Medicare Part D

Medicare Income Surcharges — Plainfield, Ill. 2027

Plainfield, Ill. — If you filed a tax return two years ago that showed a higher-than-usual income, your 2027 Medicare bill could look different than your neighbor's. With the Annual Enrollment Period running Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, this is the season to understand how income-related surcharges work — and whether one may apply to you in 2027.

The rule is called IRMAA, short for the Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount. It's not a penalty. It's an extra amount added to the standard Part B premium and, if you have drug coverage, to your Part D premium. For 2026, it kicks in for single filers with modified adjusted gross income above $109,000, and for joint filers above $218,000.

How IRMAA actually works

Medicare looks back two years to set your surcharge. That means your 2027 Part B and Part D costs will be based on your 2025 tax return. If you earned more in 2025 — from a home sale, a Roth conversion, a bonus, or a one-time withdrawal — you may see a higher premium in 2027 even if your income has since dropped.

IRMAA is tiered. The higher your income, the higher the surcharge. Everyone pays the standard Part B premium; people above the threshold pay that plus an add-on. The same idea applies to Part D: you keep whatever your drug plan charges, and Medicare adds the IRMAA amount on top, usually taken directly from Social Security.

The thresholds to know

For 2026, the first IRMAA tier begins at:

• $109,000 for single filers
• $218,000 for married couples filing jointly
• $109,000 for married filing separately (with a much steeper jump above that)

There are five tiers total, climbing for higher incomes. The exact 2026 dollar amounts for each tier are published by CMS on Medicare.gov; the 2027 chart will be posted there once announced. If you're near a threshold, even a few hundred dollars of income can push you into the next bracket, so it's worth checking the current chart before year-end.

What Plainfield readers should keep in mind

Plainfield is in Will County, where Medicare beneficiaries have a full range of Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage options during the Annual Enrollment Period. IRMAA, though, is a federal rule — it applies the same way whether you live in Plainfield, Joliet, or anywhere else. Your ZIP code doesn't change the surcharge; your tax return does.

One local note: Illinois offers free, unbiased Medicare help through SHIP (called SHIP Illinois). Counselors can walk you through your specific situation at no cost.

If your income has dropped, you can appeal

This is the part many people miss. If you've had a "life-changing event" since that 2024 tax return, you can ask Social Security to recalculate your IRMAA using more recent income. Qualifying events include:

• Retirement or reduced work hours
• Death of a spouse
• Marriage or divorce
• Loss of pension income
• Loss of income-producing property (not from a sale)

You file Form SSA-44 with documentation. If approved, the surcharge is adjusted — sometimes removed entirely. Many retirees who go from a full salary to Social Security in the same year qualify but never file the form.

Other program numbers worth remembering

While you're reviewing costs, a few program-level figures are changing or worth confirming:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once you hit that in covered drug spending, you pay nothing more for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615 in 2026 ($700 in 2027).
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs into monthly installments instead of paying large amounts at the pharmacy counter.