Health

For 2026 our Plan G Medigap premiums increased about 14% to $311.03 and $324.86. Our Part D premiums increased from $18.00 to $72.30 per month. And, the standard Part B premiums increased to $202.90.
These premiums total $1,186.29 per month for both of us,  $14,235 a year. IRMAA adds several hundred dollars more per person, per month. 
Even ignoring IRMAA, the basic premiums – unrelated to income – can be a hefty hit to income for retirees, 

In my years working in Hospital Administration, I routinely had staff telling me about patients or families caught in a medical crisis caused by a fall or major surgery or simple aging.  They were “surprised” to find that when they were told they could no longer live safely in their home, that Medicare was not going to pay for their needed long term care living arrangements.
I’m assuming that this information will not be a surprise to Humble Dollar readers. 

When it comes to our health care “affordable”takes on unique meaning.
For many (most) people affordable then means $0. I have been aware of and thought about this conundrum for over sixty years when I first became involved with healthcare benefits. I have seen it in action more times than receiving HD down arrows.
Health insurance evolved from true insurance in the 1940s to covering virtually all spending from the first dollar and then we made gradual attempts –

When it comes to Social Security we hear:
Congress stole the trust fund and never paid it back
I paid taxes and thus paid for my own benefits 
If we didn’t pay benefits to people not eligible, there would not be a problem.
Social Security is a scam, a Ponzi scheme. 
Why doesn’t the trust earn interest?
Health insurance misinformation is even worse:
I feel like health insurance should be free, like it is in other places.

Every year, like clockwork, I gripe over cost of health insurance premiums. Am I paying too much?
The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics measures year over year changes in the health care component of the consumer price index (CPI). The monthly health care inflation rate for September, 2025 reflected a 3.28% annual rise. Our perception is that this is a relatively high increase, although in reality the current rate represent is slower annual growth when compared to the past 50 year average rate of 5.09%.

People and money, especially when not actually their money, generates some interesting points of view and confusion. It sometimes seems to bring out the illogical. 
Health care and health insurance are especially volatile topics. I spend a great deal of time writing about health care on my blog and I spent most of my working life dealing with health insurance and related health care issues. I helped organize three HMOs. 
The cost of healthcare is a significant issue for most people and yet finding a workable solution is greatly hampered by misinformation and what people want to believe.

A Cautionary Tale: What I Learned Trying to Leave an Employer-Sponsored Medicare Advantage Plan
This is the story of a friend I helped when she tried to move from her employer’s Group Medicare Advantage plan to Original Medicare and a Supplement. Her experience is a cautionary tale.
I want to share this story because I don’t want others to go through the stress, confusion, and sleepless nights that we did.
When I retired, the company I worked for offered my husband and I a Medicare Advantage plan ,along with a $50,000 Future Health Account credit. 

A post on X (was Twitter) offers an interesting twist –
“A guy just used @AnthropicAI Claude to turn a $195,000 hospital bill into $33,000. Not with a lawyer. Not with a hospital admin insider. With a $20/month Claude Plus subscription. He uploaded the itemized bill. Claude spotted duplicate procedure codes, illegal “double billing,” and charges that Medicare rules explicitly forbid. Then it helped him write a letter citing every violation. The hospital dropped their demand by 83%.

I’m pretty sure we can agree when using the word “affordable” there are as many definitions as the number of people involved.
I observe the debate in Congress over the premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act and wonder, what they are thinking.
Regardless of your views on that, we tend to forget we are all subsidized for our healthcare. It may be through the ACA, more often our employer, perhaps Medicaid and for many of us Medicare. 

Here is a link to a Substack article by Mark Miller a leading expert on Medicare, and my go to source. He writes an excellent synopsis of changes this year:
https://open.substack.com/pub/retirementrevised/p/your-guide-to-medicare-fall-enrollment?r=17lsan&utm_medium=ios

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Educational and funny
 

Some people see taxes as unnecessary, even illegal and don’t think they should pay. Many people don’t make the connection between taxes and all the programs and services they provide in a society.
I had someone tell me the 16th amendment of 1913 was temporary and thus income taxes are illegal.
There are those who are convinced eliminating fraud and waste will lower taxes – good luck. Interestingly, fraud is committed by our fellow citizens-Medicare is a good example,

I am attempting to gift a Wall Street Journal article. I hope it works, but if not, all you really need is the headline: “The Average Cost of a Family Health Insurance Plan Is Now $27,000”. Think about that. Then consider that US health care is generally considered to be twice as expensive as health care in other, comparable, countries for worse results. Think what corporations, never mind employees, could do with an additional $6,750/year per person.

I wanted to mention for those who are interested that the SS COLA was announced this morning to be 2.8% for 2026.  Not really needing a discussion, just offering the information. Chris

One of the greatest benefits I received  from my last employer was the gift of health care insurance in my retirement years. At the time I was hired (almost 28 years ago), they offered an early retiree benefit: work for twenty years and, if you chose to retire after you turn 55, you could continue to receive coverage as if you were an active employee. Needless to say, it’s a benefit they no longer offer.
I retired on my 55th birthday,