How Do I Get Money Back on My Medicare Part B Premium?
Answered by Anthony Orner, Licensed Medicare Insurance Broker — NJ & 34 states
Three routes, and only one of them is the give-back you have seen advertised. A Medicare Savings Program — QMB, SLMB or QI — pays the Part B premium outright if your income and assets are under the limits, and it is the only route that can zero it out. An SSA-44 appeal reprices the premium on current income if you are paying an income surcharge after retiring or losing a spouse. The third is a Medicare Advantage give-back plan, which reduces the premium by a median of $46.00 a month but requires you to join that plan and drop any Medicare Supplement. Nothing about being a veteran, a retiree, or having a disability rating reduces the $202.90 premium on its own.
Route One: A Savings Program
This is the one that pays the whole premium. QMB, SLMB and QI are state-run, income-tested, and badly underused. QMB also covers deductibles and coinsurance, and it bars providers from billing you for Medicare cost sharing.
Approval usually brings Extra Help for drug costs with it. See the 2026 income and asset limits.
Route Two: An Income Appeal
Paying more than $202.90? Then you are being billed an income surcharge, priced on a tax return two years old. Form SSA-44 asks Social Security to use current income after a life change such as retirement, a death, or a lost pension.
This does not put you below the standard premium. It removes the extra. How the appeal works.
Route Three: A Give-Back Plan
1522 Medicare Advantage plans reduce the premium for 2026. The median is $46.00 a month and the largest anywhere is $185.00. None reach the full $202.90.
The cost is the plan itself: a network, prior authorization, and no Medigap alongside it. Here is what the filings show, state by state.
What Does Not Work
Switching Medigap carriers, dropping Part D, moving states, or asking Social Security nicely. The premium is set nationally. Veterans, retirees and people with a disability rating all pay the same standard amount.
See what your total Medicare cost would actually be
Related
Required Disclosure
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent multiple organizations which offer products in your area. You can always contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day / 7 days a week, or your local State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for help with plan choices.
EasyKind Medicare is an independent brokerage licensed in NJ and 34 states. Not affiliated with Medicare or any government agency. Last updated: September 2026.