With the announcement of the August CPI-U, the 2024 Brackets are official and they will increase by over 5.00% to start at $103,000 for an individual.
Now please keep in mind that at any point between now and the beginning of the 2024 Congress or the current Presidential Administration can alter these Medicare IRMAA Brackets, but if they do not then there will be at least a little bit of good news for seniors.
Official IRMAA 2024 Brackets
Single
Couple MAGI
Part B
Part D
< $103,000
< $206,000
$174.70
Premium (varies)
$103,000 to $129,000
$206,000 to $258,000
$244.60
$12.90
$129,000 to $161,000
$258,000 to $322,000
$349.40
$33.30
$161,000 to $193,000
$322,000 to $386,000
$454.20
$53.80
$193,000 to $500,000
$386,000 to $750,000
$559.00
$74.20
> $500,000
> $750,000
$594.00
$81.00
How the IRMAA Brackets adjust:
When Congress created Medicare IRMAA back in 2003 through the passing of the Medicare Moderniztion Act, they ruled that the IRMAA Brackets would adjust by
“The percentage (if any) by which the average of the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (United States city average) for the 12-month period ending with August of the preceding calendar year exceeds such average for the 12-month period.”
So, if the CPI-U at the end of August of the current year is greater than the previous August then the IRMAA Brackets will increase. Note the inflation rate does not determine IRMAA costs.
By the way there is no language that would stop the IRMAA Brackets from going down if the CPI-U would actually deflate from year to year.
In terms of the all the Thresholds within the IRMAA Brackets, due to the passing of the Bi-Partisan Budget Act of 2018 the 5th Threshold in the IRMAA Brackets will not adjust for inflation until 2028.
What is IRMAA:
IRMAA is short for Medicare’s Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount which is according to the Code of Federal Regulations:
“An amount that you will pay for your Medicare Part B and D coverage when your modified adjusted gross income is above the certain thresholds.”
IRMAA is a tax on your income through Medicare Part B and Part D coverage if you have too much income while in retirement.
Will you actually enter IRMAA:
According to the 2022 Medicare Board of Trustees Report, currently, there are over 6.8 million people in IRMAA. These people in IRMAA make up 16.63% of all eligible Medicare beneficiaries.
By 2031, according to recent reports the number of people in IRMAA will double to 13.8 million eligible people in IRMAA.
IRMAA is a revenue generator for both the Medicare and Social Security programs.
For the Medicare program, IRMAA is an added cost that the person in it must pay. This added cost provides more money each year for the program.
As for Social Security, according to Congress, all IRMAA costs are automatically deducted from any Social Security benefit a person is receiving. Thus, for those who enter IRMAA, Social Security has to pay out less to them which reduces that program’s obligation to pay Benefits.
With both Medicare and Social Security projected by the government to be insolvent (unable to pay) in less than 8 years the easiest way to save these programs is to make sure more people are in IRMAA.
How do you reach an IRMAA bracket:
IRMAA is all about your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI).
The more of it you have the higher the chances that you have to reaching IRMAA while having less of an MAGI reduces the chance of you reaching IRMAA.
What counts towards your MAGI:
According to Social Security your MAGI is the total of your adjusted gross income (AGI) and any tax-exempt interest you may have.
Both of these can be found on lines 2a and 11 of your 2022 IRS tax form 1040.
Some examples of where your MAGI will come from are:
| Taxable Social Security benefits | Traditional 401(k) Withdrawals |
| Wages | Traditional IRA Withdrawals |
| Pension & Rental Income | Traditional 403(b) Withdrawals |
| Capital Gains | Qualified Annuities |
| Dividends | Interest |
If you want to avoid IRMAA all together then the goal is to generate an income from financial instruments that do not count towards your MAGI and they are:
| Roth Account Withdrawals |
| Life insurance loans |
| Non-Qualified Annuities* |
| Health Saving Account Withdrawals |
| 401(h) plans |
| Home Loans or Reverse Mortgages |
*Non-Qualified Annuities – depending on certain factors a certain portion of all income you will receive from them can be completely tax free. Please see an IRMAA Certified Professional for more information on which Annuity is best for you.
For a complete list of what does and does not count towards IRMAA please click here.
How to File an Appeal
If you feel you shouldn’t be subject to IRMAA, you can fil