Relates to changes in health insurance contracts or plans for retired officers, employees, and their families

3 Co-sponsors

• Fredrick J. Akshar II
• William J. Larkin Jr.
• Kathleen A. Marchione

Title of bill

An act to amend the general municipal law, in relation to providing notice of health insurance contracts for retired officers, employees, and their families

Purpose

To provide notice to retirees affected by proposed changes in a health insurance plan before the changes are adopted by a public corporation.

Summary of provisions

Section 1 of the bill would amend General Municipal Law Section 92 by adding a new subdivision 2-a to require that the governing board of a public corporation give ninety days prior notice of a change in a health insurance plan to retired employees or their families who are covered under such plan. Where the contract, plan or amendment is contracted for as part of negotiations between a public corporation and a recognized and certified employee organization, such notice shall be given at the time such health insurance contract is binding on the covered officers, retired employees or families. This section also provides that such written notice shall contain either: (a) the full text of such proposed contract, plan or amendment and any relevant financial information including, but not limited to the cost of the proposed contract, plan or amendment to the public corporation and the cost to the covered retired officers, retired employees, or their families; or, (b) the general terms of the proposed contract, plan or amendment along with the physical location and web address to a secure website where the covered retired officers, retired employees or their family members can obtain the full text of such proposed contract, plan or amendment and any relevant financial information including, but not limited to the cost of the proposed contract, plan or amendment to the public corporation and the cost to the covered retired officers, retired employees, or their families.

Section 2 is the effective date.

Existing law

There are no statutory provisions requiring that retired employees be notified of a proposed change in their health insurance plan.

Justification

With the cost of health insurance rapidly rising, it is essential that retired employees and their families who are financially affected be given advanced notice before a governmental unit changes their health benefits. In addition, such disclosure would enable the retirees to have input to be sure that the proposed health insurance plan provisions are cost-effective. This is especially true for retired public employees who have no collective bargaining rights and are often confronted after-the-fact with higher premium charges or co-pay amounts without concomitant increases in their pensions.

Legislative history

2014: S.3687 referred to Local Government; same as A.1227 referred to Governmental Employees.

Fiscal implications

There may be minor costs associated with the distribution of the notice but cost savings from retired employees' offering cost effective alternatives to the proposed changes.

Effective date

Immediately upon enactment and shall apply to health insurance contracts or plans entered into, renewed, modified, or amended on or after such effective date.