Medicare Part D

Medicare IRMAA Surcharges and Green Bay Income Thresholds

GREEN BAY, Wis. — As Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period runs through Dec. 7, some higher-income retirees in Brown County are getting a second surprise in the mail this fall: a notice that they'll pay more for Part B and Part D in 2027 because of what they earned two years ago.

That extra charge is called IRMAA — the Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount. It's not a penalty, and it's not tied to any specific plan. It's a Medicare rule that asks people with higher incomes to pay a larger share of their Part B and Part D premiums. Here's how it works for 2027, and what Green Bay-area beneficiaries can do if a letter shows up.

What IRMAA actually is

Most people on Medicare pay the standard Part B premium and whatever Part D premium comes with their drug plan. But if your income is above a set threshold, Social Security adds a monthly surcharge on top of both. That surcharge is IRMAA.

Two important points to keep in mind:

• IRMAA is based on your tax return from two years ago. For 2027, Medicare will look at your 2025 IRS return (specifically your modified adjusted gross income, or MAGI).
• It applies to both Part B and Part D, even if you get your drug coverage through a stand-alone plan or bundled into a Medicare Advantage plan.

The 2027 income thresholds

For 2026, IRMAA kicks in once your 2024 MAGI is above $109,000 for a single filer or $218,000 for a married couple filing jointly, according to CMS. The surcharge climbs in tiers from there, with the highest tier reserved for individuals with incomes at or near $500,000 (and married couples around $750,000).

If your income sits below those first thresholds, you won't pay an IRMAA at all. If you cross a threshold by even one dollar, you move into the next tier — which is why year-end tax planning matters for retirees close to a cutoff.

Why the letter feels like it came out of nowhere

Because IRMAA uses a two-year lookback, the 2025 income that triggers a 2027 surcharge often includes one-time events people forget about:

• A Roth conversion
• The sale of a home or investment property
• A large required minimum distribution (RMD)
• Capital gains from rebalancing a portfolio
• Severance or a final year of full-time wages before retiring

None of those necessarily reflect what you're living on today, which is exactly the frustration many Green Bay retirees describe when they call the Wisconsin SHIP for help.

When you can ask Medicare to reconsider

If your income has dropped since 2024 because of a life-changing event, you can ask Social Security to recalculate your IRMAA using more recent figures. Qualifying events include:

• Marriage, divorce, or the death of a spouse
• Stopping work or reducing hours
• Loss of pension income
• Loss of income-producing property (not from normal market swings)

You'll file Form SSA-44 with documentation — a recent tax return, a letter from a former employer, or similar proof. If Social Security agrees, the surcharge can be reduced or removed for the year in question.

If you simply disagree with the calculation — for example, Medicare used an outdated return, or you've since amended your taxes — you can file an appeal instead.

How this fits with the rest of your 2027 drug costs

IRMAA is only one piece of the Part D picture. For 2027, CMS has confirmed:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027 — once you hit that in covered drug costs, you pay nothing more for covered medications for the rest of the year.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap has been eliminated; Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly installments instead of paying big bills at the pharmacy counter. It's optional and free to join.

None of those features change based on your income — they apply to everyone with Part D coverage. IRMAA affects your premium, not your benefits.

What to check during Annual Enrollment

Green Bay is in Brown County, where beneficiaries have a full slate of stand-alone Part D and Medicare Advantage options to compare during the Oct. 15–Dec. 7 window. If you're paying IRMAA, a couple of things are worth a closer look:

1. Your Part D premium. IRMAA is added to whatever base premium your plan charges, so the plan you pick still matters. 2. Whether you'd benefit from the Prescription Payment Plan if your drug costs are front-loaded early in the year. 3. Any changes to your prescriptions or pharmacies, since formularies and preferred pharmacy networks reset each January.

Medicare Advantage members also get a second window — the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from Jan. 1 through March 31 — to switch to another Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare.