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Page 14 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2023 ly amount, ostensibly for meals, lodging and other expenses incurred in the course of their jobs, which can be deducted for every By Bob Katzen How to Appeal Medicare Surcharges When Your Income Changes Dear Savvy Senior, Is there anything I can do to reduce my high Medicare premium surcharges? Because of my past income, I pay $329.70 per month for my Part B premium and $64.50/ month for Part D, but my income has dropped since I retired. Do I have any options? Overcharged Andy Dear Andy, If you’re getting hit with a higher premium for Medicare Part B and Part D and you think it’s unjustifi ed, you can ask Social Security to revisit its decision and perhaps reduce your cost. Here’s what you should know. Medicare Surcharges Many retirees don’t realize that monthly premiums for Medicare Part B (coverage for doctor’s services and outpatient care) and Part D (prescription drug coverage) are based on your modifi ed adjusted gross income from two years earlier. So, to determine your 2023 Medicare premium, Social Security uses your 2021 tax return. In those two years, however, your life can change in ways your 2021 tax return and current Medicare premium don’t refl ect. Sometimes, those changes are enough to convince Social Security that your Medicare premium should be reduced. Part B’s standard monthly premium in 2023 is $164.90 for individuals earning $97,000 or less; it’s $194,000 or less for joint fi lers. Anyone whose income exceeds those thresholds pays a higher premium, also known as an Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA), or surcharge. The higher monthly premiums rise steadily from $230.80 to $560.50 through fi ve income tiers. The same tiers apply to IRMAAs for Medicare Part D, with enrollees paying an extra $12.20 to $76.40 per month depending on their income. About 7 percent, or 4.4 million higher-income Medicare benefi ciaries pay a surcharge on their monthly Part B and/or Part D premiums. Reasons for Appealing In certain situations, Social Security will recalculate your premiums – known as a redetermination – for Part B and Part D, particularly if the agency based the cost on a tax return that was later amended. Otherwise, there are seven life-changing events that qualify for a redetermination if they hurt your income: marriage, death of a spouse, divorce or annulment, reduced work hours or retirement, involuntary loss of income-producing property, the loss or reduction of some types of pension income, and an employer settlement payment because the company went bankrupt or reorganized. How to File a Claim To ask Social Security for a redetermination, you’ll need to complete Form SSA-44 (SSA. gov/forms/ssa-44-ext.pdf) and include supporting documents, such as the death certificate for a spouse or a letter from a former employer stating that you’re now retired. If you fi led your federal income tax return for the year that your income was reduced, you will also need to provide a signed copy. A decision usually takes a few weeks, but if you had one of the events that Social Security considers life-changing, you should win the appeal. In that case, Social Security will reimburse you for the additional premiums by adding it to your benefi t one month. If you are on Medicare but haven’t started collecting Social Security, you should see a credit on a future invoice. If your request for a redetermination is denied, there are three additional levels of appeals you could try: to the Offi ce of Medicare Hearings and Appeals, to the Medicare Appeals Council and fi nally to the federal district court where you live. For more information on the premium rules for high-income beneficiaries see SSA. gov/benefits/medicare/medicare-premiums.html. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. If you have any questions about this week’s report, e-mail us at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com or call us at (617) 720-1562 GET A FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO MASSTERLIST – Join more than 25,000 people, from movers and shakers to political junkies and interested citizens, who start their weekday morning with MASSterList—the popular newsletter that chronicles news and informed analysis about what’s going on up on Beacon Hill, in Massachusetts politics, policy, media and infl uence. The stories are drawn from major news organizations as well as specialized publications selected by MASSterlist’s new editor, Erin Tiernan, with help from Matt Murphy. Both are pros, with a wealth of experience, who introduce each article in their own clever way. MASSterlist will be e-mailed to you FREE every Monday through Friday morning and will give you a leg up on what’s happening in the blood sport of Bay State politics. For more information and to get your free subscription, go to: https://lp.constantcontactpages. com/su/aPTLucK THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House and Senate last week. This week, Beacon Hill Roll Call examines the salaries and other benefi ts received by local state senators. $73,655 BASE SALARY FOR ALL 40 SENATORS – The new base salary for the 2023-2024 session for senators is $73,655—up $3,119 (4.4 percent) from the $70,536 base salary in the 2021-2022 session. Senators’ salaries are up for adjustment in January every two years, either up or down, under a 1998 constitutional amendment approved by a better than two-toone margin by voters. It requires that every two years the salaries of the governor, the other five constitutional statewide offi cers and all representatives and senators be increased or decreased based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) that measures the quarterly change in salaries and wages. Senators’ base salaries were increased by $2,515 for the 20212022 legislative session; $3,709 for the 2019-2020 session; and $2,515 for the 2017-2018 legislative session. Those hikes came on the heels of a salary freeze for the 2015-2016 legislative session, a $1,100 pay cut for the 2013-2014 session and a $306 pay cut for the 2011-2012 session. Prior to 2011, legislators’ salaries had been raised every two years since the $46,410 base pay was fi rst raised under the constitutional amendment in 2001. The new $73,655 base salary means senators’ base salaries have been raised $27,245, or 58 percent, since 2011 when the mandated salary adjustment became part of the state constitution and senators were earning $46,410. EXTRA PAY FOR ALL 40 SENATORS – All 40 senators receive an additional stipend, above the $73,655 base salary, for their positions in the Democratic and Republican leadership, as committee chairs, vice chairs and the ranking Republican on some committees. The stipend is increased or decreased every two years based on data from the BEA that measures the quarterly change in salaries and wages. Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland), the top Democrat, earns the highest stipend of any senator: $109,163. Senate Minority Leader Sen. Bruce Tarr (RGloucester), the top Republican, earns an $81,872 stipend. The other 38 senators’ stipends range from $27,564 to $102,430. Supporters say legislators in these important positions should be appropriately compensated for their many added responsibilities and hard work. Critics say the base salary is suffi cient and is eligible to be increased every two years. $20,468 OR $27,291 FOR GENERAL EXPENSES – Each senator also receives an annual general expense pay allowance of $20,468 for members who live within a 50-mile radius of the Statehouse and $27,291 for those who are located outside of that radius. This separate, fl at rate expense allowance is taxable as income. It is designed to pay for some of the costs of senators’ district offi ces and other expenses including contributions to local civic groups and the printing and mailing of newsletters. Senators are not required to submit an accounting of how they spend the money. But they are allowed to deduct any expenses, permitted under federal law, from their gross income on their federal and state tax return. SOME SENATORS WHO LIVE 50 MILES FROM THE STATEHOUSE ARE ELIGIBLE TO PAY A REDUCED OR NO FEDERAL INCOME TAX ON THEIR LEGISLATIVE SALARY – Senators who live more than 50 miles from the Statehouse are eligible for a special federal tax break. A 1981 federal law allows them to write off a daily expense allowance when filing their federal income tax return. The complicated system determines a dai“legislative day.” Under the Massachusetts Legislature’s system and schedule, every day of the year qualifies as a legislative day. The Legislature does not formally “prorogue” (end an annual session) until the next annual session begins. This allows legislators to take the deduction for all 365 days regardless of whether the Legislature is actually meeting or not. Legislators do not even have to travel to the Statehouse to qualify for the daily deduction. The amount of the deduction is based on the federal per diem for Massachusetts. It varies from year to year. The daily per diem for legislators for fi scal year 2023 varies in diff erent parts of the state and is seasonal. It ranges from $98 per day to $459 per day or between $35,770 and $167,535 annually. Beacon Hill Roll Call’s research indicates that 11 of the state’s 40 legislators live more than 50 miles from the Statehouse, qualify for this deduction and are eligible to pay a reduced or no federal income tax on their legislative salaries. PARKING SPACE – Senators are entitled to a parking space inside the Statehouse garage or at the nearby McCormack State Offi ce Building. The fi rst $300 in monthly value of the space is a tax-free benefi t under federal and state guidelines that apply to all public and private employees, not just state senators. Any value of the space above this amount is treated as taxable income. The value of the parking spaces in 2023 was determined by the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance to be $449 per month. Based on that fi gure, legislators would be taxed on the excess $149 monthly by the Internal Revenue Service and the state. HEALTH INSURANCE – Senators are eligible to choose from nine health insurance plans offered by the state’s Group Insurance Commission, which manages the plans for over 137,000 individuals—current and retired state workers, as well as certain municipal workers, and their dependents. Senators elected on or before July 1, 2003, pay 20 percent of the total premium and the state pays 80 percent. Those elected to their fi rst term on or after July 1, 2003 pay 25 percent while the state picks up only 75 percent. State and federal privacy regulations protect this information and it is not possible to obtain records about which plans individual legislators have purchased. The out-of-pocket monthly premiums paid by senators for family plans range from $311.02 to BEACON | SEE Page 16

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