Medicare open enrollment is here: Key updates beneficiaries should watch for in 2027

(NewsNation) — Medicare open enrollment is now underway, giving beneficiaries a chance to adjust their health and prescription drug coverage for the coming year. The enrollment window runs through Dec. 7.

What will change in 2027?

Several Medicare updates are scheduled to take effect next year, including newly negotiated drug prices, lower costs for weight-loss medications and higher deductibles and out-of-pocket limits.

Under Medicare Part D prescription coverage, the annual out-of-pocket cap is set to rise to $2,400 in 2027, compared with $2,100 in 2026.

The standard Part D deductible is also expected to increase to $700, up from $615 in 2026.

In addition, new negotiated prices for 15 more drugs are due to begin next year. Those include some GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic, Rybelsus and Wegovy.

Other medications affected include Ellipta, Xtandi, Pomalyst, Ibrance, Ofev, Trelegy, Linzess, Calquence, Austedo and Austedo XR, Breo Ellipta, Tradjenta, Xifaxan, Vraylar, Janumet and Janumet XR, and Otezla, according to Newsweek.

The Medicare Part B premium is projected to climb to $209.50 a month from $202.90 in 2026, based on the Medicare Trustees Report. The annual Part B deductible is also projected to rise from $283 to about $292.

Other changes affecting seniors

Retirees are set to receive their largest Social Security cost-of-living adjustment in four years, though higher Medicare Part B premiums could reduce part of that boost.

The 3.6% COLA will raise the average Social Security retirement benefit by $75 a month, or about $900 over a year.

After that increase, the average monthly benefit for retired workers is expected to reach $2,170 in January 2027, according to the Social Security Administration.

That figure is only an average. Workers who qualify for the maximum benefit and claim it at full retirement age can receive as much as $4,188 per month.

If the trustees' projection holds, the standard Part B premium would increase by 3.25% from $202.90 a month in 2026 to $209.50 in 2027, a smaller jump than the nearly 10% increase seen this year.