General Motors National Retiree Association
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Send your E-Mail/Letter to Congress NOW by clicking this link:
April 3, 2009
The vote was 58-39 against a proposal by Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., to add means-testing to Medicare Part D, the drug benefit created in 2003.
Under the amendment, premiums would have begun to increase for enrollees who have modified adjusted gross income of more than $85,000 and for couples with such income of more than $170,000.
Means-testing exists for Medicare Part B, which covers services by doctors and clinics, but Part D was formed without the cost-shift.
"What we are doing is just to say to seniors ... if you have the means to pay for (prescriptions), then you should pay for them," Ensign said during debate on a budget blueprint bill for fiscal year 2010.
Premiums vary by the type of prescription plan that enrollees choose. Under Ensign's amendment, they would have grown by $11.31 a month up to $64 a month depending on beneficiary income.
The cost-shift would save taxpayers about $3 billion, Ensign contended.
"That used to be a lot of money around here," Ensign said. "I realize that is small change now," with the 2010 federal budget looking to be about $3.5 trillion.
Ensign argued that President Barack Obama also has proposed means-testing for Medicare prescription drugs in his budget.
There is a difference, though. Ensign wanted to apply the savings to reduce the federal deficit, while Obama proposed savings be reinvested into fixing the nation's health care system.
Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., stressed that point in calling for the Ensign amendment to be defeated.
"This amendment sounds good on the surface, but frankly it is going to make health care reform more difficult," said Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
"The president does not want to use means-testing to reduce spending on health care," Baucus said.
The vote fell largely along party lines, with most Republicans voting for it and most Democrats voting against it, including Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760.
http://www.lvrj.com/news/42378482.html
Medicare Advantage prices rise as overhaul plan nears
By Avram Goldstein, Bloomberg News - Feb. 5, 2009
As President Obama prepares to push for an overhaul of the medical system, providers of U.S.-backed health plans for the elderly are raising prices.
Humana Inc., Health Net Inc., and nearly 200 other providers increased 2009 premiums by 13 percent on average, or more than five times as much as last year, for people who use Medicare Advantage, according to Avalere Health, a consulting company in Washington.
Advantage plans add features such as drug coverage to Medicare and are run by commercial insurers.
Obama has vowed to control health-care spending while extending coverage to more people, and, during his campaign, criticized the costs of Advantage plans. The premium increases, charged directly to the elderly rather than the government, are further evidence that insurers' need for profits is ballooning patients' expenses and reducing the efficiency of care, said Arnold Relman, former editor of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"Medicare Advantage is a rip-off," said Relman, 85, also a professor emeritus at Harvard Medical School in Boston. "I cannot see that they do anything better than public insurance does, and they do a lot of things worse."
Medicare will spend 14 percent more this year, on average, for Advantage enrollees than for beneficiaries with basic coverage, concluded a staff report in December by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, an independent agency that advises Congress.
Obama considers the government payments "excessive," Jen Psaki, a spokeswoman now on the White House staff, said in a Jan. 5 e-mail. During his campaign Obama promised to cut subsidies to Advantage by as much as $15 billion a year, or about 15 percent from last year's total of $100 billion.
Insurers also collected about $5 billion in Advantage premiums from consumers last year, said Thomas Scully, the former top administrator of the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Scully, who helped design the Advantage program, said that he did not consider the premiums excessive and that Advantage was less expensive than alternatives.
Medicare is the U.S. health plan for the disabled and those over 65. Basic Medicare, with a monthly fee of $96, lets patients use nearly all U.S. doctors or hospitals. Beneficiaries can also buy separate private policies to cover prescription drugs and expenses exempted from standard benefits. Advantage, which covers 10.5 million people, bundles those options.
"There are almost 11 million people who have chosen to participate in Medicare Advantage because they feel they're good plans," said Richard Barasch, chief executive officer of Universal American Corp., an insurer in Rye Brook, N.Y.
The Advantage premiums paid by Blair Law and his wife, Mary, rose to $50 a month this year, up from zero initially. "These guys have you by the short hairs," said Blair Law, 77, a retired construction-company executive in Fort Myers, Fla. "They know you're disinclined to shift to another plan, so they keep ratcheting the cost up."
In 2007, the Laws joined an Advantage plan provided by Universal Health Care Corp. of St. Petersburg, Fla. Initially, the plan charged no monthly premium, and the insurer rebated the couple's basic-Medicare premiums, the Laws said. The rebate ended last year, and this year the company began charging the couple an additional $50 a month. Universal Health Care chief executive officer Akshay Desai did not respond to a request for comment.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/39129802.html
|
Health Care....Why We Can't Afford It!
Keep in mind-
this is just
ONE
hospital in
FLORIDA .... |
GM
Health Care & Pension Benefit Updates Posted Here: GM Robs Its Elderly Retirees
November
17, 2008
Extend Health Got You On Hold? Click Here For Quick Answers To Your Medicare Questions: My Part D USA
Click Here: http://overthehillcarpeople.com/medicarethingstoconsiderletter100708.htm
November
13, 2008
November
11, 2008
New York Times - Some G.M. Retirees Are in a Health Care Squeeze
September
27, 2008
The effort to call attention to the broken promises of employer-sponsored health care coverage for retirees took a step forward on September 25, 2008 when an important U.S. House of Representatives Committee conducted a hearing on “Safeguarding Retiree Health Benefits.” NRLN President Bill Kadereit presented testimony to the Committee of Education and Labor on behalf of the National Retiree Legislative Network membership. Folks this is a must read! If you did not think retirees had a voice in Washington and all was lost watch the video! We have a real chance of getting a bill to Congress to protect retirees Health Care: Read more......click here:
http://overthehillcarpeople.com/nrlnbillscongresstestimony092308.htm
September
19, 2008
Click the links below for the latest information about GM health care benefits and Extend Health presentations:
September
17, 2008
GM-Extended Health Care meeting in Pontiac, Michigan 9-11-08
September
16, 2008
About us ►
1-866-322-2824 Mon - Fri 9 am to 9 pm Eastern (TTY: 1-866-508-5123)
|
|
Welcome General Motors salaried retirees and surviving spouses
Thank you for visiting Extend Health, the approved partner to provide Medicare plan advice and enrollment to General Motors salaried retirees and surviving spouses. Our Benefit Advisors are looking forward to helping you find and enroll in the Medicare plan that best matches your needs and budget.
Extend Health offers access to more than 40 of the most popular national and regional insurance plans, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, United Healthcare, Aetna and Cigna. Our licensed Benefit Advisors and online support tools will help you understand and evaluate the options available to you.
At this time, there is no action required by you. During the week of September 22, 2008, you will receive an information package in the mail from General Motors that will provide details about the changes you should expect. This mailing will include information about working with Extend Health to enroll in your own Medicare plan. Medicare plans for 2009 will be available in mid-October 2008. At that time, Extend Health will begin providing Medicare plan advice and enrollment. Additional guidance and information will be available on this website in the weeks ahead. We appreciate your interest and look forward to working with you soon.
Please visit www.extendhealth.com/gm from time-to-time to get the latest information.
Careers ►
© 2004 - 2008
Extend Health. All Rights Reserved.
This web site and all of its content are owned and operated, and the insurance
services described on this web site are provided by, Extend Insurance Services,
LLC. Extend Insurance Services, LLC is a Utah resident insurance agency and
licensed as a non-resident insurance agency, or otherwise authorized to transact
business as an insurance agency, in all states and the District of Columbia.
September
15, 2008
Bills will ensure health benefits for retirees tell Congress Now!
Courier-Post
September 14, 2008
Bills would ensure health
benefits for retirees
By MIKE MCFADDEN
For the Courier-Post
Sadly, General Motors has become the latest American company to eliminate health
benefits for its retirees over the age of 65. This is just the first major
casualty of the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC)
decision earlier this year to allow companies to discriminate against older
retirees by treating them differently than younger retirees.
Precedent set
This move may be a sign of even more cuts to come. GM has set a precedent that
will likely lead to other employers doing the same. In recent years as a
cost-cutting measure, some corporations have resorted to canceling or reducing
retiree health-care coverage. These are benefits that were earned by employees
and were considered part of their total compensation package.
In the 1950s through the 1980s they were "inducements," when their purpose was
to excuse the lack of a higher starting wage. Continued health benefits in
retirement were a strong incentive for many to stay with their employer for
decades of loyal service. The modern inference that corporate retirement
benefits are entitlements or gifts is just wrong. They are benefits earned over
careers spanning 30 to 40 years.
I worked at Bell Atlantic for 34 years as a communications technician and a
member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 827. In
exchange for a lower salary, I was guaranteed a package of retirement benefits.
I expect the company that I dedicated years of loyal service to to fulfill its
financial obligations to me. Now that my earned benefits are in jeopardy, I am
compelled to let other retirees know about what is happening to their retirement
benefits.
Address issue
Two bills now in Congress, the bipartisan Emergency Retiree Health Benefits
Protection Act (HR 1322) and the Pension Protection Act ERISA Amendment of 2008
(HR 6143), would finally address this issue and make companies live up to the
financial commitments made to their employees and retirees decades ago.
The financial reality of providing health-care coverage is considered in both
bills. They ensure that employers are not burdened with a cost they cannot
afford or that does financial harm to the company by including the ability for
companies to apply for an exemption if they feel compliance would be a
substantial hardship. Most importantly, both bills ensure that employers meet
their obligations to their long-time employees who earned those benefits through
years of dedicated service.
These bills address the economic concern of America's older generations without
placing mandates on companies as to what health plans or monetary ceilings for
retiree health benefits they are willing to provide. According to the bills,
any changes to a health plan would need to be made before an employee retirees.
Support from members of Congress of these bills is critical to retirees in New
Jersey and across the country, especially in light of the EEOC ruling that
allows companies to cut supplemental health coverage to retirees age 65 and
over.
Plan of action
Health-care coverage is a vital issue for all Americans. It is imperative that
both presidential candidates and Congress address these issues -- now of crisis
proportion for retirees -- and put into their platforms a true plan of action
for the protection of retirees' earned health-care benefits.
Much ado is being made about the impact of the youth vote in 2008. Considering
that the 55-plus age group represented about 42.3 percent of those who voted in
the last election, according to the Census, does anyone really think 18-25 year
olds will be the difference?
To those holding or seeking office in 2008, I encourage you not to take the
retiree/senior vote for granted. After being fed a steady diet of malarkey from
Washington for far too long, this will be the year we choose to vote based upon
candidates' support of our issues. For those who think the 18-25 year olds will
be the difference, remember we have children and grandchildren who vote, too.
The writer lives in Atco.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080914/COLUMNISTS25/809140313/1005/OPINION
Folks....PLEASE click the link below
and tell your Congressional representatives to put pressure on the Speaker OF
The House - Nancy Pelosi - to step aside and let these bills go to the floor of
Congress for a vote.
http://www.overthehillcarpeople.com/gmrobstheirelderlyretirees.htm
September
9, 2008
GM Health Benefit Conference Call For Members Of OTHCP
9-18-08
You may want to participate in the Sept. 18 conference call at 3
pm eastern time on the Post 65 Health Care changes for anyone who wants to call
in. The 800 call in number is available at this link:
Just tell the
operator that you are part of the conference call for the - "GM Post - 65 Health
Care Changes."
This will be the same as the in person meetings, with one GM speaker and one
Extend Health with a Q&A session at the end.
Jack Dickinson
spoacdc1@aol.com
www.overthehillcarpeople.com
September
7, 2008
GM Folks!
You can click the link below and read some of the concerns GM'ers have
expressed. If you have not posted your questions for GM,
please do it now. Please keep in mind this is not about the health care
issues. It is more about GM's present and future positioning!!!
Your Two Cents! New Health & Pension Benefit Information Here:
http://forums.overthehillcarpeople.com/viewtopic.php?t=3306
Regards,
Jack Dickinson
spoacdc1@aol.com
http://www.overthehillcarpeople.com/
September
6, 2008
Hello GM Folks!
You’ve heard the rumors about GM and read some
of the questionable news reports. So have we. In response, GM has started an
aggressive outreach strategy to take our story to the media, and they want to
tell us about it.
On Tuesday, September 9, at 1 p.m. Eastern time
we will participate in a GM conference call with Steve Harris, Vice President,
GM Global Communications, who will review what GM is doing to set the record
straight. Steve will also share the centennial celebration plans for September
16 and how GM is prepared to take full advantage of the global spotlight. After
the presentation the phone lines will be open for our feedback and questions.
We at www.overthehillcarpeople.com are requesting you e-mail us your suggestions for questions we should ask GM to address. We will post the conference call details on our web site, so be sure to check it often. Please keep in mind, this is not about the Health Care issue for retirees. It is about the present and future positioning of GM!
Regards,
Jack Dickinson
Spoacdc1@aol.com
www.overthehillcarpeople.com
August
25, 2008
Summary of what retirees will have to replace GM coverage:
$192.00- Less the amount we will now pay for Part B of Medicare $96.00 x 2 people= $192.00
$215.00 - The total amount we will have left to cover retiree & spouse for insurance that Medicare Part A & Part B do not cover.
August
24, 2008
Informal Notes re: August 13, 2008 GM Health Care Presentations to Retiree Club
August
22, 2008
Florida & Atlanta Area Retiree Health Benefits Meeting Dates:
Click this link for additional information: Over The Hill Car People. Com :: Index
August
22, 2008
Jack,
August
13, 2008
GM People & All American Retirees,
This is a link http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:HR01322:@@@P to The Library of Congress which will show you all of the House of Representative members that are sponsoring bill H. R. 1322. This bill will amend title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to provide emergency protection for retiree health benefits.
We understand this bill would address this issue and make companies live up to the financial commitments made to their employees and retirees decades ago. According to the bill, changes to health benefits would need to be made before an employee retires.
Healthcare coverage is a vital issue for all Americans. It is imperative that before the Democratic and Republican conventions both presidential candidates and Congress address these issues - now of crisis proportion - and put into their platform a true plan of action for the protection of retirees' earned healthcare benefits.
Support from members of Congress is critical to all retirees across the country, especially in light of the EEOC ruling that allows companies to cut supplemental health coverage to retirees age 65 and over.
The bill H. R. 1322 has been referred to a House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions.
You can click this link http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:HR01322:@@@P to determine if your representatives are supporting this bill. If they are, then write them an e-mail/letter requesting they pressure The Speaker of the House to let this bill go to the congress floor for a vote. If your local representatives are not listed, then send them an e-mail/letter demanding they join the supporters of this bill in forcing Nancy Pelosi to step aside and let congress vote on this issue.
Click the link below to find the e-mail/letter address of your local representatives, as well as, others and send them as many e-mails/letters and/or calls as possible.
Send your E-Mail/Letter to Congress NOW by clicking this link:
To those
holding or seeking office in 2008, we encourage you not to take the
retiree/senior vote for granted. They represented 62.5 percent of
those who voted in the last election.
Please forward this e-mail to as many GM retirees and active employees as possible. All retirees, regardless of their company, can and should do their part by sending e-mails/letters and making calls.
August
11, 2008 - Two bills now in Congress, the bi-partisan Emergency
Retiree Health Benefits Protection Act (H.R. 1322), and the
Pension Protection Act ERISA Amendments of 2008 (H.R. 6143),
would address this issue and make companies live up to the
financial commitments made to their employees and retirees
decades ago. According to the bills, changes to health benefits
would need to be made before an employee retires.
Click this link for additional information: Over The Hill Car People. Com :: Index
August
8, 2008 - Salaried EMPLOYEES
will also feel the pain from GM health care changes. Click this
link for additional information:
Over The Hill Car People. Com :: Index
Many
of you have ask why the UAW hourly employees still have their
Health Care Program for life and you are without any! Click the
link below and hold your nose:
TheStreet.com - News Article About Overthehillcarpeople.com - July25, 2008
TheStreet.Com - News Article About Overthehillcarpeople.com - July 24, 2008
Hello To All GM Folks!
As most of you probably know, a lawsuit was filed in the 1980’s against General Motors on behalf of all retirees concerning the cancellation of health benefits. In the end, the courts ruled in favor of GM and gave them the right to cancel your benefits anytime they choose.
To file another law suit would be costly and timeless, and GM would probably win again. It seems they can win at everything except gaining the media’s and public’s confidence in their quality products. We are at Mr. Wagoner’s mercy at this point and you now know where his loyalties appear to be! If not, just recall this article posted on our web site a few months ago.
Fri Apr 25, 2008 3:42pm EDT
GM CEO's compensation jumps 64 percent in 2007?????
DETROIT, April 25 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Executive Rick Wagoner's salary and other compensation rose 64 percent in 2007 to about $15.7 million, mainly due to option grants, according to a proxy filed on Friday.
Wagoner's compensation rose from about $9.57 million in 2006. The figure was arrived at based on Wagoner's salary, all other compensation and the basis of annual grants.
GM paid Wagoner a salary of $1.6 million in 2007, along with $1.8 million in non-equity incentive compensation and nearly $700,000 for other compensation that includes insurance benefits, security, aircraft expenses and other factors.
GM, which reported a record $39 billion net loss in 2007, released the figures in a proxy statement on Friday afternoon that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. (Reporting by David Bailey; Editing by Andre Grenon)
Why Do Retirees Health Benefits Decrease Every Year & Mr. Wagoner Receives A 64% Pay Increase?????
Well, we all have our own opinions about the above person and the issue at hand. All that said, I know all of our members respect General Motors and still remember the love each of us share for the corporation. So, we feel the best course of action at this point is to combine our numbers with other groups and pursue actions to change laws and rulings by our friends in the EEOC and our highly regarded congress (a 9% approval rating).
In order to create a stronger voice in Washington, D.C. to protect pensions and benefits for OverTheHillCarPeople.com members we are affiliating with the National Retiree Legislative Network (NRLN). We are also encouraging all GM Retirement Clubs to consider doing the same. Based in Washington, D.C., the NRLN is the only nationwide organization solely dedicated to representing the interests of retirees and future retirees. The NRLN's mission is to secure federal legislation to protect retirees' employer-sponsored pensions and benefits, plus keep Social Security and Medicare strong. The NRLN is a non-partisan, grassroots coalition of 18 retiree associations and individual members representing more than two million retired men and women seeking to preserve retirement benefits. For more information about the NRLN visit their website at www.nrln.org and look for the Overthehillcarpeople.com logo.
The NRLN does not meet with company management or sue or take other action against companies. They make no campaign contributions nor buy lunch or dinner or offer any favors to politicians. They lobby in Washington, D. C. using Grassroots Members. Our members will be able to join the grassroots effort to wake up elected officials to the need for new laws and programs that protect, restore and enhance retiree income and healthcare benefits.
NRLN’s Legislative Agenda
The NRLN's legislative priorities include the further strengthening of pension protections under the ERISA laws, protecting and funding retiree healthcare benefits and securing more affordable and safe prescription drugs. To read the NRLN’s Legislative Agenda go to: http://www.nrln.org/2008%20legislative%20agenda%20summary.htm .
The NRLN's staff in Washington, D.C. uses the rapport they have with U.S. Representatives and Senators and their staff members to be a channel for communications to advance the NRLN’s Legislative Agenda on Capitol Hill.
The NRLN's Legislative Agenda requires all of its Grassroots Advocates to communicate to their elected representatives the importance of the agenda issues.
Join The NRLN's Grassroots Network
It is the individuals who sign up to be Grassroots Advocates who are the voices that amplify the messages that must be heard by members of Congress. When you enter your name, email address and U.S. Mail address in the Capwiz database by signing up at http://capwiz.com/abtr/mlm/signup/ you are joining a special group.
The reason that email addresses are required for the Grassroots Network is so that the NRLN staff can send you email messages and progress reports on important retirement issues. Your contact information in the NRLN's secure database will only be used to send NRLN messages to you.
Your U.S. Mail address, including 9-digit Zip Code, is important because there are times when the NRLN need to identify the constituents of particular U.S. Senators and Representatives who should hear the views of retirees and future retirees from "back home" on bills before their committees. Capwiz uses Zip Codes to identify them by State, District and name. After you sign up for the Grassroots Network, you have the option of “unsubscribing” at any time.
OverTheHillCarPeople.com encourages you to become an NRLN Grassroots Member and have your views heard in our nation’s capital.
If you choose not to contribute to the NRLN's membership fees that will be your choice. You can still use their web site resources, along with Overthehillcarpeople.com, to gain information needed to keep informed and express your views on your local interest and to your representatives. However, as with all groups, there are expenses and the NRLN’s agenda and ours can best be served by you becoming a member of their organization as well as overthehillcarpeople.com.
Folks, be assured, Overthehillcarpeople.com will continue to be a GM web site group and will continue to serve our members as we always have in the past. This combining of groups will benefit all concerned by strengthening our abilities to fight for our hard earned benefits and to be heard.
The EEOC and Congressional members have already been contacted concerning our GM Health Benefit concerns, and you can do your part by following the request listed below:
NRLN Action Alert GM Healthcare Cuts
From Bill Kadereit, NRLN President
Subject: GM Retirees Latest Victims Of EEOC Rule
You have probably read or heard the news reports that on July 15th, General Motors announced a number of cost cutting measures that included the elimination of its health care plan for retirees age 65 and older who are eligible for Medicare. On January 1, 2009, GM will cancel medical, dental, vision, hearing aid, prescription drug, extended care coverage and a $76 per month Medicare B premium payment, for tens of thousands of retirees, age 65 and older, surviving spouses and dependents.
In lieu of the healthcare benefits, GM will provide a monthly pre-tax pension increase of $300. This amount will only be a drop in the bucket for what it will cost retirees living on fixed incomes to purchase replacement insurance for the coverage lost.
GM’s announcement is the latest horrific example of the harm that a rule published by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is causing. The EEOC Rule allows employers to reduce or eliminate health care benefits to retirees when they become Medicare-eligible at age 65. The EEOC’s purported reasoning for creating the Rule was that by allowing employers to discriminate and treat older retirees less favorably, employers might have an incentive to continue to offer healthcare benefits for younger retirees and active employees. However, nowhere in the EEOC Rule or elsewhere is it written that those under age 65 have any assurances their benefits will not be reduced. The law does not protect them.
The thousands of GM salaried retirees who will lose their health care benefits are one of the largest retiree groups to be targeted. With the attention that GM’s announcement has received in the press, many other employers are most likely examining GM’s decision and giving consideration to taking similar action. Therefore, it is in the interest of all retirees and future retirees to write to their U.S. Senators and Representatives to request that legislation be passed to overturn the EEOC Rule and provide safeguards for retirement health care benefits.
We have called for this in letters faxed last week to the Democrat and Republican leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives and the Chairs and Ranking Members of the Congressional committees that deal with retirement legislative issues. (Read my letter in the NRLN Website Latest News at www.nrln.org.) In these letters, we proposed the passage of the “Health Care Protection Act of 2008.” Under the act, should an employer reduce or eliminate health care benefits, retirees would receive a Maintenance of Cost Payment (MCP) equivalent to the cost of their defined health care benefits as of the date of retirement. With the MCP, corporations would know their costs for retiree health care would not grow. Retirees would be more secure in knowing they could replace benefits with the MCP fixed-payment dollars.
I am asking you as an NRLN Grassroots Advocate and a member of Overthehillcarpeople.com to use the NRLN’s sample letter to write to your U.S. Senators and Representative. Please go to http://capwiz.com/abtr/home/ and look for the Action Alert headline: GM RETIREES LATEST VICTIMS OF EEOC RULE. Click on “Take Action.” On the next screen, type in your zip code to identify the Senators and Representative to receive your letter. I encourage you to add your own personal comments to the sample letter. If you have a problem accessing the Action Alert with the above link, go to www.nrln.org and click on the “Take Action Now” headline at the top of the NRLN Website’s Home Page.
Progress
Report: August 22, 2008 -
During the first 24 hours after the NRLN Action Alert was issued
asking Grassroots Members and Overthehillcarpeople.com folks to write to their
U.S. Senators and Representatives about GM Retirees being the latest victims of
the EEOC Rule, Aug.
22,
2008 - 4,346 emails
have been sent to members of Congress. Please send
your E-Mail Today! Click here:
http://capwiz.com/abtr/home/
Send your letter today. It would also help to call the Washington, D.C. or state office of your Senators and Representative. Phone numbers for the offices can be found through the NRLN’s Capwiz website at http://capwiz.com/abtr/dbq/officials/.
The more constituents who write and call their Senators and Representatives, the better chance we have gaining their attention on retirement issues. Please share this email with your family and friends and encourage them to write and call their members of Congress. Also, encourage them to sign up in the Grassroots Network at http://capwiz.com/abtr/mlm/signup/ and become an NRLN Individual Member by making a personal annual contribution. Details are available at www.nrln.org.
Bill Kadereit, President
National Retiree Legislative Network
Dear Senator ________ (Representative ________ )
Re: GM Retirees Latest Victims Of EEOC Rule
I’m writing to urge you to right an enormous wrong that has been done to America’s retirees. I’m referring to the fact that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has published a rule that allows employers to reduce or eliminate health care benefits for retirees age 65 and older who are Medicare eligible. This is outright age discrimination! The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) that Congress passed in 1967 was intended to prevent things like the EEOC Rule from impacting older citizens.
The latest horrific example of the harm the EEOC Rule is causing is the recent announcement by General Motors. On January 1, 2009, GM will cancel medical, dental, vision, hearing aid, prescription drug and extended care coverages for tens of thousands of retirees, age 65 and older, surviving spouses and dependents.
In lieu of the health care benefits, GM will provide a monthly pre-tax pension increase of $300. This amount will only be a drop in the bucket for what it will cost retirees living on fixed incomes to purchase replacement insurance for the coverages lost. Many retirees will not be able to afford the premium costs to replace these coverages. GM will end up paying nothing; they will use retiree pension money to pay the $300.
The National Retiree Legislative Network (NRLN) has proposed to Congressional leaders that a “Health Care Protection Act of 2008” should be introduced. Under this proposal, should an employer reduce or eliminate health care benefits, retirees would receive a Maintenance of Cost Payment (MCP) equivalent to the cost of their defined health care benefits as of the date of retirement. With the MCP, corporations would know their costs for retiree health care would not grow. Retirees would be more secure in knowing they could replace benefits with the MCP fixed-payment dollars.
If you have a better idea than the NRLN’s proposal, I want to hear what it is. You need to sponsor legislation to reverse the EEOC’s Rule and protect retirement benefits. If you do nothing, it says to me that you don’t care about preserving the retirement benefits that I worked much of my life to earn. If this is the case, why would a retiree want to vote for any incumbent member of Congress? I’ve read that the public’s approval rating of Congress is even lower than the approval rating of President Bush. The partisan bickering between the Democrats and Republicans that I see on the news must stop. You need to wake up to what is happening to retirees and fix the problems before millions of additional Americans are added to the poverty rolls and even greater costs for health care are placed on taxpayers.
At age 65, all retired members of Congress and other retired Federal employees are guaranteed healthcare benefits as good as GM’s, including Prescription Drugs, Long Term Care and Catastrophic insurance coverage. My hope is that you will help me so that I can be treated equally under the law.
Sincerely,
Your Name & Contact Information
Many of you have been asking what you can do. Well, now you know! A lot of hard work and time has gone into this project, so let’s get behind it and send those letters and call those congressional people until they do something. If they don’t, vote them out of office in November!
Please copy this link and send it to all of your GM friends and relatives .......ask them to send the letter/make the phone call on your behalf:
http://www.overthehillcarpeople.com/nlrnjoiningletter072208.htm
If you have questions, please feel free to write us at spoacdc1@aol.com .
Regards,
Jack Dickinson
July 20, 2008
Jack Dickinson
spoacdc1@aol.com
www.overthehillcarpeople.com
Subject: Important Message from Kathy Barclay - GM
This morning Rick Wagoner, GM’s Chairman and CEO, announced a series of actions to bolster the company’s liquidity by $15 billion through 2009. Included in these actions is the suspension of the GM common stock dividend, reductions in capital spending and structural cost, and a 20 percent reduction in salaried employment cash costs. In addition, he announced planned asset sales and capital market activities that again are focused on improving the company’s liquidity position.
As part of the 20 percent
reduction in salaried employment cash costs, we are making a change to
the General Motors Salaried Health Care Program. I wanted to
share this information directly with you, a retiree club president, in
order to help you understand the announcement and how this will impact
retirees and surviving spouses.
Effective January 1, 2009, GM is
canceling health care coverage for salaried retirees, surviving spouses
and their dependents when an individual is age 65 or older. Instead,
eligible salaried retirees and surviving spouses over age 65 will
receive a monthly pension increase of $300. This pension increase is
designed to help offset some of the health care costs in retirement.
Eligible salaried retirees,
surviving spouses and their dependents, who are pre-age 65, may continue
to participate in the General Motors Salaried Health Care Program
until they turn age 65. This Program remains subject to the Salaried
Retiree Health Care Cap that became effective January 1, 2007.
Salaried retirees and surviving spouses should receive a letter and Q&A document in the mail this week. We have attached copies for your information. Also attached are today’s press release and Rick Wagoner’s remarks from this morning’s press event.
Going forward, this change impacts how we will manage our health care plans and implementing this change will require the ongoing cooperation and assistance of our team, including you as one of our retiree club presidents. Work is already in process, but we have a significant and aggressive implementation schedule ahead of us. General Motors is absolutely committed to assisting the impacted retirees, surviving spouses and dependents. Our goal, over the next six months, will be to accomplish as smooth a transition as possible for those impacted.
We have hired Extend Health, a company that will assist retirees and surviving spouses in transitioning from GM coverages to individual Medicare plans like Medicare Advantage or Medigap. GM is very concerned about possible confusion that will result within the retiree community as they may become inundated with direct marketing materials. You can help with this. We have requested that GM's current health care plans refrain from direct marketing to retirees and surviving spouses impacted by this change and instead make their individual plan offerings available through Extend Health. If direct marketing materials are distributed, please instruct impacted retirees and surviving spouses to disregard and to look for materials that will be distributed later this year from GM and Extend Health rather than from health plans directly.
GM intends to host many retiree meetings to help explain the changes and answer questions. We will be reaching out to salaried retiree clubs to set up meetings in the near future. If you have questions in the meantime, please contact Julie Monahan, GM Health Care Training Consultant, at julie.a.monahan@gm.com or 313-665-8463.
This was a particularly difficult decision for the Company to make; however, it is necessary to take this action given today’s economic conditions. As hard as this action is, we are doing what is necessary to position GM to withstand the U.S. market downturn and emerge a stronger company. We ask for your understanding and continued support.
Sincerely,
Kathleen S. Barclay
Vice President, Global Human
Resources
General Motors Corporation
To all of you "American's" who would rather support Japan and its Japanese retirees: Your Time Is Coming!
Jack - Here is the letter I fired off on July 15.
Charles McGuire
Minden,
NV
July 15, 2008
General
Motors Corporation
300
Renaissance
Center
MC
482-C32-D82
Detroit,
MI
48265
To save me valuable time and assure that I do not misquote your statements I have taken the liberty to cut and paste your entire letter to this memo. All of my comments, following your statements, are in the brown color, indeed brown was chosen because this is a very gloomy and disappointing “Special Announcement”.
GM Retiree eNews
July 15, 2008
Special Announcement
GM Turnaround Actions and Initiatives
Since the first of this year, U.S. market and economic conditions have
become significantly more difficult. These conditions, along with the
rapid change in automotive industry sales mix, require us to take
further actions that will position us not only to survive but, to come
out of this as a lean, strong and successful company.
How many times have I heard this statement
both as an active employee and retiree? It is insulting for you to have
the audacity to attempt to have people believe the change in the
automotive business has been rapid. Where has our leadership been, why
has it taken us so long to become lean, strong and successful? The lean,
strong and successful initiatives started way back in 1995; at least
that is when it was rolled out in my division.
This morning Rick Wagoner, GM's Chairman and CEO, announced a series of actions to bolster the company's liquidity by $15 billion through 2009. Included in these actions is the suspension of the GM common stock dividend, reductions in capital spending and structural cost, and a 20 percent reduction in salaried employment cash costs. In addition, he announced planned asset sales and capital market activities that again are focused on improving the company's liquidity position. What about cuts in leadership salaries and perks? What about cuts in NASCAR? What about cuts in consultants who have failed to do their jobs or GM has failed to implement their recommendations? What about cuts in rebates, they haven’t saved us over the last 20 (twenty) years anyhow? What about cuts in non productive salary and hourly positions? What about holding senior management accountable? What about following the lead of Honda and Toyota and manufacture products the public will buy? Why can’t we be as nimble as our competition (I know our legacy costs are much higher but they only go away with death or take backs and neither is a good alternative)? What about shutting down some models or divisions? What about cutting back on charitable contributions to others, charity begins at home? How will you accelerate retirements when those you want to retire see how you treat retirees? What about soliciting retirees to donate time to work on special projects etc.?
As part of the 20 percent reduction in salaried employment cash costs, we are making a change to the General Motors Salaried Health Care Program. Effective January 1, 2009, GM is canceling health care coverage for salaried retirees, surviving spouses and their dependents when an individual is age 65 or older. This is a devastating announcement. Why punish the retirees for the shortcomings of the leadership that has not led the organization in the right direction, generated profits or at least cut costs and turned General Motors around much sooner. Instead, eligible salaried retirees and surviving spouses over age 65 will receive a monthly pension increase of $300. This pension increase is designed to help offset some of the health care costs in retirement.
Eligible salaried retirees, surviving spouses and their dependents, who are pre-age 65, may continue to participate in the General Motors Salaried Health Care Program until they turn age 65. This program remains subject to the Salaried Retiree Health Care Cap that became effective January 1, 2007.
More information regarding this announcement will be mailed to retirees and surviving spouses this week. GM intends to host many retiree meetings to help explain the changes and answer questions. We will contact salaried retiree clubs to set up meetings in the near future. I can hardly wait, I am sure we will get a sales pitch one would not believe. You are probably going to tell us that by making this sacrifice we will be lifted up, God will bless us and future take backs will be minimal.
This was a particularly difficult decision for the company to make; however, it is necessary to take this action given today's challenging economic conditions. Economic conditions have been challenging for a long time as evidenced by retiree take-a-ways over the past 4 (four) years. As hard as this action is, we are doing what is necessary to position GM to withstand the U.S. market downturn and emerge a stronger company. GM is not in this position because of the economic downturn; they are in this position because of poor leadership and decision making. GM's goal is to make this transition as easy as possible for retirees who are impacted. How are you going to make this easier?
I hope our leadership sleeps well at night, I sure don’t. I have always been a loyal GM employee & retiree but myself like many others are getting tired of turning the other cheek. You ask us to sell cars, buy GM insurance, finance through GMAC, support the General Motors Dealer body, and support the GM credit card, which for the most part I have always done, in most cases at a premium. I just don’t think I can afford to be loyal anymore, you might say I will just be hurting myself but in most cases General Motors is not competitive in the items mentioned above. I could identify many more concerns here but bottom line I am disappointed and mad.
Charles F. McGuire camcguire46@msn.com
If you would like to express your comments to GM like Charles did or read comments from other GM folks just click this link: GM Robs Its Elderly Retirees
Overthehillcarpeople.com In The News:
As part of the $15 billion liquidity improvement for General Motors GM, starting Jan. 1 health care for the over-65 retiree will be cut and substituted by a monthly increase to the pension.
That's a lot of people who have just lost health-care coverage -- many elderly, some sick, and most of whom thought they wouldn't have to think about health insurance ever again in their lives.
Michelle Bunker, GM health-care communications manager, said it took the decision to increase the pensions of the eligible retirees because it gave them more flexibility.
GM, along with the rest of the U.S. auto industry, has been struggling mightily of late as demand for high-profit-margin SUVs flags amid high gas prices and auto makers such as ToyotaTM and HondaHMC produce more technologically advanced and appealing lineups. In fact, many people think the company is bound for bankruptcy in the near future.
But the company's woes are hurting real people, too.
Jack Dickinson, a retiree with 34 years of sales and marketing experience, presides over a GM retiree group, www.overthehillcarpeople.com , which has been overwhelmed with calls and emails from concerned retirees. He says that retirees were very angry about the announcement, and noted that "we have some really sick folks undergoing chemo at the moment," among others for whom this could be fairly traumatic.
Dickinson says, "They could have and should have included retirees in the discussion. Calls to GM are not being answered, just receiving a recorded message -- no further information."
Letters received by GM retirees last weekend
from Kathy Barclay, vice president of global human resources,
state that GM will be holding meetings all over the country with
retirees from September to December to answer questions. She
emphasizes that "General Motors is absolutely committed to
assisting the impacted retirees, surviving spouses and
dependents."
One reason retirees and their families are upset is the salaried employees accepted slightly lower than average salaries for the work that they did, on the basis that when they retired they would have pension and health benefits for life, thereby compensating for the lower salary.
This belief has now been shattered.
Oscar Stratton, a GM retiree, comments, "Who thought when they retired in 1984 about what would happen in 2008?" He added that "employees need to realize that retirement perks are perks. Pension, heath care and other retiree benefits could disappear at any time."
Dickinson echoes this, saying "This is overwhelming to retirees in their 70's and 80's."
Chrysler and Ford Fpreviously cancelled retiree health-care arrangements, making a contribution to a Health Reimbursement Account instead.
Chuck Austin President of the National Chrysler Retirement Organization, says, "we were angry because we were promised health care for life. In 1988 they put in a provision that it could be cancelled."
A Ford retiree with 40 years in industrial engineering recalls, "It was an absolute disaster for Ford salaried employees."
Some retirees questioned why they should even buy the cars from their former employer.
One opines, "We gave them courtesy, devotion and loyalty. This should be shown to them now as they have been given."
Chuck White, chair of a group of Ford retiree
organizations, cautions that retirees should take a moment
before reacting: "Step back and look at it, and consider all of
the changes. The haircut is being applied to everything --
unions, employees and salaried retirees. If retirees started to
protest that they would not purchase Ford or GM products and
they were successful, they could put their entire package in
jeopardy. Purchasing reduces their risk."
Echoing the concern over the future of retiree benefits, heightened by the announcement yesterday of a reduction of 1,000 salaried staff at Chrysler, Austin says, "We are definitely concerned about the spending account. It is optional, and we have not heard anything yet about the intentions towards the account for next year."
"We understand the challenges of foreign competition but tightening your belts should mean that when things get better they get loosened," Austin continues. "That won't happen."
White says of the Ford retiree package, "We believe that the retiree benefits are tied to the financial condition of the company -- and yes, we are concerned, but we do not believe that they would make further cuts unless necessary."
He adds, "Don't get into a fighting rage. Make the system work for you. Meet with GM, ensure that communications get out. Make it as smooth and as good as you can. My best advice is to ask myself, what is my situation and what do I have to do that is best for me?"
http://www.thestreet.com/story/10430299/1/gm-retirees-talk-about-health-coverage-cuts.html
General Motors' GM salaried retirees were caught by surprise last week with the announcement of the withdrawal of health care from 2009, and the initial anger is still there, but now it's being replaced by concerns about the future.
Here's an outline of what GM retirees can expect, and what steps to take to get health insurance if this has happened to you.
What Has Changed
Effective Jan. 1, eligible GM salaried retirees and their spouses will no longer receive health care benefits once they reach 65 and become eligible for Medicare. Instead they will receive a taxable increase to their pension of $300 per month. Eligible retirees are those who currently do or would have received GM health care assistance after age 65.
Both retiree and spouse will continue to receive GM health care until they individually reach 65.
The $300 increase to the pension is a discretionary increase and is subject to GM's continuation of this benefit, which means that it could be reduced, removed or increased in the future.
GM has contracted with Extend Health to provide health insurance advice and coordinate enrollment, and has asked individual health insurers not to contact retirees directly.
GM Plan Isn't So Bad, Comparatively
Both Ford F and Chrysler have been through this process over the past two years, and GM retirees may actually consider themselves somewhat fortunate after looking at the options offered by the other companies.
Chuck White, chairman of a group of Ford retiree
organizations, says, "We get $1,800 each year into a Health
Reimbursement Account, plus the same for a spouse/domestic partner. The
average retiree would prefer the GM plan, no medical expenses to be
reimbursed, spend it however you want. It is twice as much, even if it
is taxable."
Enrollment Concerns
It would be fair to say that we have received much feedback from both Chrysler and Ford retirees about their experiences with EH. White says, "Extend Health did some good things and improved as they found problems. If a retiree calls, he will have one benefits adviser throughout the process."
Chuck Austin, president of the National Chrysler Retirement Organization, says he's heard anecdotal evidence that EH was "simply overwhelmed with calls."
Bryce Williams, president and CEO of Extend Health, says things have improved: "Extend Health is providing a better and more efficient enrollment process with most of the health care providers. ... We will have hundreds more agents on the phone and every time you call you will speak with a licensed benefits adviser."
Williams adds that they have increased technology usage with health care providers and that these two steps should take care of 90% of the previous problems.
EH has arrangements with most Blue Cross Blue Shield companies, including BCBS of Michigan, and offers the plans that BCBS-MI has on the market.
Health and Coverage Concerns
With the exception of end-stage renal failure patients, who should contact them, EH says all other retirees will be able to obtain access to a Medigap or Medicare Advantage guaranteed-issue plan within the Medicare enrollment period. Those undergoing cancer treatment or suffering from chronic conditions, such as diabetes, will be able to obtain coverage.
Austin of the Chrysler retirees group says, "There is
a Medicare Advantage plan with Blue Cross offering comparable care to
the old Chrysler plan in Michigan. When Chrysler withdrew the plan, most
people transferred and were not refused coverage. Prescription plans
varied and some people found that they were not covered for the drugs
they previously had."
Other Concerns
EH says it will work with spouses who lose coverage, as well as the retirees themselves.
Some retiree-rights advocates have voiced concern about confusion and difficulty, given the magnitude of the changes, as well as the fact that some of those affected might require assistance in sorting through the options and making the decisions.
Jack Dickinson of GM retiree group Over the Hill Car People.Com says, "This is overwhelming to retirees in their 70's and 80's. Help lines like Extend Health are meant to be a help but it is overwhelming to elderly people who don't expect to have to make these kind of decisions."
Regarding those who may be infirm or need help with the choices, EH's Williams says "a caregiver or relative can be on the call to us, as well to assist getting them on the right plan. There are legal documents that can give caregivers or relatives proxy to help enroll the infirm."
As for the cost, Williams says, "We cannot predict what will happen, but most clients are very surprised at the competitive value of the individual plans available in the market."
NCRO's Austin says, "Finding our own coverage is more expensive -- everyone is paying more than before." He says costs have risen between $2,000 and $10,000 a year.
White of the Ford group comments, "Some retirees in good health found that they could get a pretty good plan at a lesser cost ... but with high prescription plan requirements, costs rose. Everyone is different."
http://www.thestreet.com/story/10430045/1/what-to-do-if-gm-cut-your-health-insurance.html
Retirees' Health Care 12/04/07 - Submitted By Jim Conlee
Click
this link to read all of the information
Overthehillcarpeople.com has at this time on the subject of
GM canceling health care for 65 and older salaried retirees:
GM Robs Its Elderly Retirees Of Health
Care!
Jack Dickinson
spoacdc1@aol.com
www.overthehillcarpeople.com
01234071808123
