Citing Obamacare, Employers Tell Retirees To Seek Their Own Coverage (shifting cost to government)

Forbes ^ | August 6,2013 | Bruce Japsen

[Zakeet]

Employer retiree health care coverage, which has been deteriorating for years amid high health care costs and waning employer interest, is headed for bigger changes thanks to the Affordable Care Act, a new study shows.

More than 40 percent of employers have eliminated their traditional group health coverage for retirees over the age of 65 in favor of giving these former employees a defined amount of money for them to buy their coverage on the individual Medicare plan market, according to a new survey of more than 540 companies by employee benefits consulting firm Aon Hewitt (AON).

For most of these retirees, they have access to the Medicare health insurance program for the elderly so they are unlikely to be losing medical benefits. In some cases, it has been a rich benefit for retirees though it has dwindled over time in the face of rising health care costs.

These days, retirees have more choices through the so-called Medicare Advantage plan market which includes offerings from the likes of health insurance giants Aetna (Aet), Cigna (CI), Humana (HUM) and UnitedHealth Group (UNH). It’s been costly for companies to continue to sponsor their own retiree coverage in part because of this mature market.

[Zakeet]

More than 60 percent of companies [are] planning changes to retiree coverage, according to Aon Hewitt

[Travis McGee]

[Balding_Eagle]

All seems to be going according to Obama’s plan.

[3Fingas]

Employers are also cutting hours so that jobs are being reclassified as part-time.

[sickoflibs]

RE V:”More than 40 percent of employers have eliminated their traditional group health coverage for retirees over the age of 65 in favor of giving these former employees a defined amount of money for them to buy their coverage on the individual Medicare plan market, according to a new survey of more than 540 companies by employee benefits consulting firm Aon Hewitt (AON). “

Wasnt this the magical Ryan plan for all of Medicare?
Just hand you a coupon and tell you good luck on finding health care?

Except Ryan's brainstorm would have started in 10 years from passage and exempted everyone over the age of 55 at time of passage, really smart, big winners and big losers, tough luck suckers..

ahhhh, If Ryan proposes then it must be good as he is budget wizard boy wonder.

but if Obama-care does it then its bad, bad, bad,.

[johncatl]

The Headline is misleading. It should say that they are shifting the cost to us,not the government.

If the "government" is responsible, then the burden should be on the Federal, state and municipal workers to pay

[conservaKate]

Not a fan of the whole voucher thing and so far my company hasn’t ‘forced’ me to move my spouse over to Medicare or some other gov health plan. I want to be able to keep him on my medical plan as long as I can because I’ve seen how limited...in my experience...the choices are for folks on Medicare re: doctors, exams, etc.

So far my premiums for insurance have not become ridiculous but it will be interesting to see what my company does re health care support/money in the next few years. As with most companies, the company I work for will do what is most profitable for the company....which is to be expected.

[JLAGRAYFOX]

Wake up, America.....sign & endorse the Lee/Cruz defund petition today!!!

(www;dontfundobamacare.com)

[Buckeye McFrog]

well, DUH....why do you think this turkey had as much support in the corporate community as it did?

When it was not immediately pummeled with more Harry and Louise ads, I knew we had been sold out.

[Graybeard58]

I’m a retiree with medicare and my former private employer became my secondary insurer when I became 65 years old. Just wondering what’s going to happen to my plan when zerocare kicks in.

My wife and two minor children are not covered by medicare and my former employer is their primary provider.

[anoldafvet]

Affordable Care Act = Do As I Say Not As I Do Act

[catnipman]

So, if I correctly understand this VERY wordy article which is chock-a-block full of deliberate, nearly incomprehensible “HumanResourceSpeak”, a majority of companies are simply going to eliminate retiree medical benefits by dumping their former employees onto the Obamacare health care “exchanges”?

[redgolum]

Someone has to pay.

Companies can afford to pay benefits for workers who no longer work. It is as simple as that.

You can pay for three sets of workers, of which only one is actually working.

What do you suggest?

[sickoflibs]

RE :”Companies can afford to pay benefits for workers who no longer work. It is as simple as that.”

Is this typo or did you mean to write this.

Are you asking me for an alternative to Ryan pitch on Medicare?

[Pining_4_TX]

Things are so messed up now, that it would be difficult to fix health insurance and health care. The only thing that works is a free market in both. Medicare can’t last, and at some point older folks (and I am one!) will have to pay for their own health care.

If government had not intervened in the first place, health insurance and care would not have gotten so outrageously expensive. With more government involvement, things are only going to get worse with the result being bad care, higher costs, and rationing. Socialism always fails.

Our only hope is in the doctors who are breaking away from the system and interacting directly with patients. Also, the small clinics that some drug stores and others are setting up will help.

Another problem is that not every ailment requires a doctor with advanced training. Nurses and pharmacists should be allowed to do more than they can presently.

The path we are on now is unsustainable. The increasing number of old folks and the declining birth rates mean that at some point, people are going to have to pay their own bills. That is what should have happened all along.

[redgolum]

Can should Can’t. I hate my phone sometimes!

Yes, I am asking for that. Someone has to pay. Either the healthcare consumers, their former companies, or the State.

And yes, benefits will be cut.

[stephenjohnbanker]

” Wasnt this the magical Ryan plan for all of Medicare?
Just hand you a coupon and tell you good luck on finding health care?

Except Ryan’s brainstorm would have started in 10 years from passage and exempted everyone over the age of 55 at time of passage, really smart, big winners and big losers, tough luck suckers..”

I slightly prefer Stalin’s first “5 Year Plan”, but not by mush : )

[sickoflibs]

RE :”The path we are on now is unsustainable. The increasing number of old folks and the declining birth rates mean that at some point, people are going to have to pay their own bills.”

Its unsustainable?

Medicare has been running operational deficits since the Bush second term well over 5 years requiring issuing national debt to pay some of those bills. Ironic with all the talk of government must ‘live within its budget’ And one reason why is that the GOP passed a huge increase in benefits in 2004 which Ryan supported.

But Ryan wont tell you that because it allows him to float his silly ‘we have to pass it now to find out what's in it 10 years later‘ medicare resolution that 100% exempts those born before a certain age from any cuts(they get to keep the Bush-Ryan 2004 medicaid expansion too), and tells the rest (younger) who get to pay the bills they are completely out of luck.

"You older people will continue to get what you been getting including that medicare gift we gave you in 2004, but those of you born a day later are out of luck you suckers. I am honest to tell you how I want to give you the shaft. But we save Medicare for you by giving you a coupon that you can use at the morgue to be cremated'

He only includes this stupid 55/10 year delayidea which no-one bought because he wanted to bribe the GOP base to support it, as they are the over 55 crowd.

It too obvious of a scam to sell.

[stephenjohnbanker]

” But we save Medicare for you by giving you a coupon that you can use at the morgue to be cremated’ “

L M A O !

Thank you, oh genius Ryan.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

Ryan jumping on the amnesty bandwagon has many benefits for Obama, whom he still pretends to oppose. One of them is that then next time Ryan talks about one of his budget plans, his credibility among conservatives who are paying attention will be even lower than it was.

Makes me wonder if the GOP bosses will look for a new "immigration reform" leader like Gowdy, who so far keeps more of his apparent anti-Obama reputation intact.

Spock: There is an old Vulcan proverb: "Only Nixon could go to China."