(a) Terms relating to the Act and regulations. For the purposes of this subpart:

(1) Administrator means the Administrator of CMS in HHS.

(2) ALJ means administrative law judge.

(3) CMS means the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in HHS.

(4) Commissioner means the Commissioner of Social Security.

(5) HHS means the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA) and the Medicare Appeals Council (MAC)

(6) IRS means the Internal Revenue Service in the Department of the Treasury.

(7) MAC means the Medicare Appeals Council in HHS.

(8) Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage Plan means a Medicare prescription drug plan, a Medicare Advantage plan with prescription drug coverage, a Program for All-inclusive Care for the Elderly plan offering qualified prescription drug coverage, or a cost plan offering qualified prescription drug coverage.

(9) OMHA means the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals in HHS.

(10) Section means a section of the regulations in this part unless the context indicates otherwise.

(11) The Act means the Social Security Act, as amended.

(12) Title means a title of the Act.

(13) We, our, or us means the Social Security Administration (SSA).

(b) Miscellaneous. For the purposes of this subpart:

(1) Amended tax return means a Federal income tax return for which an individual or couple has filed an amended tax return that has been accepted by the IRS.

(2) Effective year means the calendar year for which we make an income-related monthly adjustment amount determination.

(3) Federal premium subsidy is the portion of the cost of providing Medicare prescription drug coverage that is paid by the Federal Government. The Federal Government pays this amount to Medicare Prescription Drug coverage Plans from payments made into the Medicare Prescription Drug Account in the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund.

(4) Income-related monthly adjustment amount is an additional amount of premium that you will pay for Medicare prescription drug coverage if you have modified adjusted gross income above the threshold described in 418.2105.

(5) Modified adjusted gross income is your adjusted gross income as defined by the Internal Revenue Code, plus the following forms of tax-exempt income:

(i) Tax-exempt interest income;

(ii) Income from United States savings bonds used to pay higher education tuition and fees;

(iii) Foreign earned income;

(iv) Income derived from sources within Guam, American Samoa, or the Northern Mariana Islands; and

(v) Income from sources within Puerto Rico.

(6) Modified adjusted gross income ranges are the groupings of modified adjusted gross income above the threshold. There are four ranges for most individuals, based on their tax filing status. There are two ranges for those with a tax filing status of married, filing separately, who also lived with their spouse for part of the year. The dollar amounts of the modified adjusted gross income ranges are specified in §418.2115.

(7) Premium is a payment that an enrolled beneficiary pays for Medicare prescription drug coverage to a Medicare prescription drug plan, a Medicare Advantage plan with prescription drug coverage, a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly Plan offering qualified prescription drug coverage, or a cost plan offering qualified prescription drug coverage. The rules that CMS use annually to establish premium amounts for Medicare prescription drug coverage are contained in 42 CFR 423.286.

(8) Representative means, for the purposes of the initial determination and reconsidered determination, an individual as defined in §404.1703 of this chapter, and for purposes of an ALJ hearing or review by the MAC, an individual as defined in 42 CFR 423.560.

(9) Tax filing status means the filing status shown on your individual income tax return. It may be single, married filing jointly, married filing separately, head of household, or qualifying widow(er) with dependent child.

(10) Tax year means the year for which you have filed or will file your Federal income tax return with the IRS.

(11) Threshold means a modified adjusted gross income amount above which you will have to pay an income-related monthly adjustment amount described in paragraph (b)(4) of this section. The dollar amount of the threshold is specified in §418.2105.

(12) You or your means the person or representative of the person who is subject to the income-related monthly adjustment amount.