Shocker: A Medicare bill just passed the House with strong support from both Democrats and Republicans. Or maybe not so much: The bill isn’t part of the big health overhaul plans getting thrashed out this year. And it’s something likely to be widely popular among seniors, who do tend to vote in disproportionate numbers. But still. The bill would eliminate increases in Medicare Part B premiums scheduled to take effect next year for millions of senior citizens. Seniors typically now pay about $96 a month for the coverage, which pays for doctor visits and the like, according to NPR . Medicare premium hikes are standard, but they’re often offset for seniors by cost-of-living increases in Social Security checks.

Because inflation’s so low these days, there’s no cost-of-living increase coming for Social Security. Provisions in the labyrinthine Medicare rules mean that most seniors don’t have to pay higher Medicare premiums when there’s no increase in Social Security payments. But those provisions don’t cover about a quarter of beneficiaries, leaving 11 million seniors on the hook for premium hikes of up to $120 a month, Dow Jones Newswires reports . The premium cap would cost the government about $2.8 billion. Only 18 congressmen voted against the bill, and 406 voted to pass it. Now it heads to the Senate. Photo: Associated Press

View original here: 
House Votes to Block Medicare Premium Hikes Next Year