I noticed in ver 2.37.0 that the Medicare Part B premium for 2018 has been increased by the inflation rate I've used in assumptions. Could you please explain the logic for this? It seems to me that it should not be increased at least for 2018 by inflation.
Thanks
James

Dan, I just ran version 2.35.0 and sorry but I found that the Medicare Part B premiums are not correct.
In 2015 our joint gross income - on which the 2017 premium is based - was less than $170,000. Since we've been collecting SS benefits for many years, our premium increase is limited to the amount of COLA we receive. In our case that's a joint premium of $222/month. ESPlanner is calculating $262.58/month for 2017 and then it increases to $267.92/month in future years.
Thanks
James Mavrogenis

In my PDF report under Total Spending, the amount for Medicare Part B is $1,292. Since I have not yet filed for Social Security, I pay $134/month for Part B, so shouldn't the yearly total be $1,608? (I have ESPlanner Plus, version 2.34.1.) Thanks.

My wife's retirement pension also includes re-reimbursement of Medicare part B premiums.

Am I correct in indicating the we will never enroll under the Social Security tab?

I have two questions:

1. My reports show small amounts of FICA taxes paid for both spouses starting at ages 72 and 71 and continuing until death. We won't have any wage income, so what does this mean?

2. I am in the fortunate group that will pay a higher Part B premium after starting SS at age 70 due to exceeding the income threshold for the minimum premium. Possibly related to Question 1, the total spending shows a jump in Part B premium in the year when we attain ages 73 and 72, but I would have expected the jump earlier. Is this a bug?

Thanks,
Paul G

Thanks for the great improvements to ESPlanner!
I've notice what I think are two errors.
• In ESP ver 2.33 the medicare premium when my spouse dies, 3 years before me, should be 50% of our joint premium but it is not. It's only reduced by 30% expect the last year of my life when it drops to 1/2.
• I also noticed that for 2016 the premium is $127 higher than the actual $104.90 premium/person/month. How was this calculated? it increases in 2017 and beyond to $121.79/person/month
Thanks
James Mavrogenis

My wife and I are eligible for post-retirement medical benefits arising from her employment. Once we are both on Medicare (at age 65), all of our Part B and other medical insurance premiums will be covered by the (then) former employer's plan.
ESPlanner automatically calculates the Part B premiums, which is a great feature, especially given that the premiums can increase based on income.
My question is how should I account for the Part B premiums being paid for by the retirement plan?

I am 65 and currently covered under my employer’s high deductible health care plan. The company has more than 20 employees. I plan to continue working and begin accepting Social Security spousal benefits at 66. Am I required to enroll in Medicare Part A if I accept spousal benefits?

In this topic on stock options, distinction was made between wages and taxable special income, with respect to the FICA Medicare part A tax. That brought a question to mind. I didn't want to hijack the thread, so I opened this new one.

To get (what I think is) correct tax treatment of payroll deductions, I record my earnings as gross, enter the payroll deductions as excludable special expenses and, in the case of flexible spending account deductions, record those deductions again as non-taxable special income.