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Staff proposes 2026 Medicare retiree premiums; UMP premium may fall if CMS demonstration continues
Summary
Molly Christie presented proposed 2026 Medicare retiree premiums and drivers: pharmacy cost declines, IRA drug pricing and member retention. Staff proposed per-carrier premium resolutions to be voted July 10 and requested authority to lower the UMP with‑Part D premium immediately if CMS continues a payment-stabilization demonstration.
Molly Christie, fiscal analyst in finance services and health care purchasing administration, presented the proposed 2026 Medicare retiree premiums and enrollment trends. She said several plans are at the legislature's explicit subsidy cap ($183 or 50% of the bid rate, whichever is less) and that UMP's 2026 premium would have been nearly $680 per subscriber per month absent recent pharmacy cost improvements. "The biggest piece is the pharmacy cost," Christie said, noting pharmacy represented a much smaller share of the bid rate after the Part D transition and that IRA drug-price negotiations will reduce some high-cost brand prices in 2026.
Christie asked the board to adopt per-carrier Medicare premium resolutions at the July 10 meeting and described special language for the UMP classic with Part D resolution that would allow HCA to lower the 2026 premium if CMS continues its Medicare Part D premium-stabilization demonstration. Board members asked whether an emergency meeting would be necessary if the CMS demonstration announcement changed funding; staff said the proposed resolution language is intended to give HCA immediate authority to adjust rates operationally without reconvening the board. No votes were taken today; formal action is expected July 10.
