Medicare Part B premium won’t increase this year

The Department of Health and Human Services announced that Medicare beneficiaries won’t have to pay more for Part B premiums in 1998.

The premium, which covers physician services, hospital outpatient care, durable medical equipment, and other services outside hospitals, will remain at the 1997 rate of $43.80. This is the first time in more than eight years that the premium has not risen. On the other hand, the Medicare Part A deductible will rise by $4 this year, about half of one percent, to $764. The Part A deductible covers inpatient hospital care. Last year the deductible rose by $24.

The Part A deductible is a Medicare beneficiary’s only cost for up to 60 days of inpatient care. The cost for hospital stays longer than 60 days will increase by $1 in 1998 to $191 per day, and by $2 to $382 per day for stays longer than 90 days.