How the “Hold Harmless” Provision Protects Your SS benefit
The “hold harmless” provision is a special consideration given to Social Security recipients which prevents their Social Security payment from going down as a result of an increase in the standard monthly Medicare premium. This special provision essentially rules that even if Medicare decides to raise the Part B premium for next year, you won’t pay that higher premium if it would mean that doing so would reduce your Social Security benefit. Instead, you would pay a less-than-standard Medicare premium, in order to keep your Social Security benefit amount the same. There are, however, some nuances to the Hold Harmless Provision, including that any COLA increase you may get can be used to offset some or all of the Medicare premium increase (which means you may not get the full amount of the COLA increase). And there are also a few cases where “hold harmless” doesn’t apply. All of this is explained in this article by the Social Security Administration’s Assistant Deputy Commissioner Darlynda Bogle. Click here to read more.
Also, if you’re unsure about how these basics apply to you, or if you have any questions about your individual situation under Social Security, note that the AMAC Foundation provides a free-to-the-public service to help Americans navigate the complexities of this program. Learn more about it here…