Medicare Part B Penalty Calculator for Colorado
Medicare adds 10% of the standard Part B premium for every full 12 months you could have had Part B but did not sign up. Enter how many months you went without it and see the 2026 cost per month, per year and over ten years.
Estimates only. Figures on this page use published values and the details you enter. They are not a quote, an offer of coverage, or a determination of eligibility. Your premium and drug costs are confirmed by the plan you choose, and Medicare figures change each January. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing you type is sent to us or anyone else.
How the Part B late penalty is calculated
The surcharge is a percentage of the standard premium, not of your own bill, and it climbs in whole steps. Medicare.gov puts it at an extra 10% for each full 12 months you could have had Part B but did not sign up.
Two inputs decide the result: the count of complete years and that year’s standard premium. Social Security computes the count when you enroll and prints the surcharge on your premium notice; this page lets you check it before you sign.
- Count the uncovered months after your Initial Enrollment Period closed, skipping any months protected by a Special Enrollment Period, such as group coverage from current work.
- Divide by 12 and drop the remainder. Only whole 12-month periods count: 23 months is one period, 24 is two.
- Multiply the periods by 10% for the penalty percentage.
- Apply it to the standard premium, $202.90 a month in 2026 per the CMS fact sheet, rounded to the nearest ten cents.
- Recalculate every January. Your percentage is fixed, while the dollar figure follows each new standard premium.
Periods = whole number of (months late ÷ 12)Penalty % = periods × 10%Monthly penalty = $202.90 × penalty %Your Part B premium = standard premium + penalty (+ IRMAA if it applies) Worked example: a Thornton retiree who relied on retiree coverage
Hypothetical person, not a client. Gail, from Thornton, reached 65 while covered by a former employer’s retiree plan. Retiree coverage is not based on current work, so it gave her no Special Enrollment Period. She finally takes Part B 29 months after her Initial Enrollment Period ended.
29 ÷ 12 is 2.42, so two full periods count and her penalty is 20%. $202.90 × 0.20 = $40.60 a month, making her Part B premium $243.50 rather than $202.90.
That is $487.20 a year. Held at 2026 prices for a decade, it adds $4,872, and since the 20% rides on each year’s standard premium, any increase lifts it too.
Boundaries matter. At 36 months a third period would kick in: 30%, or $60.90 a month. At 23 months she would have paid 10%. A single month either side of a 12-month line changes the bill for life.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Months late | 29 |
| Full 12-month periods | 2 |
| Penalty | 20% of the standard premium |
| Monthly surcharge | $40.60 |
| Part B premium with penalty | $243.50 |
| Ten years at 2026 prices | $4,872 |
Part B penalty traps
- Assuming any insurance protects you. Only group coverage from current employment, yours or a spouse’s, stops the clock. COBRA, retiree plans and individual policies do not.
- Missing the eight-month deadline. Once the job or the job coverage ends, whichever is first, you have 8 months to enroll without a penalty (Medicare.gov). Electing COBRA does not stretch that.
- Expecting the penalty to expire. For most people it stays as long as they have Part B.
- Thinking a few extra months are harmless. Someone at 11 or 23 months late is one month from a new 10% step. Outside a Special Enrollment Period, though, enrollment only happens January 1 to March 31.
- Not asking about programs that waive it. Medicare.gov says you generally will not pay the Part B penalty if you enroll in a Medicare Savings Program.
If the penalty strains a Colorado budget
Colorado runs its Medicare Savings Programs through Health First Colorado, and you apply through your county Department of Human Services, as the HCPF Medicare Savings Programs page explains. QMB pays Part B premiums plus deductibles and coinsurance. SLMB and QI pay the Part B premium only.
For 2026, Medicare.gov lists monthly income limits of $1,350 for one person and $1,824 for a couple under QMB, rising to $1,816 and $2,455 under QI, with resources up to $9,950 and $14,910. States apply their own rules, so check Colorado’s figures with HCPF before ruling yourself out.
Medicare.gov adds that people in these programs also get Extra Help paying for prescriptions, which removes the separate Part D penalty as well.
For a second look at your own situation, I review your options at no cost and with no obligation at (303) 887-8584, and Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE can confirm the details of your Medicare record. I can also help you work out whether a Special Enrollment Period should have protected you.
Key terms: Part B penalty calculator
- Standard premium
- The base monthly Part B price CMS sets each year. Most enrollees pay exactly this, and the penalty is a percentage of it.
- Late enrollment penalty
- A lasting percentage surcharge added for each full year you could have had Part B but went without.
- Group coverage from current employment
- Insurance through an active job, yours or your spouse’s. It is the kind that lets you postpone Part B safely.
- Medicare Savings Program
- State help, delivered through Health First Colorado here, that can pay Part B premiums for people with limited income and resources.
- IRMAA
- An income-related amount added to Part B for higher earners. It stacks on top of any late penalty.
Paperwork that settles a Part B penalty question
- Letters showing exactly when your employer coverage began and ended.
- The employment verification form Social Security asks an employer to complete when you use a Special Enrollment Period.
- Your Initial Enrollment Period dates; the enrollment date calculator shows them.
- Any premium notice from Social Security that lists a surcharge.
What this assumes
- Uses the 2026 standard Part B premium of $202.90 a month, published by CMS.
- Only FULL 12-month periods count. Eleven months late adds nothing; twelve months adds 10%.
- Months covered by a job-based plan (yours or your spouse’s, from current work) usually do not count, thanks to a Special Enrollment Period.
- The penalty is generally added for as long as you have Part B, and it rises when the standard premium rises.
- People enrolled in a Medicare Savings Program generally do not pay the Part B penalty.
- An estimate from published figures and the numbers you enter, not a quote or an eligibility decision.
Where the figures come from
- CMS 2026 Medicare Part B premium, deductible and IRMAA amounts Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2026
- Medicare late enrollment penalty rules Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Medicare.gov), 2026
- Medicare.gov: when does Medicare coverage start Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Medicare.gov), 2026
- Medicare.gov: Medicare Savings Programs, 2026 income and resource limits Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Medicare.gov), 2026
- Colorado HCPF: Medicare Savings Programs (MSP) Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, 2026
What this penalty calculator cannot confirm
- Whether a past month was protected. Social Security decides, often with an employment form your employer completes.
- Future premiums. The 2027 standard premium is announced around November 2026, so later years appear at today’s price.
- IRMAA, which higher incomes pay on top; see the IRMAA calculator.
- Part A penalties. If you must buy Part A, a separate 10% penalty can apply for twice the number of years you were late.
Call me before enrolling if you are near a 12-month boundary, coming off COBRA or a retiree plan, or looking at a penalty notice you think is wrong. We can walk through the dates together.
Headwaters Health and Wealth is not connected with or endorsed by the United States government or the federal Medicare program. Medicare has neither endorsed nor reviewed this information.
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 10 organizations which offer 106 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.
Common questions
How much is the Medicare Part B late enrollment penalty?
10% of the standard Part B premium for each full 12 months you could have had Part B but did not sign up. In 2026 the standard premium is $202.90, so 24 months late means a 20% penalty and a premium of $243.50 a month.
Does the Part B penalty last forever?
In most cases you pay it for as long as you have Part B. Because it is a percentage of the standard premium, it also rises when the premium rises.
Can I avoid the Part B penalty if I had insurance through work?
Usually, yes. Months covered by a group health plan based on current employment (yours or your spouse’s) generally do not count, and you get a Special Enrollment Period to sign up when that coverage or job ends. COBRA and retiree coverage do not count as current employment.
Is there help if I cannot afford the Part B penalty?
People who qualify for a Medicare Savings Program generally do not pay the Part B late enrollment penalty. I can help you check at no cost and with no obligation at (303) 887-8584, and Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE can confirm your Part B record.
Take the stress out of Medicare.
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992 South Fourth Avenue, Brighton, CO 80601 · (303) 887-8584
Content reviewed by Lisa Asmussen, Medicare Broker and Licensed Insurance Agent at Headwaters Health and Wealth in Brighton, Colorado, certified to sell Medicare plans since 2018 (8 years). How we source and review our content. Last updated .