EHealth released its "Medicare Index Report for 2022 Coverage" on April 7 to track costs and trends based on plans that Medicare beneficiaries select themselves.
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based online private health insurance marketplace studied trends across five years. For 2022, eHealth examined average costs and plan choices among Medicare beneficiaries who selected Medicare Advantage and standalone Part D prescription plans at eHealth during the annual enrollment period for 2022, occurring between Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, 2021. More than 260,000 submitted applications were analyzed in total. Costs and trends for Medicare Supplement plans from the same time period are also included.
Key takeaways:
- Medicare Advantage and Part D premiums rise slightly:
- Average Medicare Advantage premium: $6 per month, up from $5 in 2021
- Average Part D plan premium: $22 per month, up from $20 in 2021.
- Medicare Advantage and Part D deductibles rise slightly:
- Medicare Advantage deductibles: $121 in 2022, up from $116 in 2021
- Part D plan deductibles: $427 in 2022, up from $400 in 2021
- Out-of-pocket limits decrease:
- Medicare Advantage average out-of-pocket limit: $5,108 in 2022, down from $5,367 in 2021
- Zero-dollar Medicare Advantage plans remain popular: 87 percent of members selecting Medicare Advantage products chose plans with a $0 monthly premium during the annual enrollment period.