SB 1114, as introduced, Walters. Postretirement health care benefits.
Existing law generally authorizes a state employee or annuitant to enroll in an approved health benefit plan administered by the Board of Administration of the Public Employees’ Retirement System pursuant to the Public Employees’ Medical and Hospital Care Act. Existing law establishes percentages for levels of benefit coverage afforded under the approved health benefit plan in which the employee or annuitant is enrolled.
Existing law specifies the number of years of state service a state employee needs to receive the full employer contribution payable for annuitants and the rate at which the employer contribution is required to be paid to an annuitant based on credited state service at the time of retirement.
This bill would prohibit a state employee who is hired by the state for the first time on or after January 1, 2015, from receiving any portion of the employer contribution payable for annuitants unless the employee is credited with 15 years of state service at the time of retirement, at which point the employer contribution would be 50%. The bill would increase the employer contribution payable for postretirement health benefits for an employee subject to these provisions by 5% each credited year of service, reaching 100% for an annuitant with 25 years of credited state service at the time of retirement. The bill would also prohibit an annuitant subject to this section from receiving an employer contribution towards health benefits that is more generous than that provided to active state civil service employees.
Existing law requires the board to pay to an employee or annuitant who is enrolled in, or whose family member is enrolled in, a Medicare health benefit plan the amount of monthly premiums, not exceeding the difference between the maximum employer contribution and the amount contributed by the employer toward the cost of premiums.
This bill would require an annuitant to use medicare benefits, if he or she is eligible to receive those benefits, to the fullest extent possible.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 22875.1 is added to the Government
2Code, to read:
(a) Notwithstanding Sections 22870, 22871, 22873,
4and 22874, a state employee who becomes a state member of the
5system on or after January 1, 2015, shall not receive any portion
6of the employer contribution payable for annuitants, unless the
7employee is credited with 15 years of state service at the time of
8retirement.
9(b) A state employee subject to this section shall not be eligible
10to receive the full employer contribution payable for an annuitant
11unless he or she has 25 years of credited state service at the time
12of retirement.
13(c) Notwithstanding any other law, an annuitant subject to this
14section shall not receive a contribution towards health benefits that
15is more generous
than that provided to state employees.
16(d) The percentage of the employer contribution payable for
17postretirement health benefits for an employee subject to this
18section shall be based on the completed years of credited state
19service at retirement as shown in the following table:
|
Years of Service Contribution |
Credited Years Percentage |
|
15 |
50 |
|
16 |
55 |
|
17 |
60 |
|
18 |
65 |
|
19 |
70 |
|
20 |
75 |
|
21 |
80 |
|
22 |
85 |
|
23 |
90 |
|
24 |
95 |
|
25 or more |
100 |
Section 22879 of the Government Code is amended
10to read:
(a) The board shall pay monthly to an employee or
12annuitant who is enrolled in, or whose family member is enrolled
13in, a Medicare health benefit plan under this part the amount of
14the Medicare Part B premiums, exclusive of penalties, except as
15provided in Section 22831. This paymentbegin delete mayend deletebegin insert shallend insert not exceed
16the difference between the maximum employer contribution and
17the amount contributed by the employer toward the cost of
18premiums for the health benefit plan in which the employee or
19annuitant and his or her family members are enrolled.begin delete Noend deletebegin insert
Aend insert
20 paymentbegin delete mayend deletebegin insert shall notend insert be made in any month if the difference is
21less than one dollar ($1).
22(b) This section shall be applicable only to state employees,
23annuitants who retired while state employees, and the family
24members of those persons.
25(c) With respect to an annuitant, the board shall pay to the
26annuitant the amount required by this section from the same source
27from which his or her allowance is paid. Those amounts are hereby
28appropriated monthly from the General Fund to reimburse the
29board for those payments.
30(d) There is hereby appropriated from the appropriate funds the
31amounts required by this
section to be paid to active state
32employees.
33(e) Notwithstanding any other law, an employee or annuitant
34who is enrolled in, or whose family is enrolled in, a Medicare
35health benefit plan shall use those benefits to the fullest extent
36possible.
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