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5 premium subsidy amount (LIPSA). The regional LIPSAs are the greater of the low-income benchmark premium amount for a PDP region or the lowest monthly beneficiary premium for a prescription drug plan that offers basic prescription drug coverage in the PDP region. In accordance with section 1860D-14 of the Act and the final rule “Modification to the Weighting Methodology Used to Calculate the Low- Income Benchmark Amount,” which appeared in the Federal Register (73 FR 18176) on April 3, 2008, the low-income benchmark premium amount for a PDP region is a weighted average of the monthly beneficiary premiums for basic prescription drug coverage in the region. The weight for each PDP and MA-PD plan is a percentage calculated with the numerator equal to the number of Part D LIS-eligible individuals enrolled in the plan in the reference month and the denominator equal to the total number of Part D LIS-eligible individuals enrolled in all PDP and MA-PD plans in a Part D region in the reference month. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 amended the statute governing the calculation of the LIS benchmark premium amount (see section 3302, as amended by section 1102 of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010). As amended, section 1860D-14(b)(2)(B)(iii) of the Act requires the calculation of the weighted average premium amounts described above using MA-PD basic Part D premiums before the application of Part C rebates each year. The calculation does not include bids submitted by MA private fee-for-service plans, PACE programs under section 1894, and Cost Plans. The reference month for the CY 2026 calculation was June 2025. For CY 2026, two regions would have a negative LI benchmark amount if calculated using the formula described above. However, as discussed in the 2005 final rule “Prescription Drug Benefit Final Rule” (70 FR 4304-4305), CMS has determined that while the Part D statute permits the calculation of negative premiums, “the statute did not necessarily envisage negative premiums for there are no clear directives on how the negative premium dollars should be treated.” (To implement this policy regarding negative premiums, CMS determined that, under 42 CFR 423.272(e), if a plan’s standardized bid is sufficiently below the national average monthly bid amount to result in a negative premium, the plan is required to either reduce the supplemental premium (if the Part D plan already submitted a bid with an enhanced alternative benefit) or add a new enhanced alternative benefit of no less value than the amount of the negative premium.) Consistent with the policy that no Part D plan is permitted to have a negative premium, when the LI benchmark calculation produces a negative benchmark amount prior to rebate reallocation, CMS will set the benchmark at $0. The regional low-income premium subsidy amounts are provided in the file Regional Rates and Benchmarks 2026, which can be accessed on the CMS website through the following link: https://www.cms.gov/files/document/regional-rates-and-benchmarks-2026.pdf. The low-income benchmark calculation will not be impacted by the voluntary Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration for PDPs. The CY 2026 low-income benchmarks are calculated based on pre- demonstration basic Part D premiums; however, the LIPSA paid to participating PDPs will be based on their post-demonstration basic Part D premiums.