# How much will health care cost in retirement?

Canonical: https://theretirementdecisionlab.com/answers/how-much-will-health-care-cost-in-retirement/
Section: Can you afford to retire? (Retirement Decision Lab, Decision 1 · Week 1 · Wed Nov 4)
Facts checked: 2026-10-06 · Next review by: 2027-01-15
Reviewed by: Todd Allyn, Founding Director, Sovereo Intelligence Research

## Short answer

Fidelity's 2026 estimate is $185,500 in after-tax savings for one 65-year-old on original Medicare, before long-term care. The 2026 Medicare Part B premium alone is $202.90 a month, with a $283 annual deductible.

## Detail

Fidelity's 2026 Retiree Health Care Cost Estimate says a 65-year-old individual may need $185,500 in after-tax savings to cover health care in retirement. It counts Part B premiums, Part A and B deductibles and coinsurance, Part D premiums and drug costs, and some services original Medicare does not cover. It assumes a single person retiring at 65 in 2025, eligible for original Medicare, with no employer retiree coverage.

The fixed pieces are public. In 2026 the standard Part B premium is $202.90 a month, up from $185.00 in 2025. The Part B deductible is $283, and the Part A hospital deductible is $1,736 per benefit period.

Worked example: a married couple both on Part B pays $202.90 x 12 x 2 = $4,869.60 a year in Part B premiums alone, before drug coverage, supplemental coverage, deductibles and dental. If each spouse matched Fidelity's estimate, the pair would need about $371,000 over retirement.

Real spending data points the same way. Households headed by someone 65 or older spent an average of $7,799 on health care in 2024, according to the BLS Consumer Expenditure Surveys.

What the headline number misses: it excludes long-term care, most dental and over-the-counter drugs. It is also an average. Your cost depends on your health, where you live, how long you live, and whether your income pushes you into higher Medicare premiums.

## Where it gets personal

In Week 1 you put Medicare premiums, out-of-pocket costs and any pre-65 coverage into your own spending plan as a separate line. The Retirement Decision Lab: https://theretirementdecisionlab.com/

## Sources

1. How to plan for rising health care costs, Fidelity Investments: https://www.fidelity.com/viewpoints/personal-finance/plan-for-rising-health-care-costs
2. 2026 Medicare Parts A & B Premiums and Deductibles, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2026-medicare-parts-b-premiums-deductibles
3. Expenditures: Healthcare by Age: Age 65 or over (CXUHEALTHLB0407M), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics via FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CXUHEALTHLB0407M

Education only. Not financial, tax, investment, immigration or legal advice.
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