Retired Public Employees Council of WA Working to protect and enhance the pension and health care benefits of Washington retired state, county and local government employees
Updated 3/24/2023
Register today for Health Care Authority’s Virtual and In-person Listening Sessions and Public Forums – Space is Limited
Time is running out to register and take part in the virtual listening sessions, virtual public forums and the in-person listening sessions hosted by the Health Care Authority (HCA) to hear from public sector retirees who receive their healthcare benefits from the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB). Register at: https://www.hca.wa.gov/about-hca/news/announcements/register-pebb-medicare-listening-sessions. Registration is required and space is limited. Sign up today!
The virtual listening sessions, conducted by Zoom, will be held weekly from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Each will include 12 participants who subscribe to each of the healthcare plans offered by PEBB. Everyone who registers will receive the questions to be discussed in advance. Registration is still open for the following virtual listening sessions: March 28 and 30, April 6, 18, 20, 25, and 27, and May 2, 4, 9, 10, 16, 18, 25, 30, and 31.
Four in-person listening sessions will be held in the following communities. The in-person listening sessions will be limited to 12 participants and will also be held from 10 a.m. to noon. Register at: https://www.hca.wa.gov/about-hca/news/announcements/register-pebb-medicare-listening-sessions. Sign up today!
- 3/29 Tumwater
- 4/11 Cheney
- 4/12 Yakima
- 5/16 Bothell
HCA will also host three virtual public forums via Zoom. Each forum will accommodate up to 30 participants. Attendees will have 3 minutes to share information or concerns. The public forums will be held on April 26, May 17 and May 24. The sessions will be held from 10-11:30 a.m. Registration is required. Space is limited. Register at: PEBB Medicare retirees: Participate in a virtual public forum | Washington State Health Care Authority. Sign up today!
The stakeholder engagements resulted from an opposition effort to preserve the UMP Classic Medicare plan, which was led by RPEC in concert with other retiree groups. Through our collective efforts, HCA withdrew its proposal to terminate the healthcare plan. Through Resolution 2022-16, the PEB Board required HCA staff to engage stakeholders in 2023 about their healthcare needs.
The organizations that worked alongside RPEC to mount the opposition effort in June 2022 became the PEBB Stakeholders’ Medicare Coalition. Since July, Coalition partners have been meeting with HCA staff to plan the stakeholder engagements. The Coalition includes: RPEC, WSARA, Washington Education Association-Retired, the American Federation of Teachers Washington-Retiree Chapter, Healthcare is a Human Right, Social Security Works-Washington, Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action, Washington’s Senior Citizens Lobby, and the Washington Federation of State Employees (AFSCME Council 28).
In addition to helping HCA staff plan the stakeholder engagements, the Coalition has been successful in securing unanimous passage of a resolution to preserve the UMP Classic Medicare plan and expand support for traditional Medicare by the Washington State Labor Council. The Coalition was successful in securing a written agreement, signed by HCA Director Sue Birch, stating that HCA will not close the UMP Classic Medicare plan. Finally, during the current legislative session, the Coalition is pursuing legislative action to expand accountability for HCA to be more responsive to retirees and their needs.
