SAN DIEGO (KGTV) \u2014 Seniors are feeling the squeeze as Medicare costs climb this year, even as their incomes largely stay flat.<\/p>\n
While reporting last week on the rising cost of insurance premiums, I ended up on the phone with a Medicare agent who told me it’s a tough year for seniors, too. Their costs are going up while their income mainly stays the same.<\/p>\n
So why are costs rising when Medicare is a system designed to be affordable for seniors? <\/p>\n
I asked George Skaljak, who has worked in healthcare for decades and became a medicare agent seven years ago.<\/p>\n
“Many of the plans – the Medicare Advantage plans are zero-premium plans. That doesn’t mean that there are zero costs,” Skaljak said.<\/p>\n
He pointed to one example of how costs are climbing.<\/p>\n
“On one of the more popular plans in San Diego, the moop went up from, I think, $3,400 to $4,450,” Skaljak said.<\/p>\n
The “MOOP” is the maximum out-of-pocket cost. Just as many are facing a higher premium every month, seniors on a specific kind of Medicare simply pay more when they need health care.<\/p>\n
Skaljak said part of the pressure comes from a growing number of people entering the system.<\/p>\n
“There are more people on Medicare, They say that 11,000 people a day in the United States turn 65 and that’s when you’re eligible for medicare,” Skaljak said.<\/p>\n
“Plus, people living longer,” Skaljak said.<\/p>\n
Skaljak also points to the Inflation Reduction Act, which was aimed at reducing healthcare costs for Americans a few years ago by requiring plans to pay for more of the share of prescription drugs. He said it did the opposite.<\/p>\n
“As an example, we went from, back in 2021, from about 45 prescription drug plans to 10 drug plans in California,” Skaljak said.<\/p>\n
Despite all of that, Skaljak said all parts of Medicare are still better deals for seniors \u2014 and there are a lot of ways to save money.<\/p>\n