Health Insurance and US Airways (LUS) Retirees

[TinLizzy]

I'm helping a fellow mechanic look at his health insurance options in retirement (LUS). Darned if I can understand exactly what our contract says and I read decent English. Maybe some current retirees can help a guy out. I'm looking at pages 124 and 125 in our contract.
 
He's 62 and has about 900 sick hours, so he can sell these back at the measly $13.25/hour. That looks capped at 38 hours for $503.50/month. Okay, I got that. Next it says it is applied to the pre-65 medical premium. Now, where exactly do we find that? It's not the so-called access only medical plan because on page 125 it says you only go in the access only once sick pay has been exhausted and he has all these sick hours. I know it's not COBRA, so where is it?
 
He showed me the retiree form he got from the Company and they only give two options: Access only and COBRA. I see the same on our benefits site. He can't use his sick hours payback with COBRA and you only go into access only when you've sold all your sick pay.
 
Does anyone know what's going on with this?

 

[mike33]

I'm helping a fellow mechanic look at his health insurance options in retirement (LUS). Darned if I can understand exactly what our contract says and I read decent English. Maybe some current retirees can help a guy out. I'm looking at pages 124 and 125 in our contract.
 
He's 62 and has about 900 sick hours, so he can sell these back at the measly $13.25/hour. That looks capped at 38 hours for $503.50/month. Okay, I got that. Next it says it is applied to the pre-65 medical premium. Now, where exactly do we find that? It's not the so-called access only medical plan because on page 125 it says you only go in the access only once sick pay has been exhausted and he has all these sick hours. I know it's not COBRA, so where is it?
 
He showed me the retiree form he got from the Company and they only give two options: Access only and COBRA. I see the same on our benefits site. He can't use his sick hours payback with COBRA and you only go into access only when you've sold all your sick pay.
 
Does anyone know what's going on with this?

http://my.aa.com/en/2015-retiree-benefits

 

[TinLizzy]

http://my.aa.com/en/2015-retiree-benefits

 
In my original post I wrote, "I see the same on our benefits site", meaning the US Airways LUS benefits website. What you sent merely confirms what I wrote and doesn't answer the question.
 
We're looking at our current IAM contract with the wording re: retiree insurance and it doesn't line up with what the company is putting out.

 

[Slopoke]

For me, I would call the union first for the information you need, then have them email or fax you the info, just to make sure what is verbal matches what is in writing. I suppose, HR would be able to give you the annual premium costs as well.
 
Looking at the current IAM contract, you move to the access only plan when he does not have any more sick time to offset the cost. At that point he is responsible for the entire annual premium til age 65.

 

[TinLizzy]

Thanks, Slo for your response. He's called HR and they referred him to the paper he would need to fill out for retiree health with two options: COBRA or Access Only. The company is pretty upfront that sick pay hours can't be used for COBRA, you have to settle for even less per hour by selling them outright and taking the tax hit: $10.80/hr.
 
The contract is pretty clear, too. Only once you've used up ALL your sick pay (selling it back to the co. each month at 38 hrs x $13.25) can you move to the access only plan.
 
As to the union, this guy was told, "you've got two options. pick one." Not a lot of help there.
 
This guy can't be the only one who's run into this. There's got to be others. I'm hoping retirees who are under 65 will jump in with some info.

 

[WeAAsles]

Tell him to look at the ACA enrollment coming up and see depending what he is going to draw out for retirement yearly how much his subsides will be. COBRA is a joke. He can use his hours till the end of the year and take the cash that's left maybe?

 

[TinLizzy]

Well, it's kinda difficult for a guy to look at his options, which is what he's trying to do, when the options don't line up with the contract. He could end up paying less per month with selling back sick pay for $503.50 than what he might get on ACA, but at this point he doesn't know where he can apply his sick hours. The company says they can only be applied to "access only", but that's not what our contract says.