Medicare Costs 2026: The Complete Rate Table
| 2026 rate item | Amount | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Part A premium, 40+ quarters | $0 / month | premium-free for life with a 40-quarter work record |
| Part A premium, 30-39 quarters | $311 / month | a partial record still buys Part A at a subsidized rate |
| Part A premium, under 30 quarters | $565 / month | the full unsubsidized monthly price of Part A |
| Part A inpatient deductible | $1,736 / benefit period | charged per benefit period, not per calendar year |
| Hospital coinsurance, days 61-90 | $434 / day | after the deductible inside the same benefit period |
| Lifetime reserve days 91-150 | $868 / day | a one-time pool of 60 reserve days, never renews |
| Skilled nursing, days 1-20 | $0 | covered in full after a qualifying 3-day hospital stay |
| Skilled nursing, days 21-100 | $217 / day | day 101 onward costs you everything |
| Part B standard premium | $202.90 / month | most enrollees pay exactly this in 2026 |
| Part B annual deductible | $283 / year | then 20% coinsurance on most outpatient services |
| Part B late-enrollment penalty | +10% per full year late | permanent, stacks for each 12 missed months |
| Part D late-enrollment penalty | +1% per uncovered month | permanent, charged on the national base premium |
| Part D out-of-pocket cap | $2,100 / year | $0 for covered drugs after crossing it - the IRA rule |
| Part B income surcharge (IRMAA) | income-based | set from your tax return of two years prior |
Medicare publishes its rates every year, but they are scattered across half a dozen pages: Part A amounts live in one place, Part B in another, the two late-enrollment penalties in a third. This table is the whole 2026 rate card on one screen - premiums, deductibles, coinsurance steps, both lifetime penalties and the Part D out-of-pocket cap - each traced to Medicare.gov's own costs page, with the quarter-count rules that decide which Part A row is yours.
The single biggest driver is not age or income - it is how many calendar quarters you (or a spouse) paid Medicare taxes while working. Forty quarters earns premium-free Part A for life; 30 to 39 quarters buys it at a discount; fewer than 30 pays the full unsubsidized rate. Part B works differently: one standard premium for almost everyone, then an income-based surcharge (IRMAA) on top for higher earners.
How to use
- Find your Part A row by counting Medicare-tax quarters across your working years - a quarter is a three-month block, and four quarters is one year of work.
- Start from the Part B standard premium of $202.90 and only look at IRMAA tables if your modified AGI crossed the income thresholds two years prior.
- Read the penalty rows before your Initial Enrollment Period ends - both penalties are permanent once they start, and neither one prorates.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a benefit period and a calendar year for Part A?
The $1,736 deductible is charged per benefit period, not per year: a benefit period starts the day you are admitted as an inpatient and ends only after 60 straight days without inpatient care. Have two hospital stays separated by 61 days and you can pay the deductible twice in one calendar year - the clock is hospital-centered by design.
Why did Part B jump from $185 to $202.90?
The standard premium rose about 9.7% for 2026, driven by projected per-capita service use and the statutory rule that premiums must cover roughly a quarter of Part B program costs. The law also caps the dollar increase for most beneficiaries below the growth of their Social Security check - the hold-harmless provision - which pushes more of the increase onto everyone else.
Do I pay the Part A deductible every hospital visit?
Once per benefit period, not per visit. Stay in the hospital six weeks, go home for two months, and return - if the gap is under 60 days it is the same benefit period and the $1,736 was already paid; past 60 days a new benefit period opens and a fresh deductible applies.
Is the $2,100 out-of-pocket cap for Part D per year?
Yes - it resets every January. The cap phases in from the 2025 figure of $2,000 under the Inflation Reduction Act, and once your yearly drug spending crosses it you pay $0 for covered drugs for the rest of the year. Premiums and the deductible still apply - the cap counts only what you pay at the pharmacy.
Which numbers here change if I have a Medicare Advantage plan?
Nearly all of them: Part A and B premiums and penalties still apply because Advantage plans require both, but the deductibles, coinsurance steps and the benefit-period clock in this table are Original Medicare rules - an Advantage plan replaces them with its own copays, networks and an annual out-of-pocket maximum that Original Medicare lacks.