Medicare Part D

How 2025 Income Sets Medicare IRMAA for Richmond in 2027

RICHMOND, Va. — As Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period runs through Dec. 7, many Richmond residents are focused on picking a drug or Advantage plan for 2027. But there's a quieter factor that can matter just as much as any plan choice: your income. If you earned above certain thresholds in 2025, you'll pay more for Part B and Part D in 2027 — through a surcharge called IRMAA.

Richmond retirees: your tax return is quietly setting your Medicare bill

Here's a plain-English look at how it works, where the 2027 lines are expected to be drawn, and the mistakes that trip people up.

What IRMAA actually is

IRMAA stands for the Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount. It's an extra amount added to your standard Part B premium and your Part D premium if your income is above a set threshold.

A few key points to keep in mind:

• IRMAA is not a penalty. It's an income-based surcharge that higher earners pay on top of the base premium.
• It applies to both Part B and Part D, even if your Part D plan is bundled inside a Medicare Advantage plan.
• Social Security typically deducts the Part B portion from your monthly benefit. The Part D portion is billed separately — even if your drug plan premium itself comes out of Social Security.

The income Medicare is looking at is from two years ago

This is where most people get surprised. Your 2027 IRMAA is based on your 2025 tax return — specifically your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI), which is your AGI plus any tax-exempt interest.

So the paycheck you brought home this year, or the retirement date you just set, doesn't change your 2027 surcharge. Medicare works from the most recent return the IRS has shared with the Social Security Administration.

The 2027 income thresholds

For 2026, IRMAA surcharges begin above $109,000 for a single filer and above $218,000 for a married couple filing jointly, based on 2024 income. From there, the surcharge rises in tiers — the higher your income, the higher the add-on for both Part B and Part D.

If your income falls at or below those thresholds, you'll pay the standard Part B premium and only your plan's Part D premium — no surcharge.

Because the exact tier amounts are updated each year, the most reliable place to check the current numbers is medicare.gov under "Costs" or the Social Security Administration's IRMAA page.

What's new in Part D for 2027 (and why income still matters)

Even outside of IRMAA, Part D is changing in ways worth knowing:

• The out-of-pocket cap for covered drugs is $2,100 in 2026. Once you hit it, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $615 in 2026 ($700 in 2027).
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap is gone — Part D now has three phases (deductible, initial coverage, catastrophic).
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly installments instead of paying big amounts at the pharmacy counter.

None of these changes remove IRMAA. A higher earner still pays the Part D surcharge on top of their plan premium — but the cap ($2,100 in 2026, $2,400 in 2027) does put a firm ceiling on what you pay out of pocket for the drugs themselves.

If your income has dropped, you can ask for a review

This is the single most-missed step. If you've had a life-changing event since 2024, you can ask Social Security to recalculate your IRMAA using more recent income. Qualifying events include:

• Marriage, divorce, or the death of a spouse
• You or your spouse stopping work or reducing hours (retirement counts)
• Loss of pension income
• Loss of income-producing property from a disaster or other event outside your control

The form is SSA-44 ("Medicare Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount – Life-Changing Event"). You submit it to Social Security with proof, such as a signed statement from a former employer or a copy of a more recent tax return.

If you got an IRMAA letter this fall and something on this list applies to you, don't just pay it and move on — request the review.

What Richmond residents should double-check this AEP

Richmond is in Richmond city, where Medicare plan availability is set at the county (independent city) level. During Annual Enrollment (through Dec. 7) and Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment (Jan. 1 – March 31), it's worth doing three things:

1. Look at your Social Security or Medicare notice for any 2027 IRMAA determination. 2. If your income has dropped since 2025, gather your paperwork and file SSA-44. 3. When comparing drug coverage, remember your total Part D cost includes any IRMAA surcharge, not just the plan's advertised premium.