Council Bluffs retiree's Medicare supplemental premium jumps to $726 this year

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (KMTV) — Retired Council Bluffs schoolteacher Geri Frederiksen says her Medicare supplemental plan has gone up a little bit every year, but this year's rate hike was shocking. Her plan went up by nearly $300.

"In 2019 It was $210 a month," she said.

Frederiksen taught English, but she's been doing a lot of math.

"It was $469 (last year) and that was the largest bill that I had, but I was doing okay. I was able to do that," Frederiksen said.

Then the statement for this year came.

"When it says the new premium will be $726.03, I thought that had to be a mistake," Frederiksen said.

It wasn't. Her Medicare supplemental insurance, which covers the 20% co-insurance not covered by original Medicare, is now more than $8,000 a year.

Katrina Markel: "And how is that going trying to keep up with your budget?"
Frederiksen: "Not well. Not well. I have to do something. I'm trying to cut back on things."

Her experience reflects a broader trend. According to Kaiser Family Foundation news, supplemental plans increased — on average — 20% between 2020 and 2025. But some increased as much as 36 percent.

Aubury Krueger-Kutchara is the director of community engagement at Connections, the Area Agency on Aging in Pottawattamie County.

"It appears as if a lot of insurance premiums are raising quite significantly," Krueger-Kutchara said.

The rising costs have consequences.

"Then it might make it difficult to actually be able to buy their medication. Once they get their medications are they going to have money for their rent, are they going to have money for food?" Krueger-Kutchara said.

Frederiksen, though, is stuck. She has pre-existing conditions and can't get other plans.

"When you retire, you think that everything is going to be okay and you're careful, too, in what you do spend that then this happens, it just seems so unfair," Frederiksen said.

It's currently open enrollment for Medicare, and Krueger-Kutchara suggests reviewing plans carefully. Neighbors can meet with a SHIIP counselor — someone trained by the state to guide them through the insurance process.

Iowa SHIIP | shiip.iowa.gov

Nebraska SHIP | doi.nebraska.gov/consumer/nebraska-ship-smp

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