income change too. Instead of guessing, you can have a guide walk through your 2026 numbers with you so you can move into retirement with more confidence and less anxiety.
👉 If you’d like a simple, 1-page snapshot of what Medicare could cost you in 2026 based on your situation, our team at Mere is happy to help. Reach out to us and we’ll walk you through it—no pressure, no sales script, just clarity.
