Trump Is About to Send Seniors’ Drug Costs Surging

The Trump administration is planning to scrap Medicare subsidies, which could leave seniors facing higher rates for their prescription coverage next year.

After 2026, the government will stop providing billions in subsidies to insurance companies that keep premiums low for Medicare prescription plans, known as Part D, Trump administration officials told The Wall Street Journal Tuesday.

Roughly 25 million people have Part D plans, and the average monthly payment was roughly $36 in 2026. Medicare recipients will learn of their new rates in the fall, right around the midterm elections, in which affordability is sure to be a key issue.

A Trump administration official told the Journal that 25 percent of Medicare enrollees would see their premiums stay the same, 30 percent would see an increase of less than $10 to their monthly bill, and 45 percent would see a monthly increase of between $11 and $20.

Note: The Trump administration has already overseen a price increase for some 700 prescription drugs covered by Part D plans.

The administration official claimed that the subsidies had encouraged insurers to raise rates, and that there would be other means of keeping premiums low. If not, there were other affordable options, the official said.

But Americans are already struggling under the weight of rising prices. Health insurance premiums have drastically outpaced the growth of employee paychecks, a strain that is only compounded by the growing cost of groceries, climbing utility bills, and elevated oil and gas prices.

Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed he would not cut Medicare funding, though his One Big Beautiful Bill is set to reduce the program’s funding by an estimated $500 billion over the next eight years. Earlier this year, the president admitted he believed it was “not possible” to keep paying for Medicare, although the White House removed a recording of those remarks after posting them. ...