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Alaska Retired Educators Association |
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Welcome all education retirees |
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Newsletters 2008 |
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AKREA NEWSLETTER Summer 2008 Just after press time the president did, in fact, veto the Medicare bill; However, congress voted by a large majority to over ride the veto. Thanks to all who helped by contacting their congress persons.
Let’s Finish The Job! On July 9, the U.S. Senate voted to Keep Medicare Fair by passing the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008! Our tremendous grassroots support shook Washington but President George W. Bush is threatening to veto this critical legislation and time is running out. Tell President Bush to Keep Medicare Fair by signing the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 into law TODAY! comments@whitehouse.gov As you read this, President Bush is likely hearing from the same folks that worked against us during the Keep Medicare Fair campaign. That’s why he must hear from ALL OF US immediately! The legislation that the Senate passed would: · Help ensure that Medicare patients continue to have access to doctors; · Improve prevention coverage and services; · Improve low-income protections; and · Provide improved coverage for mental health services. There’s no time to waste – let’s celebrate two victories, one in the U.S. Senate and one in the White House! Senators Stevens Secures Permanent Medicare Reimbursement Fix for Alaska
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate today approved legislation that contains a permanent Medicare reimbursement fix for Alaska authored by Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska). Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) also supported the provision and both voted in favor of the Medicare reform bill which passed the Senate by a vote of 69 to 30. The legislation now goes to the President to be signed into law. The permanent Medicare fix for Alaska will take effect in January of 2009. “Medicare has only been paying about 40 percent of the costs for Alaska seniors. For years, they have struggled to get access to health care because these Medicare payments were insufficient,” said Senator Stevens. “Those days should be over now thanks to the provision I secured in this bill, which will raise Medicare payments to Alaska physicians by about 35 percent.” The legislation approved today makes a permanent increase to the work component of the Medicare Geographic Practice Cost Index beginning January 1, 2009. This fix would bring Alaska Medicare payments for primary care above the rates paid by Alaska’s Medicaid program. The result is an approximate 35 percent increase in Medicare payments for Alaska. Payments for other physician services under the new system should also increase to at least as high as Alaska's Medicaid rates and possibly more. As part of the Medicare Prescription Drug legislation in 2004, Senator Stevens authored a provision that raised rates for Alaska physicians under Medicare by about 40 percent. That provision was in effect from January 2005 until the beginning of 2007, but the Senate chose not to extend that program further. Senator Stevens was also successful in urging the Veterans Administration (VA) and Department of Defense to adopt modifications to the Medicare physician payment system for their beneficiaries in Alaska. Several years ago, the VA conducted a study of access to care for Alaska veterans using private physicians. As a result of that study, the VA adopted an Alaska-specific physician payment system that pays doctors seeing veterans significantly more than Medicare does. In January 2007, the Department of Defense (DoD) was faced with a similar access to care problem for Alaska TRICARE beneficiaries. At the urging of Senator Stevens, DoD instituted a three-year pilot program in Alaska that pays physicians about 35 percent more than Medicare to see its beneficiaries. TRICARE bases its payments on Medicare physician payment rates.
Barb’s Byline With both primary and general elections coming up in August and November, everyone has many decisions ahead of them. We never try to tell you how to vote . We believe you are intelligent enough to make your own decisions. However, we would like to give you some advice when talking to the candidates about the “unfunded liability” of TRS and the tier 3 pension and health benefits for new hires since July 2006 . Candidates need to be informed and retirees are good at informing.
Just what is the unfunded liability? If you bought a house for $150,000 and financed it for 30 years, your unfunded liability would be between $300,000 to $400,000. When TRS does their estimate of “unfunded liability,” it is the amount needed now to pay all retirees all that will be owed to them until they die or no longer draw their retirement. Why is so high? There is not one single cause but many. Among them are: · The drop in the stock market value of TRS investments. · The actuaries gave the pension board and the legislature wrong information based on antiquated mortality tables. · The early retirement incentive took money out of the system that should still be in it garnering compound interest. (For example, if a retiree makes $30,000 a year and retired 3 years early, that is $90,000 per retiree that should still be in the pension fund. . Multiply that by the number of early retirees and it is a very sizeable amount). · The bonuses that were given to many employees also hurts as these bonuses raised the amount of money the retiree gets every year. The pension was based on the highest 3 years. · Not all entities paid their share. They thought the fund was so strong it didn’t need all the money so they didn’t fully fund it. Not all districts did this. · School board members and borough and municipal assembly members were entitled to join the retirement plan. They paid very little into the system and the government paid very little matching funds into the system, yet they cost us over a $1,000 a month for health benefits. They never earned this much! The high and still rising cost of health care is the big culprit.
As to the new plan
There is no significant difference between the state’s cost of the two plans. (See the Buck Consulting Report on our Web site) www.akrea.org/ · The Health Care plan is insufficient and, in many cases, none at all is available. The employee must work 30 years and retire directly from the system to get any health coverage. Coverage at that time will be, I have been told, sufficient to pay the health care premiums for about 2 years · The retiree can outlive their savings. (Twenty-nine percent of women who live to age 65 will also live to age 90; eighteen percent of men who make it to 65 will also make it to 90.) · There is no guaranteed retirement. Most TRS participants do not receive Social Security. Those who do have reduced benefits due to the government pension offset. · It is difficult to retain and hire new employees. They get a defined benefit, Social Security and health insurance in most other states. In Alaska they get basically a 401-k. · Alaska salaries for educators are not as competitive as in the past. so salaries here do not offset the deficiency in benefits. 80 % of the Pension Revenue comes from the employee contributions and the investment of the Pension Funds.
The new plan does not have a financial incentive for Alaska educators to remain living here after retirement. Lost to the state and communities will be the volunteerism and income from the retired teachers and state employees. The pension and health care dollars spent in the communities provide jobs and millions of dollars to the economy. We are important. The value of our volunteer hours (according to an NRTA study) is now over $18 an hour. The state administration is advertising our retirement as one in which they can take it with them when they leave Alaska. We want them to stay here. We want them to be a part of our communities.
Talk to the candidates Tell them to visit our web site and look at the information we have on the two plans If you need more information, let me know and I will try to get it to you. bmrich@gci.net or 479-2509.
PREMERA NEWS AKREA recently received a health insurance question from a retired teacher in Montana regarding the Shingles immunization suggested for Seniors by many providers. Following is the answer from PREMERA.
Hi Barbara, The AlaskaCare plan covers preventive mammograms, pap smears and PSA tests for men. These are the only preventive benefits available under the plan. Please reference the following pages of the Retiree Insurance Information Booklet for information that may help the member understand the plan’s provisions. I have linked the booklet below for your convenience. http://www.state.ak.us/drb/ghlb/retiree/2003-retiree-handbook.pdf · Page 5, first paragraph under “Introduction” states - The State of Alaska retirement systems provide extensive and valuable benefits for you and your family including hospitalization, medical, surgical, maternity care, and other services necessary for the diagnosis and treatment of an injury or disease. (Emphasis added) · Page 17, first paragraph under the heading “Covered Medical Expenses” states – Benefits are available for medically necessary services and supplies necessary to diagnose, care for, or treat a physical or medical condition. (Emphasis added) The remaining bullets under that heading describe the plan’s definition of medical necessity. · Page 37 and 38 describe the coverage for radiation, x-rays and lab tests and defines the covered routine services. · Page 53, under the heading Medical Services Not Covered, the third, fourth, tenth and eleventh bullets all address the non-coverage of services that are not determined to be medically necessary as services that are not related to a specific illness, disease or injury. The plan has always had these provisions and has nothing to do with the current contract. Every contract since 1975 has included these exclusions and limitations. I understand that the provider for these folks may have prescribed the vaccine, and indeed, they should follow their doctor’s instructions as they can, however, the plan will not cover the varicella vaccine as it does not treat an illness, injury or disease. As a side note on Medicare Part D coverage of the Varicella-zoster immune globulin, the minimum Medicare Part D coverage can be increased based on a recipient’s willingness to pay more for an increased plan of Part D drug benefits. I am not certain, but I don’t think the Medicare required Part D offering covers Varicella vaccination, but a Part D plan with enhanced benefits may include the vaccine as a covered benefit. Since commercial carriers are selling the Part D product, not all plans are the same, with Medicare mandating the required Part D minimums, but the Part D vendors can enrich the benefit for a higher premium. Thanks for posing this question. Freda
Talking Points for Returning to the Defined Benefit Plan 1. Long-term cost savings of switching to a Defined Contribution plan are uncertain at best. a. DC plans a re costly to establish and maintain. b. Pension benefits currently promised to state and local employees and retirees may not be abandoned. Switching to a DC plan does not reduce accrued DB plan benefits already earned. This is part of the unfunded liability critics never talk about. There is no money going into the account from newly hirees as the plan was set up to have. c. In several cases, state that had a DC plan have replaced them or are considering replacing them with a DB plan due to inadequacy of plan benefits or increased costs. 2. Good Disability or survivor benefits are not provided. 3. Good DB plans enhance the ability of state and local governments to attract qualified employees and retain them throughout their careers. The turnover rate has already increased with only one year of the DC plan and it will get worse. We will become the training ground for the” lower 8.” It is expensive to train new firemen, policemen, and teachers. 4. By pooling risk over a relatively large number of participants, DB plan lower the overall risk due to investment losses and participants outliving retirement benefits. Switching to a DC plan has required each individual to bear these risks alone, consequently requiring higher contributions than if the risks were pooled . 5. DB plans earn higher investment returns and pay lower investment management fees, on average, than DC plans. 6. Db plans provide secure retirement benefits that are based on a person’s salary and period of service. Switching to a DC plan is likely to result in lower and less secure retirement benefits for many long-term governmental employees, firefighters, police officers, and teachers, who constitute over half of state and local government workers. State and local employees who are with Social Security coverage are at great risk. 7. DB plans help sustain state and local economies by providing adequate retirement benefits for a significant portion of the work force. DC plans will likely slow state and local economies, since a large number of retirees would likely receive lower retirement benefits or move to the lower 48 taking their money and the state money with them. 8. DB PLANS PROVIDE BENEFITS THAT HELP TO ENSURE AN ADEQUATE STANDARD OF LIVING THROUGHTOUT RETIREMENT These advantages were taken from a NCPERS RESEARCH SERIES publication with permission.
APOLOGIES We published the Pension Dollars Stimulate Local Economies table in the Winter 2008 newsletter and inadvertantly gave credit to Sam Trivette. Gayle Harbo, president of NEA/AK-R and a member here also passed along the information. We belatedly thank Gayle for sharing and apologize for the error in attribution. IN MEMORIAM
We were just informed that MARJORIE THERA of Kodiak passed away in late 2006. Marj was treasurer of AKREA for several years. She was living in Minnesota when she died.
CARTA NEWS
As CARTA approaches the “summer vacation” for its meetings, exciting things are still happening! The April 5th highlight was the annual auction to raise funds to supplement the two $2500 Marie Paxon Memorial Scholarships awarded each year to UAA or APU Education Majors. During the last year, CARTA has been the recipient of large financial bequests from the Marie Paxon and Frances Ray estates. To invest the money carefully and distribute it wisely, CARTA revised its by-laws to meet the requirements of the state to incorporate and applied to the IRS for 501-C-3 status which qualifies it as anon-profit charity. Consideration is underway to determine the best investment choice for the gifts. The Marie Paxon fund has been designated to be used only for scholarships and the Frances Ray monies will aid CARTA in a new philanthropy program which, thus far, has contributed to Friends of the Library, the Legacy Society of the Anchorage Senior Activity Center, and established a scholarship for Helping Hands for Nepal. HHN was founded by retired educator Linda “Jay” Jackson, in 1999 to work in areas of education, water supply, and medicine for the children of Nepal. A former student in her photography class at Bartlett High School who became an ophthalmologist invited Jay to pack her camera and accompany him and others on a mission to treat the eyes of Nepali children. Her observations and experiences on that trip, and several since, inspired her to dedicate herself to this cause. At the May meeting, officers for next year will be elected and the Summer Fun Fund for the children at the AWAIC shelter will be tallied. CARTA won a national award from NRTA a few years ago for the Summer Fun endeavor. CARTA meets the first Saturday of each month September through May at the Anchorage Senior Activity Center, 1900 E. 19th Ave at 12:30 P.M. ASAA serves a luncheon and reservations are required. Program chairman, Don McDermott, has engaged an amazing variety of presenters to entertain and inform the members. An invitation is extended to all educators and friends to attend the meetings!! For more information, call (907) 349-1714
JUNEAU NEWS The Juneau Retired Teachers' Association is alive and well still meeting the third Monday of each month, presently at the Mountain View Senior Center. Hor's d'oeuvres then dinner are followed by the business meeting and a program. So far this year, we have had a personal trainer lead us in exercises that may be done at home, encouraging some members toward a healthier, more active lifestyle. Other evenings found us learning about the fun of traveling with Elderhostel particularly to the Galapagos and Katmai National Park. We enjoyed hearing about the adventures of a retired teacher working in Louisiana after Katrina. We were happy to have Pat Luby and Ann Secrest present at this meeting. This month, line dancing . . . have to work off those dinners! In order to increase attendance, in December a survey was sent out by the membership committee to gather input from all members on where and when to meet, i.e., valley/town, senior center/restaurant, noon/evening, and what type of programs they'd like to have. We have begun to incorporate their suggestions and attendance has increased. Coming up: This month JRT will pick up trash along a designated part of the highway as part of Juneau's litter free program. Soon it will be time to organize our annual May JRT picnic held at Auke Rec. The snowbirds will be welcomed back for this event and they'll be here for the summer meetings. We'll raise funds again this year for the Seniors' Meals-On-Wheels program by wrapping Christmas presents at a local mall. Also, we'll be working on revising our constitution due to a dues increase from $5 to $10 per year. JRTA president, Jim Carroll, is a member of the CCTF (Capital City Task Force) that reviews issues that affect all retirees and seniors, such as health care, housing, pensions, etc. During the legislative session, he and others speak on their behalf before the legislators. Looking forward to another good year. Jim Carroll, President FAIRBANKS UNIT For all of our snowbirds, March was an interesting month in Fairbanks. We had 45 ABOVE ZERO weather for about a week and a half during the ice carving time for the 2008 World Ice Art Championship. After the judging the temps dropped again to the below zero teens. We are expecting sightings of our snowbird members maybe at this meeting. Governor Sarah Palin appointed Gerri Benshoof to the State Board of Education. Sharon Boko was selected to represent the Northwest Division of the American Heart Association as a heart survivor. She received a stipend to attend “You’re the Cure Lobby Day” in Washington, D. C. in April to lobby Alaska and Northwest congressional delegates. We are very honored to have Fairbanks represented by these two, fine women The Fairbanks Unit is proud of the murals that have been painted by some of their member to help make the concrete block restrooms at many area parks and sports centers. They range from dancing animals to pennants. Bev Byington leads the group. She does most of the drawing, then the rest of us do the painting. After we are done she makes it look wonderful. The latest is a wall at the Fair grounds. There is a lot more work to be done at the fair grounds. We continue to have about 50 members at our meetings sometimes more with a lot of information being gathered as well as plenty of conversation. It is a fun time for all. ALASKA EDUCATORS’ HISTORICAL SOCIETY The state will soon celebrate 50 years of Statehood. Alaska Educators’ Historical Society hopes to publish another volume of stories for the celebration. The Historical Society is still soliciting submissions for Volume 4 of TEACHERS TALES. Retired teachers are a treasure trove of stories of ‘how it used’ to be in Alaskan teaching, both in the Bush schools and in the cities in the ‘old days’. The elders of our profession are leaving us and with them much of the folk lore and institutional history of Alaska education. The mission of the Society is to capture as much of that knowledge as possible and share it with the future generations in Alaska teaching.
Everybody has a story. Write yours down, or encourage a friend to submit their’s . Send it to Virginia Walters, 214 Birch Street, Kenai, Alaska 99611. A few copies of Volume 3 are still available for $5 from the same address.
VOLUNTEERING
Those of us who are retired are often reFired to channel our energy to volunteer activities in our local communities. These hours are valuable, and deserve to be recognized. Please record your volunteer hours for a month, then send the total on a postcard to AKREA Community Chair., 6623 Fairweather, Anchorage, AK 99518.
NRTA Holds Legislative Advocacy Conference in Washington, DC
The National Retired Teachers Association, (NRTA), the retired teacher affiliate of AARP. |
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2008 Newsletter |
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Date: July 2008 |
