The Cost of 2012 Medicare Premiums is Not yet Available for Seniors – No Surprise There!

The hot-off-the-press "2012 Medicare & You" handbooks have been mailed to seniors. Just as was the case in 2011, the back page of the 2012 handbook does not show premium costs for the coming year. Here is what is printed on the inside back cover of the handbook:

"The law requires Medicare to send the information in this handbook to all people with Medicare 15 days before the start of the fall Open Enrollment Period. The 2012 premium and deductible amounts for Part A and Part B weren't available to include at the time of printing. To get the most up-to-date information on these costs, visit www.medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). ITY users should call 1-877-486-2048."

What is with this?

They state that the 2012 premium and deductible amounts for Part A and Part B weren't available to include at the time of printing and basically tell seniors that they are being tasked with seeking information through telephone calls or by researching a website in order to learn their costs for the coming year.

I noted that the 2012 booklet does contain monthly premiums and deductibles for the prescription drug plans. Apparently the insurance companies have to have their information ready by the time the Medicare & You handbook is printed, unlike the federal government which seems to have the latitude to state "the information is not available."

I went down this path last year

I wrote three articles about this last year with my second article detailing how I spent a great deal of time on the telephone trying to hunt down details of what the 2011 premium costs would be. I'm not going to waste my time or my breath calling the government agencies again this year regarding the 2012 premiums, as it is a frustrating experience.

My related articles from 2010:

1) The New Medicare Handbook Does Not Disclose 2011 Premium Cost, 10/31/2010, The 2011 Medicare Handbook has been sent to seniors. There is one glaring omission. The Part B premium cost is a secret for enrollees of all income brackets. Will seniors receive an increase in premium cost for 2011? I'm stumped - how about you?

2) Medicare Part B Premium: Per the Dept. Of HHS - There May, or May Not, Be an Increase, 11/1/2010, What I learned today after 45 minutes on the telephone to Social Security: "The Department of Health and Human Services has not yet announced if there will be any Medicare premium changes for 2011." Guess they're keeping it a secret for now! My report.

3) 2011 Medicare Rates Announced for Part B and Part D Coverage, 11/13/2010, The Medicare rates for 2011 have been announced with changes taking place for certain enrollees based on date of enrollment, and income. Rate changes, and my thoughts on government transparency.

I did get an answer of sorts on the Medicare website

I visited www.medicare.gov before writing this article. While searching in the FAQ section with the search term "premium 2012" I found this statement: "Note: 2012 Medicare premiums and coinsurance rates will be announced later this year." Uh, why couldn't that have been printed in the handbooks?

While I was on the Medicare website, I noted that there is contact information for those who might wish to contact the Department of HHS or Secretary Sebilius:

Mailing Address and Telephone Number

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201
Toll Free: 1-877-696-6775

Sources:
Personal opinion of the writer
Medicare & You 2012 Handbook, which is the official U.S. government Medicare Handbook;
www.medicare.gov