May 20, 2019
Senator Steve Sweeney is at it again! He's decided to come after retiree
health care benefits this time, after stealing our COLA almost a decade ago!
His bill is S3754. This bill would violate the sanctity of the collective
bargaining process. Steve Sweeney, the big labor boss, is screwing over retired
cops and firemen for a second time.
Most retirees have health care benefits as a result of bargaining units
negotiating for them. This bill would guarantee significantly higher health care
costs for retirees. The monies saved would not go towards better funding our
pensions or granting a COLA, that so many of our members desperately need just
to get by.
The money will go towards property tax relief. If history is any lesson, it will
include property tax relief for people that don't own any property they pay
taxes on.
Even during the last "pension reform" legislation session, the
Collective Bargaining Agreement was recognized and respected. Now, those
agreements are little more than a minor hurdle towards stealing more money from
retirees.
Contact your state senators, assembly people and the governor. Make our position
loud and clear. Keep your hands off our collective bargaining agreements and our
health benefits! Your failure to act could cost you dearly! Do it today.
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S3754
– Health Benefits for NJ Public Employees
Posted May 20, 2019 by burypensions in insurance.
The text of S3754 which seeks to reform how much is paid for health insurance in
New Jersey is now out and here are the pertinent excerpts:
This bill terminates the School Employees’ Health Benefits Program (SEHBP) as
of January 1, 2020, and permits coverage for participants therein in the State
Health Benefits Program (SHBP).
………….
The bill also provides that health care
benefits plans provided by the State, a county, a municipal, or a school
district as an employer to its employees and retirees cannot exceed an actuarial
value of 80 percent. This limit will apply to the contracts providing such plans
entered into after the bill’s effective date. The bill requires that all
public employers offer to employees and retirees a plan with an actuarial of at
least 60 but not greater than 62 percent, and, if an employee or retiree selects
that plan, the bill bars the public employer from requiring the employee or
retiree to make any contribution toward the annual cost of the plan.
“Actuarial value” means a percentage of medical expenses paid by a specific
health care benefit plan for a standard population. The actuarial value for each
health care benefit plan must be certified by an actuary as actuarial principles
and methodologies. These provisions apply to the SHBP and all plans offered by a
State authority, a county, a municipality, or a school district outside of those
programs, including through self-insurance, the purchase of commercial insurance
or reinsurance, an insurance fund or joint insurance fund, or in any other
manner, or any combination thereof.
The bill prohibits a local government or
school district that is not participating in the State Health Benefits Program
from entering into a contract that provides health care benefits that exceed the
highest level of benefits provided under the State Health Benefits Program.
The bill also specifies that the bill may
not be construed to prohibit a local public entity from renegotiating the terms
and conditions of employment in a collective bargaining agreement in order to
account for any modification thereof attributable to the bill. Finally, the bill
requires the savings realized by a local government or school district as a
result of this bill to be used solely and exclusively for the purpose of
reducing the amount that is required to be raised by the local property tax levy
for the local government or school district.
The key point here is how “actuarial
value” and is interpreted.
