If your income has gone down because you or your spouse retired, stopped working or reduced your work hours, or your insured pension plan stopped or went down, and the change will make a difference in the income level the Social Security Administration considers, contact Social Security as soon as possible. Tell Social Security you have new information and want a new decision about your Income-Related Part B premium. You will need to show evidence of the event and provide proof or an estimate of your reduced income. Evidence of the event could be a letter from your employer about your retirement or something similar. Proof of the change in your income in 2006 could be a copy of your return for tax year 2006 or an estimate if you have not yet filed your 2006 taxes. If your income will not change until 2007, you can give Social Security an estimate of what you think your income will be.

To report the change, you can use Form SSA-44, Medicare Part B Income-Related Premium - Life-Changing Event.

For more information, see Social Security's publication, Medicare Part B Premiums: New Rules For Beneficiaries With Higher Incomes 2006, call toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) or visit your local Social Security office.

To learn more about Medicare Part B coverage, visit www.medicare.gov.