Minnesota retiree, 71, is getting Social Security's biggest raise in 4 years. But a prescription she takes is about to jump from $11 to $200 a month

Lorrie Ufkin, 71, told The Associated Press that the COLA increase “doesn’t even meet what they’re going to do for changes to Medicare.”

A temporary Medicare Part D subsidy program helped Americans like Ufkin offset their premiums over the past two years. But the Trump administration is ending that program early, wrapping it up by the end of the year.

For Ufkin, that’s “catastrophic.” Both she and her husband rely on a prescription that will jump from $11 per month to $200 per month. Combined, their monthly out-of-pocket costs will surge from $22 to $400 — completely swallowing their COLA increase.

Along with the rising cost of living — everything from gas to groceries to utilities — upcoming healthcare adjustments could deliver a serious blow to your bottom line.

Upcoming changes to Part D premiums

Open enrollment for Medicare has already begun and runs until Dec. 7. During this window, you can review and update your health and prescription drug coverage. Changes will go into effect Jan. 1, 2027.

You can enroll in a standalone prescription drug plan (PDP) through Medicare Part D to supplement your traditional Medicare or Medicare Advantage plan. Private insurance companies provide Part D plans with federal approval.

But a few major policy shifts could impact your choices for 2027:

• Ending subsidies: The federal Part D premium subsidies are expiring.
• Higher out-of-pocket caps: Prices are going to be higher for Medicare Part D drugs, increasing from $2,100 in 2026 to $2,400 in 2027
• Higher deductibles: The standard deductible is increasing from $615 to $700.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) says the average standalone Part D premiums will rise by less than $1 per month in 2027. The agency also estimates average Medicare Advantage premiums will fall more than 16%, while overall prescription drug premiums will drop 38%.

In part, that could be attributed to Medicare-negotiated prices for 15 drugs, which include weight-loss and diabetes medications.

But an independent analysis of CMS data by KFF, a nonprofit healthcare research organization, uncovered a more complicated issue. While many enrollees will see only modest premium changes, others face “substantially higher premiums” if they don’t switch plans. Enrollees also face a declining selection of standalone Plan D options.

Juliette Cubanski, deputy director of KFF’s Medicare policy program, wrote on X that raw CMS data fails to deliver.

“The data released today don’t tell us anything about plan changes underneath the hood to control costs,” she wrote. “Are plans dropping drugs from formularies, increasing copays, moving to coinsurance, etc. These features affect patient cost and access as much as (if not more than) premiums.”

Those changes to the fine print can “affect patient cost and access as much as (if not more than) premiums,” she added.