The Trump administration is planning to end the subsidies that have helped keep Medicare Part D premiums down, a move that could leave millions of seniors paying more for prescription coverage next year. After 2026, the government will stop sending billions in subsidies to insurance companies that use the money to hold down monthly costs.
That matters now because Medicare recipients are due to learn their new rates in the fall, close to the midterm elections. Roughly 25 million people have Part D plans, and the average monthly payment was about $36 in 2026, so even small changes will be felt quickly by households watching every dollar.
A Trump administration official said 25 percent of Medicare enrollees would see their premiums stay the same. Another 30 percent would face an increase of less than $10 a month, while 45 percent would see a monthly rise of between $11 and $20. Those figures suggest the biggest hit may fall on people whose plans already sit near the edge of affordability, while the lightest increase would still leave many paying more than they do now.
Part D is the Medicare prescription drug coverage program, and the administration has already overseen higher prices for some 700 prescription drugs covered by those plans. The new move comes as Donald Trump has repeatedly said he would not cut Medicare funding, even as One Big Beautiful Bill is set to reduce Medicare funding by an estimated $500 billion over the next eight years. Earlier this year, Trump said he believed it was not possible to keep paying for Medicare.
The unanswered question is not whether premiums will move, but what the White House plans to use instead to keep them low once the subsidies disappear. For now, the clearest reading is that the savings will not be replaced dollar for dollar, and many Medicare enrollees will discover that in the fall when their new rates arrive right in the middle of election season.
