How do I pay my monthly Medicare Part B premium?

It depends on whether you are receiving any benefit payments from the government. As a reminder, Medicare Part B provides out-patient care and doctor visit coverage and most people will pay a monthly Part B premium of $185 (2025) for the coverage. The Part B premium can change year-to-year - and your state Medicaid office may provide assistance paying your Part B premium when you qualify for a Medicare Savings Program.

Automatic Part B premium payment deductions

First, if you receive:

Social Security benefits,
Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) benefits, or
Civil Service benefits,

then your Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance) premium will get automatically deducted from your benefit payment (for instance, from your Social Security check).

Direct Billing as compared to Automatic Part B premium payment.

If you do not receive Social Security, RRB, or Civil Service benefit payments - and you sign up for Medicare Part B, Medicare will send you a bill for your coverage - this is called a “Medicare Premium Bill” (and is designated as form CMS-500). Please note, if you buy Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) coverage or you owe the Medicare Part D income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA), you will also receive a monthly bill for your premium (or additional IRMAA payment).

Medicare provides four ways to pay these monthly bills (as outlined in the Medicare & You Handbook):

1. Pay online by credit card, debit card, savings or checking account. To do this, log into (or create) your secure Medicare account at Medicare.gov. Paying online is a faster and more secure way to make your payment without sending your personal information in the mail. You’ll get a confirmation number when you make your payment [and you should record or save this confirmation number for future reference].

2. Pay directly from your savings or checking account through your bank's online bill payment service. Contact your bank or go to their website to set up this service [and ask about any associated fees for online payment]. Your bank will need the following information:

• Your Medicare number: It’s important that you use the exact number on your red, white, and blue Medicare card, but without the dashes.
• Payee name: CMS Medicare Insurance
• Payee address:
    Medicare Premium Collection Center
    PO Box 790355
    St. Louis, MO 63179-0355

3. You can sign up for Medicare Easy Pay. Medicare Easy Pay is a free service that automatically deducts your premium payments from your savings or checking account each month. Visit Medicare.gov/medicare-easy-pay, or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) (TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048) to find out how to sign up. [CMS previously noted: Medicare will deduct your premium from your bank account, usually on the 20th of the month.]

4. Mail your payment to Medicare. You can pay by check, money order, credit card, or debit card. Write your Medicare number on your payment, and fill out your payment coupon. Mail your payment and coupon to:

Medicare Premium Collection Center
P.O. Box 790355
St. Louis, MO 63179-0355

A note on paying by credit card. Complete the bottom portion of the payment coupon on your Medicare bill, and sign it. You will need to provide the account information as it appears on your card and the expiration date. Most credit cards today only have the month and year in expiration date field. If your credit card only has a month and year in the expiration date, fill in the month and year on the payment coupon and leave the day field blank. You can then mail your payment to the Medicare Premium Collection Center address above.

If you get a monthly premium bill from the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB):

You can mail your monthly premium payments to:

RRB, Medicare Premium Payments
P.O. Box 979024
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000

(CMS Note: If you have questions about bills you get from the RRB, call 1-877-772-5772.
TTY users can call 1-312-751-4701.)

If you are a federal retiree (Civil Service retiree) with an annuity from the Office of Personnel
Management (OPM) and NOT entitled to Social Security (or RRB benefits):

You may have your monthly Part B premiums deducted from your (Civil Service) annuity. To make this request, call a Medicare representative at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) (TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048) (previously CMS asked that you send an email to OPMMailbox@cms.hhs.gov).

If you have limited income and financial resources:

Your state may help you pay for Medicare Part A, and/or Medicare Part B. You may also qualify for Extra Help to pay for your Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage.

Sources include:
https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/pay-premiums

And from the Social Security Administration's online handbook:

Section 127.5 How are Medicare premiums paid?

Medicare Part B premiums must be deducted from Social Security benefits if the monthly benefit covers the deduction. If the monthly benefit does not cover the full deduction, the beneficiary is billed. Beneficiaries may elect deduction of Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage) from their Social Security benefit. Some Medicare Advantage plans include a reduction in the Part B premium [Part B Give-back plans]. Social Security takes that reduction into account, as soon as we are notified of the reduction by [the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,], CMS. Beneficiaries may also elect deduction of their prescription drug plan premium from their Social Security benefit.

For more information about Medicare premiums, go to Medicare & You 2011 at: www.medicare.gov/publications/pubs/pdf/10050.pdf [updated link: https://www.medicare.gov/publications/10050-Medicare-and-You.pdf ]
(https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.01/handbook-0127.html - 06/08/2024)