CMS: 2021 Medicare Advantage premiums to hit lowest point since 2007

Medicare Advantage premiums are set to hit their lowest rate since 2007, the Trump administration announced Thursday.

Premiums are set to decline 11% in 2021 compared to plan year 2020, decreasing from $23.63 to an estimated $21 per month on average, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said.

Medicare Advantage premiums have decreased by an estimated 34.2% since 2017, CMS said.

"Historically low premiums, massive savings on insulin, and more supplemental benefits represent the welcome fruit of the creative, patient-oriented policies that this administration has made its calling card," said CMS Administrator Seema Verma. "Medicare beneficiaries will feel the difference—in their health as well as their pocketbook."

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CMS said it expects about 42% of Medicare beneficiaries to be enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans for 2021, for about 26 million people enrolled in the program. The agency said that amounts to a 44% increase in enrollment from 2017 levels.

Beginning next year, Medicare beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease can enroll in Medicare Advantage.

The number of Medicare Advantage plans available to beneficiaries is also steadily increasing, CMS said. More than 4,800 plans will be available for the 2021 plan year, an increase of 2,100, or 76.6%, from 2017.