Medicare Part B premium to increase 3.1%; much larger increase likley for 2009

Elderly and disabled people will see their Medicare premiums rise3.1 percent next year to $96.40 a month.  But theformula used to calculate the premium assumes that physicians will takea 10 percent cut in their reimbursement rates next year, an unlikelyoccurrence. If, as expected, Congress acts to offset some of that paycut or to eliminate it, premiums in future years would go up to reflectthe additional expense.  Another factor in thelower-than-usual premium increase was the fixing of an accounting errorthat otherwise would have added $2.50 to beneficiaries’ monthlypremiums in 2008.  The program’s expenses have soared in recent years as health care costsgo up faster than most other segments of the economy and as more peoplejoin the program.

Source/more:  Houston Chronicle/AP, http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/politics/5179304.html