Retired Pilots on Cobra

[2BorNot2B]

Hello all! Is there any Pilot out there over 65 that has been offered the Cobra package? The "day" is coming, and Benefits advised me today that I will be offered this coverage as a supplement to Medicare, but had little info and no idea of cost. They said it would be administered by Ceridian. Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Thanks ..... Ed

 

[BoeingBoy]

Pilots (East) can have the company plan under COBRA rules, but since it is limited to 18 months of coverage after retirement and we have to retire at 60, you won't find a pilot over 65 still on it.

Alternatively, we can stay on the company plan for as long as we want - same plan but called "Access".

Either way, we pay the entire cost out of pocket. Don't know if it's the same for every employee group, but for us the top plan (100/80) is $1610/month in 2007, rising each year to $2000/month in 2009 (ex-employee plus spouse coverage - half that for just the ex-employee).

Jim

[Edit to add]

Was just looking at the health coverage info on theHup and noticed that the cost shown there is quite a bit less than what is shown on the sheet that ALPA put out after LOA 93 negotiations (which I quoted above). On theHub, the cost for the top plan (100/80) for ex-employee + spouse is $1050 in 2006 vs $1400+ that ALPA put out for 2006. I've emailed the MEC retirement guys to see which is accurate, though presumably the ALPA number was the projected cost when the sheet was put together in 2004 while theHub has accurate info.

 

[2BorNot2B]

Hi Jim! Yes .... I'm "East" ... Mohawk as a matter of fact!
I am aware of the tragic situation you mention! Just how one might afford that cost/mo + copay, I cannot imagine!
No, I was quite interested in what I was told. Evidently, a pilot who retired back when I did, qualifies for this Cobra Plan, which the Benefits person said was lifetime, not 18 mo.. That is what was supposed to be the case prior to BK, the merger, etc.
I really feel bad about all the folks yet to retire.... Medical costs are out of sight, and of course the 60's is when all the bad things start to happen! (I am now the "proud" host of two stents)
Who would have ever thought so much would be lost by so many dedicated Employees!

Thanks for your input!
Ed

 

[BoeingBoy]

That could be, 2BorNot2B. The 18 month info came from the ALPA MEC retirement guys.

I know that COBRA has different time limits, based on the circumstances - my daughter had 36 months of COBRA eligibility when she reached the age to come off our family plan. So the information you received could be correct. FWIW, I just called and was told by Janet at retirement benefits that COBRA would last 18 months for me.

Someone PM'd me about the HCTC - COBRA coverage qualifies. So if you can get COBRA indefinitely, that seems like the best of all worlds, though I'd check to see if the HCTC applies after Medicare starts.

Frankly, I haven't looked at the post-65 options (just assuming Medicare and some kind of "Medigap" coverage, but the company plan seems pretty expensive if you're just looking to fill the gaps in Medicare coverage. But that could depend on one's circumstances also.

Jim

 

[N924PS]

Hi Jim! Yes .... I'm "East" ... Mohawk as a matter of fact!
I am aware of the tragic situation you mention! Just how one might afford that cost/mo + copay, I cannot imagine!
No, I was quite interested in what I was told. Evidently, a pilot who retired back when I did, qualifies for this Cobra Plan, which the Benefits person said was lifetime, not 18 mo.. That is what was supposed to be the case prior to BK, the merger, etc.
I really feel bad about all the folks yet to retire.... Medical costs are out of sight, and of course the 60's is when all the bad things start to happen! (I am now the "proud" host of two stents)
Who would have ever thought so much would be lost by so many dedicated Employees!

Thanks for your input!
Ed

Which is why the USAirways Joint Negotiating Committee, with leadership from the MEC & MEC Chairman should be making the restoration of retiree medical benefits a top priority. This should include pilots that have retired post LOA93 with the options ($$$$$) that Boeing Boy has mentioned.

Employees that have served this corporation for over 25 and up to 40 years should not be cast adrift without health insurance in retirement. Do you think Doug Parker and his family will be without insurance when he retires?

 

[BoeingBoy]

2BorNot2B,

I just read a letter on the change to UHC for company medical and one line referenced lifetime COBRA benefits:

"For those of you who have lifetime COBRA coverage through Letter 1114, we were assured by the Company that your coverage will be recognized and administered accordingly by UHC."

I have no idea what "Letter 1114" is or who it applies to.

Jim

 

[700UW]

Section 1114 letter refers to the bankrupcty code that effects retirees, it was part of the chapter 11 case, a deal between the retirees and the company.

 

[Dorf]

Employees that have served this corporation for over 25 and up to 40 years should not be cast adrift without health insurance in retirement. Do you think Doug Parker and his family will be without insurance when he retires?

Doug Parker won't retire from U, but you can bet one of the "parting gifts" will be lifetime med benefits paid for by the toiling employees. Then again, there probably is a millionaire's medical coverage club he can belong to.

 

[2BorNot2B]

2BorNot2B,

I just read a letter on the change to UHC for company medical and one line referenced lifetime COBRA benefits:

"For those of you who have lifetime COBRA coverage through Letter 1114, we were assured by the Company that your coverage will be recognized and administered accordingly by UHC."

I have no idea what "Letter 1114" is or who it applies to.

Jim

Jim:
I cannot thank you enought for the time you have spent checking this out! "Letter 1114" might be the key to it! Benefits stated that this was a certain group that qualified. As you say, just the word Cobra spells big $$$, and that is my great fear. The big issue is also the prescription drug coverage. All the Seniors I know say the Government program is not worth a darn when you get right down to it. Heck, even with my 100/80 coverage from U/BCBS, my copays for 90 days meds. total $340.
I am relieved that I will have a coverage option, though I may not be able to afford it. One jeapordy that I learned is that if one has pre-existing, getting new coverage is difficult,if not impossible. Not a problem if you had insurance from your Company tho, such as BCBS. But USAir was self insured, BCBS & others over the years were just Plan Administrators! 28 yrs. and I did not know
that!

Thanks again Jim, and everyone else that has contributed their knowledge!

Gee, I wish "only 25%" of my holdings was worth $9,000,000.00! I wouldn't have to worry so much!

Ed

700UW

How can I find out more about Letter 1114?? Retirees are locked out of the ALPA BB's & are not represented by ALPA, so there is no info there. Where can I go to get such info??

Thanks .... Ed

 

[700UW]

You can probably find it on the bankruptcy court web page.

 

[BoeingBoy]

If you don't have it, the website with all the court filings is:

Donlin, Recano, and Company, Inc.

There's a search function - you could probably search for something like "Section 1114", "retiree", or something similiar.

You might also try the retired pilot groups - either PI or US.

If you qualify for lifetime COBRA, that's truly the best possible outcome - keep the company plan and the HCTC will pay 65% of the premium after you start getting the PBGC payments.

Jim

 

[2BorNot2B]

If you don't have it, the website with all the court filings is:

Donlin, Recano, and Company, Inc.

There's a search function - you could probably search for something like "Section 1114", "retiree", or something similiar.

You might also try the retired pilot groups - either PI or US.

If you qualify for lifetime COBRA, that's truly the best possible outcome - keep the company plan and the HCTC will pay 65% of the premium after you start getting the PBGC payments.

Jim

Great info ... Thanks Again!

Ref. your last paragraph ... that's the hard part! (Groan) I went out on the Lump Sum, and after 2002, the PBGC looks like a good deal! Lost my Butt!

Ed

 

[BoeingBoy]

Ref. your last paragraph ... that's the hard part! (Groan) I went out on the Lump Sum, and after 2002, the PBGC looks like a good deal! Lost my Butt!

Sorry to hear that. Probably the biggest potential downside to the lump sum is once you get that big check there'll never be another dollar coming in.

While I'm almost positive that you won't qualify for the HCTC, it might be worth a look. Just go to the IRS website (irs.gov) and search for "HCTC". There's lots of info and the contact number. When I called with some questions, they were as nice as could be.

Jim