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
Select Committee on Pension Policy (SCPP) Discusses Plan 1 COLA
Select Committee on Pension Policy (SCPP) – Members of RPEC attended the Select Committee on Pension Policy (SCPP) meeting September 19th in Olympia where they heard two options for a PLAN 1 COLA. Click here to see the two proposals.
The SCPP Executive Committee voted in favor of having the fiscal notes completed and presented to the SCPP at their next meeting on October 17th. Please consider attending that meeting to remind the committee of the need to restore the purchasing power retirees have lost in this plan.
IF YOU ARE NOT A PLAN 1 MEMBER: We still need your support, to keep the focus of the legislature on restoring the benefits that were cut, not on new ways to attack public sector retirees. Remember, 48 of the 50 states have seen attacks on public sector benefits in the last few years, and we must stand together to protect our retirement security.
Latest Senate Effort to Repeal the ACA
The Senate majority is rushing to vote by the end of next week on a new bill to roll back the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare). Authored by Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), and Bill Cassidy (LA), the bill has been put together so quickly that the independent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said it will not have time to fully evaluate its impact before a vote.
The proposed bill would:
- Cause at least 32 million Americans to lose health coverage. That’s according to the Congressional Budget Office’s analysis of a similar proposal. This time around Senate Republicans want to rush a vote before the CBO can complete its review.
- Eliminate protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions. The bill would allow states to scale back essential health benefits and carve out exceptions for insurers to discriminate against sick patients by increasing premiums for those with pre-existing conditions.
- Increase premiums next year by an estimated 20 percent. By nixing the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that everyone sign up for coverage, fewer healthy people will enroll and costs will increase.
- Gut funding for Medicaid by $300 billion, including severe cuts to programs that provide care for seniors, children, and people with disabilities.
Call Your Congressperson Today to Stop Cassidy-Graham Health Care Repeal Bill!
With the U.S. Senate set to vote on the Cassidy-Graham bill the week of September 25th, the time to call your Senators is now. CALL 1-202-224-3121 to be connected to your Congressperson and tell them to OPPOSE the Graham-Cassidy “health care” bill.
Governor Inslee and Insurance Commissioner Kreidler Letter
From Governor Inslee: The attempt by U.S. Senators Cassidy and Graham to repeal the Affordable Care Act would be disastrous for Washington State. Their proposal would decimate Medicaid, diminish coverage, and could mean huge premium increases for those with pre-existing conditions. I recently sent a letter to our state’s members of Congress, urging them to reject this proposal.
Read the full letter here: http://www.governor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Inslee-Kreidler-letter-re-Cassidy-Graham-bill.pdf
While You Have Been Watching the Right Hand (Healthcare)…
The Left Hand (Budget) – The U.S. Senate struck a deal this week to target $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years in tax cuts likely to benefit big corporations and America’s wealthiest people. The prospective tax cuts are part of closed-door talks among 12 Senate Budget Committee members who are drafting a fiscal 2018 budget measure needed to help the 100-member Senate pass a tax overhaul with as few as 51 Republican votes and to prevent Democrats from blocking the legislation.
As you can see, we have much work to do in the weeks and months ahead to continue the betterment of your retirement security. Your continued support and political action is a necessity!
Your Voice for Retirement Security!
