[0:00] is we're looking at
exceptional unprecedented rises in
[0:06] health insurance costs across the nation
and that affects us here in the town of
[0:11] Belmont as well. And what we need to
take a look at as a town is what what's
[0:16] going to be a sustainable response to
these rising insurance costs? Is it
[0:20] going to be just increasing people's
premiums at a 24% rate or double digit
[0:26] um increases or could we do something
else? and the select board and and the
[0:31] town decided to do something else which
was to try to find some additional
[0:36] stability um by joining a larger risk
pool. So that's sort of the image that
[0:41] we have here on the screen. So the GIC
includes 13 member cities across the
[0:46] state of Massachusetts. So all the
employees from those 13 cities and 34
[0:52] member towns as well. So all those
employees as well and then every state
[0:57] employee. So there's a lot more people
in this risk pool contributing to it
[1:02] than what we have here in the town of
Belmont. And what we hope that would
[1:06] mean is that the health care costs
become a little bit more sustainable
[1:11] over time. Also, what the GIC presents
to all of us is greater choice and
[1:16] greater flexibility. So with more plan
options comes greater flexibility to
[1:20] meet the needs of individual employees
because your health care needs might be
[1:25] different than your healthare needs. it
might be different than the healthare
[1:29] needs of the people in the back of the
room. So different plans might work
[1:32] differently for different folks. Um so
to have that choice and that option is
[1:37] different than what it is that we have
now, which is pretty much just offering
[1:40] two plans.
Um and then the last point that I put up
[1:44] here is that it is administered by the
state. So that that adds to the
[1:49] bargaining power of the large group when
we're negotiating these rates with the
[1:53] insurance companies. And then also
they're going to be largely
[1:56] administering the plans and the
administrative work. That's not to say
[2:01] that Carrie, myself, and Esma are doing
a bad job administering your plans now.
[2:05] We think we're doing okay. Um we could
always be doing better, but we're going
[2:08] to have some additional help there as
well.
[2:15] So these are some of the key dates um
that we want to talk about. Um so in
[2:20] September, we're hosting these
information sessions. This is the first
[2:24] of several information sessions that we
are hosting. Um, and the purpose of
[2:28] these is to just introduce you to this
transition and to go over some of the
[2:32] key information at sort of a 30,000 foot
view of what it is that you can come to
[2:37] expect. So, we're going to be having
these information sessions over the
[2:40] course of the entire month of September.
If you think it beneficial and you want
[2:44] to come to multiple, you can definitely
come to multiple. You can come to one in
[2:48] person, you could come to several on
Zoom. It'll be the same presentation,
[2:52] but perhaps there'll be different
questions. Um, but as we get updates
[2:55] along the way, we'll try to email those
out to folks. Um, and we'll try to send
[3:02] out those updates of course over the
regular mail as well to those of you
[3:05] that we don't have emails for.
>> Then the big date here is October 5th
[3:10] through October 30th. So October 5th
through October 30th, that's really game
[3:15] time when it comes to this insurance
enrollment. So that's the period of time
[3:19] in which we have to sign up for a new
GIC plan. So you could sign up right on
[3:24] October 5th. You could sign up on
October 15th. You could sign up on
[3:29] October 29th. You could sign up on
October 30th. Can you sign up on
[3:33] November 1st?
No, you can't sign up on November 1st.
[3:38] So, it's very very important that you
mark your calendars, put a sticky note
[3:42] on the fridge, whatever it is that you
need to do to remind yourself that
[3:46] October is the time that you have to
make your plan choice. We've heard from
[3:50] a few people in other communities about
having to enroll in the GIC and they
[3:56] want you to do it online. So, you'll
need to have computer access in order to
[4:00] enroll.
And we can talk a little bit more about
[4:03] that as as we go through the
presentation. Um, but you will have to
[4:08] enroll online. And the people that we
have talked to, people that we know in
[4:11] other communities that have done it,
take it for what it's worth, what they
[4:14] tell us is it takes about 5 to 10
minutes to go through the process by
[4:18] enrolling on the GIC.
But part of that is preparing yourself
[4:22] beforehand, knowing what plan it is that
you're looking for, the plan that you
[4:27] want to sign up for, so that way you
don't get overwhelmed by all the
[4:30] different plan selections when you have
to make that drop- down selection on the
[4:34] computer. Um, so starting in September,
doing some researching, reaching out to
[4:39] care providers, those things are all
going to be helpful. December 31st is
[4:43] also going to be a big date to know
because that's when your current
[4:47] coverage with the town of Belmont is
going to end. So, what do I mean by
[4:50] current coverage? The premiums that
you're paying now for the Belmont
[4:54] specific plans
um that you're all probably enrolled in,
[4:59] that coverage is going to end on
December 31st. the following day, which
[5:04] is New Year's Day, happy new year,
you're going to have new health
[5:08] insurance. Um, so that's when the
coverage is going to begin. So, just
[5:12] know that your current coverage ends
December 31st and the new insurance that
[5:17] you selected in October is going to
begin on January 1st of 2027. So that
[5:23] means that all of your providers for
yourself and your family, you should be
[5:26] planning on notifying them, notifying
the pharmacies that you go to um that
[5:31] your insurance has changed to just
update uh with them your new insurance
[5:36] policies. All right.
So some key things about the the GIC and
[5:42] this PowerPoint presentation is going to
be online as well. So I apologize for
[5:46] being a little bit small here on the
screen, but I'm going to talk you
[5:49] through it. So and you can always take
notes, too. Um, so the plan year is
[5:53] going to be the same plan year as the
plan year that we have now. So that's on
[5:58] the fiscal year calendar. So that's July
1st through June 30th. We are starting
[6:03] our plan midyear.
So there will be change in the rates
[6:08] most likely come next July. So in July
2027, but we're doing our transition mid
[6:15] midfiscal year in January. Um, but after
after this first initial speed bump of
[6:20] getting onto the GIC will be on the
regular rotating schedule of the fiscal
[6:25] year calendar. So, our open enrollments
will be the same as they are now.
[6:29] They'll be in the springtime.
Your premium deductions um for those of
[6:34] you um that are active employees and
retirees um we pay a month ahead right
[6:40] now on the Belmont's plan, our current
plans, we pay a month ahead for our
[6:44] insurance coverage. That's going to be
the same with the GIC. So, we will also
[6:49] be paying a month ahead. So, the
premiums that you contribute this month
[6:53] through your paychecks go toward
coverage next month. So, your first new
[6:58] deduction for the GIC coming out of
either your pension or coming out of
[7:02] your your paycheck will occur in the
month of December. So, a month ahead of
[7:08] January. and your last deduction for um
the current plans will be in November
[7:14] for December. Okay.
If you're a new employee coming in um to
[7:20] the town of Belmont, you'll have 21 days
from your date of hire to enroll in the
[7:24] health insurance. That's just a fun fact
to know for most of us since we're all
[7:28] either already employed or we're retired
from the town of Belmont. Um have we
[7:34] talked about the annual uh open
enrollment? So, the GIC usually does
[7:39] its rates and and all of those types of
details a little bit ahead of our normal
[7:45] um springtime and they'll sort of have
them already available. So, by the time
[7:50] that it's January, that's usually when
they start doing their regular
[7:53] presentations and things about the next
plan year that'll happen in July. But,
[7:58] we'll talk about that more as we get
closer to July. they have some online
[8:02] sessions and um sort of similar things
to what it is that we're doing now,
[8:05] talking about the plans and any plan
changes that usually happen in January,
[8:09] but we'll remind folks of that when that
comes up. Um qualifying life events, all
[8:14] of these qualifying life events um that
we have currently, if you get married,
[8:19] if you get divorced, if you lose
coverage in another plan, those are
[8:23] still qualifying events under the GIC.
So, those would work the same. you could
[8:27] reach out um to us and you would have a
60-day window to make changes to your
[8:33] plan.
And so I think that's probably good
[8:36] there. So we talked about this again. I
can't say it enough. Selecting the plan
[8:41] is going to be between October 5th and
October 30th. Um all employees and all
[8:47] retirees must choose a GIC plan to
enroll in through the online portal. So,
[8:54] if you have a computer at home that
you're used to using, that's probably
[8:58] going to be your best bet to set aside
some time to go on to the GIC's website
[9:03] to be able to enroll in a new plan. if
you don't have a computer at home, but
[9:09] if you have a a grandson or
granddaughter, or if you have a son or
[9:14] daughter that has their own computer or
is more familiar with it, you may want
[9:18] to set aside some time to have them come
up for, you know, a little lunch or
[9:22] something. Maybe they could bring you a
little lunch or you could make lunch for
[9:25] them or, you know, something like maybe
coffee or tea or, you know, something
[9:30] like that for them to sort of sit with
you to get you on the computer to get
[9:35] you through the process. But like I
said, it shouldn't be too heavy of a
[9:38] lift based off of what we're hearing
from um from other folks. If you don't
[9:43] have a computer, if you don't have um
anybody that you know that could help
[9:48] you at home with any sort of computer
access and you're sort of local to to
[9:54] Belmont, you all got here today. Um so
in October, we will have a designated
[9:59] computer in the HR office that will be
specifically for GIC enrollments. So, if
[10:05] you need help with the computer and you
don't have anybody to help you with it,
[10:09] you can come into the HR office and
myself, Carrie, or Esma will set you up
[10:13] at that computer and we'll do our best
to help you walk through that process.
[10:18] If we get a huge demand for that, you're
seeing the whole crew here. So, we may
[10:22] have to schedule an appointment for you,
but we'll let you know. We'll see what
[10:25] the demand looks like. Um, for our all
of our active employees that are here
[10:30] and for our retirees who have dependent,
you will need to have supporting
[10:36] documentation for your dependence. So,
this is similar to when you first signed
[10:42] up to the plan with us here in the town
of Belmont. If you have a spouse that
[10:46] you're looking to bring on to your plan
as a dependent, not as a not as a
[10:51] Medicare um person, but as somebody
who's under the age of 65 if you're
[10:56] retired. But for all active employees,
you would need to have your marriage
[11:00] certificate available to upload onto the
GIC if you're bringing them on as a
[11:05] dependent and also birth certificates,
copies of birth certificates for your
[11:09] dependents as well. If you're having
trouble attaining those, we may have
[11:15] them in the human resources office, but
try with your own records first. Um, we
[11:21] should have them, but I can't guarantee
it. Um, but you would, it's on you to be
[11:27] able to provide those. So, if you can't
find them, if you can't get them, reach
[11:30] out to us and we'll try to see if we
have a copy of them to get to you. Okay.
[11:39] So, when it comes to the plan selection,
like I just said, you're responsible for
[11:43] it. Um, the GIC does have some what I'm
calling provider assistance.
[11:51] So, we'll put all this information,
links to it up onto our on our website
[11:55] on our GIC information page.
And what the provider assistance would
[12:00] be is that we'll we have phone numbers
for all of these providers. So, I'll go
[12:04] through the providers in a few minutes.
And each one of them has a phone number
[12:08] that you can call if you're having
questions about what the plan covers.
[12:11] You just want to let them know that you
are not an active member of the plan,
[12:16] but you're transitioning over to the GIC
and you're taking a look at your options
[12:20] and these are the things that you
usually need coverage for. What would it
[12:24] look like on your plan? Can you give me
any estimates of costs or any questions
[12:28] that you might have? Um, so you can call
these providers directly. Um, also I
[12:35] would I would recommend in most
circumstances that you verify your care
[12:40] providers as well. So, not just the
insurance providers, but the care
[12:43] providers just to make sure that they're
accepting the insurance that you're that
[12:48] you're looking for. Right now, all of
you probably know we have Harvard
[12:52] Pilgrim as our insurance provider.
The GIC does offer a number of Harvard
[12:57] Pilgrim plans as well. So, the
likelihood that you would have to change
[13:01] a doctor if you went on to the GIC's
version of the Harvard Pilgrim plan is
[13:06] definitely a lot lower than if we were
going to a company that's different than
[13:10] Harvard Pilgrim, but you still should
check. That's not a bad thing to do. Um,
[13:15] and then we do have some additional
resources that we mailed out to you. Um,
[13:20] the GIC's website is a great um is a
great resource. Maybe when we get to the
[13:24] question and answer, I can use the
computer here and we can go to some of
[13:28] those pages together and I can show you
where those resources live.
[13:34] Okay, how are we doing? Okay,
I'm doing all right, thanks for asking.
[13:40] Um, but we have a few more slides to go
through, but this is this is the stuff
[13:44] probably that you all came for, which is
about the plans themselves.
[13:49] So, right now I'm going to be talking
mainly to folks that are under Medicare
[13:53] age. So, if right now you're on a
Medicare plan, the stuff that I'm going
[13:58] to talk about for the next couple of
slides won't necessarily apply to you
[14:01] all that much. I didn't say this at the
top and I'm sorry to the people on Zoom,
[14:06] but we do have some cookies and some
water over there. So, if you're over 65
[14:10] and you're you're feeling a little
rumbly in the tumbly, you can head over
[14:14] there and grab a cookie um or a glass of
water as we make it through this next
[14:19] session. Yes.
[14:23] And for the folks that don't have don't
have Medicare but are of Medicare age,
[14:28] is that what Yes, we can talk about that
too. Yep. So, these would probably be
[14:33] the plans that would apply to you, too.
So, if you're one of those folks, then
[14:37] yes, definitely pay close attention
here. So, um, our active employee and
[14:43] non-Medicare, uh, retiree plans. So, the
GIC offers four different insurance
[14:50] carriers. So, we have where they're
going to have Harvard Pilgrim, which we
[14:53] know and are familiar with. They're
going to have um, Health New England,
[14:58] Mass General, Brighgam, and Wellpoint.
And with these four carriers, there's
[15:04] going to be eight different plan
options. So, you'll have eight different
[15:08] choices to make. So, there's going to be
various plan types that I'm going to
[15:12] talk about that you may or may not be
familiar. So, I'll just tell you a
[15:15] little bit about them.
So, some of the plans, they are a HM HMO
[15:21] plan. So, probably we're familiar with
HMO plans because that's what we have
[15:26] currently. If you're an active employee,
you're likely to have a HMO plan um
[15:32] because that's what we offer now. So,
pretty much what an HMO plan means um is
[15:36] that you have to stay in the network.
So, there's a defined network of
[15:40] providers and you really can't go
outside of that network. So, there's a
[15:46] lot less flexibility there when you're
choosing who your care provider is going
[15:50] to be. You have to make sure they're on
that list or in that network. Then you
[15:55] have a new plan type to us here at least
in Belmont and that's called a POSOS
[16:00] insurance plan. So a point of service
insurance plan. These are actually
[16:05] pretty interesting um because you can
mainly stay in the network. So there's
[16:09] going to be a network sort of like the
HMO plan, but also you have a some more
[16:14] flexibility. You have some additional
options. So you can see providers that
[16:20] are out of network on a POS plan. So,
it's almost like a PO plan in that way,
[16:25] but not quite. Um, it's it's an HMO
style plan. If you see somebody that's
[16:29] out of network, you'll get some coverage
toward it, but it's probably going to be
[16:33] more expensive. So, you just have to
weigh the pros and cons there. Then
[16:38] there's the PO plan. We have PO plans
now. We have a few employees that are on
[16:43] PO plans. There will be um PO plans with
the GIC. It's a PO plan. It will give
[16:49] you more choices. Um, pretty much your
approach to a PO should be you'll have
[16:54] access to the network of providers. If
you go to somebody in network, great.
[17:00] You might be able to save a little bit
of money that way, but you can also see
[17:04] people out of network as well. So, if
you have special conditions or seeing
[17:08] certain specialists that you want to
make sure you can see, going on a PO
[17:12] plan would give you the greatest
likelihood that you'll be able to get
[17:15] some coverage um there as well. Then the
last type of plan is an indemnity plan.
[17:22] These types of plans, you have the most
freedom there to choose your providers.
[17:27] Um, but with that type of freedom, it
kind of works like our current PO plan
[17:32] now where it's very very expensive and
we don't have very many people on it.
[17:36] Um, but because you can have access to
pretty much anybody across the country,
[17:40] that's a lot of risk to the insurance
company. So that bumps up those the
[17:44] premium of the plan and then also the
cost sharing of the plan as well. Um but
[17:49] that'll give you the most amount of
freedom um to choose who you want to
[17:53] have as your care provider. So we have a
little chart that's down here. I know
[17:58] it's probably impossible for you to see,
but we will put this um online uh for
[18:03] folks to take a look at, but it does
compare um the in network care, the out
[18:08] of network care, the out of network
costs um and a few other factors that
[18:12] you may or may not be interested in.
It's not going to give you hard numbers,
[18:15] but it's going to give you whether or
not this usually happens with this plan
[18:19] or definitely happens with this plan. Um
those types of things. So, hopefully
[18:22] that's a helpful tool. Now, if you have
specific questions, I may revert back to
[18:26] this slide to help me out.
So, your current premium rates or your
[18:32] premium rates. So, what is this all
going to cost? Um, so the important
[18:36] thing to know is that the cost sharing
arrangement that you have now is not
[18:40] changing. So, if you're a member of a
collective bargaining agreement, um,
[18:45] your cost sharing that's built into that
collective bargaining agreement is going
[18:48] to stay the same. whatever the GIC
costs, we're taking those that that that
[18:54] system and we're applying it to the
GIC's costs. Um, so that's how that's
[19:00] working. So if you are somebody who
knows in the back of your mind that I'm
[19:03] an 8020 person, then you're still going
to be an 8020 person. If you know that
[19:07] you're a 7525 person, where 75% of the
premium is paid for by the town and 25%
[19:13] falls to you, you're still going to be a
7525%
[19:17] person. That's not changing. If you're
on a PO plan and you're a 50/50 cost
[19:23] sharing person, that's going to stay the
same. So, whatever the GIC is charging,
[19:27] we're applying that structure to the
GIC. So, that's how we came up with our
[19:32] rates. Um, I talked about this already.
The premiums are paid one month in
[19:36] advance. Um, so the first paycheck in
December, so December 2026 or the
[19:41] December 2026 pension if you're retired,
that will have the new premium amount in
[19:47] it. uh based off of the plan that you
selected.
[19:51] So once you select your plan in October,
the reason why we're having you do it so
[19:56] early is once you all pick your plans,
then that information is going to come
[20:01] to the three of us and then we're going
to have to apply all your rates to it.
[20:05] Um so that's going to be a big lift, but
we'll do it. We'll we'll do it. It'll be
[20:08] a good workout for us. Um, but what I
want you to remember as I go through all
[20:13] these premium costs, um, is very
important is that the premium is only
[20:19] part of your health insurance cost.
That's the part that I deal with, um,
[20:25] here in the town of Belmont. Um, is what
comes out of your paychecks um, when you
[20:32] get your paycheck. But after you get
your paycheck, you spend it however you
[20:36] want. And that applies to your health
insurance in a way too because there's
[20:40] cost sharing, there's deductibles,
there's all these other factors of your
[20:44] health insurance that goes beyond just
the cost that I'm going to talk about
[20:48] today. So that's where you come in where
you're going to have to take a look at
[20:52] these different plans to see which plan
would work best for you by taking a look
[20:56] at some of those additional costs beyond
just what the premium is.
[21:01] Okay,
[21:04] so our first plan that we can talk about
um is from Mass General Bighgam. Um so
[21:10] again, these are for people that are
active employees and that are
[21:14] non-Medicare retirees. Um so people that
are either under the age of 65 or people
[21:20] that may not be eligible for Medicare.
So how these plans work, this is just a
[21:26] HMO plan. So the Mass General Brighgam
is just an HMO plan. So you have to keep
[21:31] yourself limited to the network defined
by Mass General Bighgam. Um it's a
[21:36] pretty broad network across the state of
Massachusetts. So you should be able to
[21:40] find some care providers there. Um some
advantages to this is that it is a broad
[21:46] network plan. So it's not limited. So
similar to the HMO plan that we have now
[21:51] that's kind of broad across the state um
and across the region. Um, this one too
[21:57] is a broader network, so it's not a
limited network plan. It would work the
[22:01] same as your current HMO if you're on
it. It' be coordinated care. So, what
[22:05] does that mean? You have you feel
something's up, something's wrong, you
[22:09] talk to your primary care physician. If
it's a first time thing, your primary
[22:13] care physician gives you a referral to
see a specialist. So, you still will
[22:18] need referrals under this plan, the same
as our as our current um structure of a
[22:23] plan. So, the things to consider when
you're choosing this plan, if you wanted
[22:28] to choose it, um, is that out of network
coverage, um, is generally very, very
[22:34] limited because it's an HMO plan, um,
when you compare it to a PO or the
[22:39] indemnity plan. So, you really just have
to stick to the people that take this
[22:44] insurance. So, what I would do since
this is a a new company that we're
[22:50] dealing with here, if you're interested
in the Mass General Brigam plan is to
[22:54] call your care providers to see if they
accept it. Um, this would definitely be
[22:59] one that you would want to call about.
Um, so this one's sort of best suited
[23:03] for somebody who wants a broad
Massachusetts network and is comfortable
[23:07] receiving care within an HMO network.
So, that's kind of similar to what it is
[23:12] that we have. Now the next plan option
that we have is from Harvard Pilgrim and
[23:17] this is um called the Harvard Pilgrim
Access America Plan. This is their PO
[23:23] plan. So when you hear PO you should
think a bit more expensive of a premium
[23:28] just like our current PO is a more
expensive premium. Um so this provides
[23:33] national coverage. So it's not limited
or broad just to the state of
[23:38] Massachusetts but it's national coverage
that you can receive. um you'll have
[23:43] access to the network, the Harvard
Pilgrim Network through the GIC, but
[23:48] also you'll have some flexibility to see
care providers outside of the network as
[23:53] well. So, the advantages here is that
you have a national network. You have
[23:57] greater flexibility when you're choosing
providers and it's particularly useful
[24:01] to people who travel a lot um outside of
the state of Massachusetts. But if
[24:07] you're not one of those folks, then you
know, maybe the PO plan is not for you.
[24:11] But it's up to you to decide. Um, so the
things to consider would be that the
[24:16] costs are going to be a little bit
higher when it comes to your premiums
[24:19] that you're paying out of your paycheck
or out of your pension. Um, and it's
[24:23] going to be still at the 50/50 cost
sharing. So our current PO that we have
[24:27] now is at a 50/50 cost sharing. This PO
is comparable to that. So it's going to
[24:34] be a 50/50 cost sharing as well. So,
just know that um that it's going to be
[24:38] a little bit more on the expensive side
as far as the premium goes.
[24:43] The next one is the Harvard Pilgrim
Explorer Plan. So, this is a point of
[24:48] service plan. So, that's that new type
of plan that I was talking about. It's
[24:51] not all that new, but in the grand
scheme of things, but new to us. Um kind
[24:56] of like a used car, but better than a
new used car. It's a brand new car to
[24:59] us. Um so, this is a broad network plan.
Um, and it combines the features of an
[25:06] HMO and a PO. So members generally will
get their care from the network on the
[25:12] plan at the defined network at a lower
cost, but if they wanted to see somebody
[25:17] outside of the network, they would be
able to get some coverage toward it.
[25:21] Might not be the most coverage in the
world, um, or equivalent to people that
[25:25] are in networks, you may pay a little
bit more, um, but it is available to you
[25:29] usually at a higher cost. The advantage
here is that it's a little bit more
[25:34] flexible than your um traditional HMO.
It's got that broad network again, so
[25:40] it'll cover you anywhere you live here
in the Massachusetts in Massachusetts.
[25:44] Um and it provides you with that option
for folks that occasionally might need
[25:49] or might like to receive care outside of
our defined network.
[25:55] Okay. So, if you're looking for
something that has some flexibility,
[25:59] that's not a bad option. very similar to
the the plan that we have now but might
[26:04] have some enhancements to it because
it's beyond just a traditional HMO.
[26:10] Then we have the quality HMO plan. Uh
the quality HMO plan is another plan
[26:15] that's offered through Harvard Pilgrim.
It has a limited network. Um so again
[26:22] it's like a like your HMO. So you have
that list of providers. If you'd go to
[26:26] somebody who's outside of that list, you
may not be able to get coverage or the
[26:30] coverage would be limited, very, very
limited coverage. Um, so this can be
[26:35] seen sort of as a lower cost option when
you're thinking about your paycheck,
[26:38] when you're thinking about your pension
check. Um, that the premium will be a
[26:43] little bit lower. Um, it still provides
that traditional coordinated approach to
[26:48] care where you need to have referrals
from your primary care doctor.
[26:52] um it's a good option um for people that
might have um care providers that are
[26:58] already in the network. So, if you
already have people that are inside the
[27:01] network and you're looking to save some
money there, then this one might not be
[27:05] a bad option for you. But again,
remember premiums are only part of the
[27:10] cost. So, um you may want to take a look
at the details of the plan as well.
[27:19] How we doing? Okay, it's a lot of plans.
It's a lot of plans. Write down your
[27:23] questions. Make sure you have questions
because it's it's tough hearing yourself
[27:26] talk throughout these entire things. You
know, you get kind of tired of your own
[27:30] voice. Um, thank you, Pam. I appreciate
it. Um, so the next one is with another
[27:36] new company. Um, and this is Health New
England. It's available again to all of
[27:41] the active folks and all the non-Medare
retirees. It's another HMO plan. This
[27:47] one is a regional network. So, that's a
really important detail because when I
[27:52] show you the prices, you'll be like,
"Hey, this one looks pretty affordable."
[27:56] Um, but it's it's mainly geared toward
folks that live out in Western Mass. So,
[28:01] if there's anybody out there on Zoom
that's zooming in from Western Mass,
[28:06] maybe this plan might be interesting to
you. If anybody here commuted in from
[28:11] Western Mass and get your care out in
Western Mass, then maybe this plan is an
[28:15] option for you. I'm not trying to
dissuade you from it. I just want you to
[28:18] know where that um regional network is.
So, it's really for the folks out there
[28:22] in the western part of the state. Um but
it's an HMO, so there's going to be that
[28:26] network of of folks, coordinated care,
so referrals, things like that, similar
[28:31] to what it is that we have now. Another
brand new company to us, it's been
[28:35] around for a while, but it's new to us,
um is Wellpoint. So, Wellpoint is
[28:40] another health insurance company that um
is offered through the GIC to all of our
[28:45] active and non-Medare retirees. This uh
particular one is called the Wellpoint
[28:50] total Choice. There's going to be a
couple of Wellpoint plans, so make sure
[28:53] you're thinking this is the total
choice. Um this is the indemnity plan
[28:58] option that is offered by the GIC. So,
this is a different type of plan than
[29:03] what we've had um in the in the past.
Um, we have had a PO that provides us
[29:08] with out of network coverage, but the
indemnity plans, they're like a step
[29:11] above the PO plan when it comes to the
freedom and independence that you have
[29:16] to select your own care provider. So,
with this one, I hate to say it, but you
[29:21] may be able to see anybody that you want
to see. Don't quote me on that, but just
[29:25] about anybody. There going to be one of
you that says, "I have the indemnity
[29:28] plan," and they said they didn't take
it. But for most cases, um, this one you
[29:33] can see pretty much whoever it is that
you want. This is going to provide you
[29:36] with the most amount of flexibility when
choosing your health care providers. Um,
[29:41] unlike the HMO, members are not limited
to that HMO structure. Um, so it's not
[29:47] really it's not that coordinated care.
So if you want to go see a specialist
[29:51] somewhere and you don't want to talk to
your primary care first and get a
[29:54] referral, you can go and see that person
um, with this with this plan. So, it's
[29:59] really a big plan for uh people who need
flexibility. Why would you need
[30:04] flexibility? Um, if you have pretty
serious health conditions or somebody in
[30:09] your family that you're that you are
taking care of that has more serious
[30:13] health conditions, this plan might be an
option for you because you may want to
[30:17] have everything available to you that
you have. Um, but it may not work for
[30:22] everybody. Not everybody may need to
have a plan with that amount of um
[30:25] choice.
So the next one uh from wellpoint is a
[30:30] PO type plan. Um so this is very similar
to um how PPOs work. Um however it's
[30:37] when we talk about our cost sharing
arrangement um with where PPOs are
[30:42] usually 50/50. Uh this one is going to
be uh at the 7525 price point um for
[30:49] cost sharing across the town. So this
offers a pretty broad provider access.
[30:54] It's more flexible than your traditional
HMO.
[30:59] Um, but you generally still do receive
the best bang for your buck by seeing
[31:06] people that are in the network. So, even
though you can see people outside of the
[31:10] network, if you do that, then they're
going to be more expensive. You're going
[31:14] to get some cost sharing toward it,
you're going to get some coverage toward
[31:17] it, but it's going to be uh more
expensive. Um, so it's it's pretty good.
[31:23] It would be a good advice, I think, um,
to compare not just the premium here,
[31:28] but to compare, um, the different cost
sharing things in the plans themselves.
[31:32] So, if you're trying to think of like
the Harvard Pilgrim Plan, and then
[31:36] you're you're thinking of the Wellpoint
plan, the Wellpoint plan, this one's a
[31:39] little bit cheaper, definitely take a
look at the things that affect you. So
[31:43] try to take a look at those plan
documents or give a call to the
[31:47] individual providers to talk about the
things that you usually need care for uh
[31:52] to see what the what the actual benefit
will be to you. Um perfect.
[31:58] The next one is uh called Wellpoint
Community Choice. This is another
[32:03] limited network plan. So similar to that
Health New England plan that I talked
[32:07] about. So this is going to give you a
very small or smaller I shouldn't say
[32:12] vary but smaller um list of providers
that you can see um across the across
[32:18] the area. Um so it has a very it has a
designated set of providers. Um
[32:25] again it's the same thing. A lot of this
is repeating but um you get the best
[32:29] benefit when you're using the network.
So if you're going outside of the
[32:33] network because this is another PO type
but it's a limited network. if you're
[32:36] going outside of that network, it's
going to be a bit of a higher cost to
[32:40] you. So, this one um would be good for
somebody who's looking for a PO type
[32:45] plan, who might want to see people from
time to time outside of network, um but
[32:50] they're comfortable also using just
generally a more limited network than
[32:55] some of the other plans.
[33:00] You're doing okay still?
I'm doing all right. I have one right
[33:05] behind me, I think. Um, so those are all
of our active plans. Um, I'll go through
[33:10] some of the rates in just a little bit,
but I'll go over the for all you folks
[33:14] that waited patiently um on Zoom and
also here in the room um who are are
[33:20] Medicare folks, um this is going to be
applying to you. For those of you that
[33:24] are still young whippers snappers out
there, um and and not and not Medicare
[33:30] age yet, uh this is what you have to
look forward to. So, it's still good
[33:33] information, but just like I said to our
Medicare retirees, and I apologize to
[33:37] the folks that are on Zoom, but we do
have some cookies in the room. So, if
[33:41] you're not interested in listening and
you would like to get some fuel, you
[33:44] can. They're right over there. Some
water, too, is provided over there.
[33:49] So, the Medicare retiree plans, again,
we're going to have four insurance
[33:52] carriers, very similar to the active
plans. Some are a little bit different.
[33:56] So, we're going to have Harvard Pilgrim
again. We're going to have Health New
[33:59] England. I'll talk about their their
plan. You're going to have TUS. So, some
[34:03] of you may have out in Zoomland or here
in the room, you may have our TUS
[34:07] Medicare supplement already. The um the
GIC offers a TUS plan as well. Um and
[34:15] then the last one is Wellpoint. So,
Wellpoint is another um Medicare plan uh
[34:20] that we that we offer. These are
Medicare supplement plans and one of
[34:24] them is a Medicare advantage type plan
and that is the um that's the TUS plan.
[34:30] So, what are the differences? So, some
of you who are of Medicare uh age and on
[34:34] on Medicare supplements right now may
know the difference already, but I'll
[34:37] just go over it again. So, a Medicare
supplement, which is just like what we
[34:41] have now in the town of Belmont, um
means that you have your original
[34:45] Medicare. Original Medicare is the first
two letters of the alphabet, A and B.
[34:52] So, you have your original Medicare and
then in addition to that, you have your
[34:56] supplements. So they work together as a
team to provide you with the coverage
[35:01] that you need.
>> Medicare advantage plan or Medicare
[35:05] Advantage types. Um what the advantage
plan is doing for you is it's working
[35:10] almost like your HMO would have worked
which is that they're sort of managing
[35:14] your what your benefit is for you. So,
you still have to be on Medicare A and
[35:19] B, your original Medicare, but um your
Medicare benefits and your additional
[35:24] benefits are managed through um the
advantage plan. So, instead of
[35:30] coordinating between the two, the
advantage plan just sort of takes care
[35:34] of everything for you.
Um so, what's the bottom line here? Um
[35:39] with a Medicare supplement, original
Medicare remains your primary coverage.
[35:45] And with a Medicare Advantage plan, the
health plan itself manages your Medicare
[35:50] benefits and its network plan rules
become a little bit more important. So
[35:55] that's that's the scoop there.
Another thing um that I didn't talk
[36:00] about on that slide that I'll talk about
here um is that all of these Medicare
[36:05] plans that I'm going to talk about offer
prescription drug coverage. So that's
[36:09] why I say it's just the first two
letters of the alphabet in Medicare.
[36:13] Medicare Part D is prescription drug
coverage if you're transitioning to
[36:18] Medicare um or if you're already there.
Um you don't need to have part D if
[36:23] you're on the town's plan now and you
don't need to have part D if you're on
[36:27] the GIC's plan. So really no change um
as far as how we're going to manage that
[36:32] for helping to shepherd people through
their retirement. Um so you will have
[36:37] prescription drug coverage included in
all these plans. It's going to be
[36:40] through Silver Script, uh, which is a a
CVS Health company.
[36:45] Um, so like what did I miss here? So
yes, it's going to be similar to what it
[36:49] is that we have now, which is that it's
going to be tiered. So some of you may
[36:52] be familiar with this already. You may
have been told this by your doctor or at
[36:57] the pharmacy that if you're getting
certain drugs, they'll be tier one, tier
[37:01] two, tier three. And depending upon what
tier it's in, that will determine how
[37:06] much it costs. Um, it might mean by
transitioning over to the GIC that some
[37:13] of your prescriptions might increase a
little bit. It might mean that they
[37:16] might decrease a little bit. It is a new
plan. If you're looking to anticipate
[37:20] that, um, the the GIC does have a
prescription calculator, if you can
[37:26] imagine such a thing. It's actually more
simple than you think. You put the name
[37:30] of your prescription in there that you
use and then it spits back out at you
[37:35] the the cost that would be to you at the
pharmacy. So, I've done this with a
[37:39] couple of people on the phone and
unfortunately I don't have too much good
[37:44] news to report but I'm an honest guy so
I'll tell you that um you know it was
[37:49] like $10 more a prescription. Um but
that's not going to mean that's going to
[37:53] be $10 for everybody in this room but
like I said I'm an honest guy so I'm
[37:57] telling you. But you'd have to check for
your own um prescriptions because maybe
[38:02] hopefully my fingers are crossed for
you. Your prescriptions are $10 less,
[38:07] maybe even more, but we'll see. Um so
let's see.
[38:13] Perfect, perfect, perfect. So down there
at the bottom, big thing to know, any
[38:17] GIC Medicare plan offers medical plus
prescription coverage. You're getting
[38:22] them both. Question. Oh boy. All right,
I'll take a break. You want to come up
[38:25] here? No, I'm kidding.
Yeah.
[38:39] » Sue, is that a question that you can
help us with? Because we've had a few of
[38:42] these questions. So, do they have to go
to CVS and how does this compare
[38:48] » between Etna that they have now and
going over to this CBS? Because they're
[38:52] both called Silver Scripts, so it can be
confusing.
[38:59] CVS,
but it doesn't
[39:03] have to use CVS. Sorry.
Um you can for the most part
[39:11] there is a network ofies but you know
they almost
[39:26] » very likely yes so just like what Sue
said um so for the folks on Zoom there
[39:30] was a question I don't know if you heard
it or not and that was um because this
[39:34] plan is called CVS silver script, you
have to use CVS and our health
[39:39] consultant Sue said that um you do not
um CVS's will of course be included. Um
[39:45] but it's that's just the company's name.
Uh but you can go to many manyarmacies
[39:50] across the across the state. So the next
question was somebody see goes to
[39:55] Harvard Vanguard which a lot of people
do. Um and they the Harvard Vanguards
[40:00] are pretty cool because they they have
like everything all in one building. So
[40:03] it makes it kind of nice. You can get
your appointment up top and then you go
[40:06] downstairs to the pharmacy. One-stop
shop. It's pretty nice, I think. Yes.
[40:11] But I would I would definitely plan to
once you have your new Silver Script
[40:16] card, because you'll get a new card in
the mail when you sign up for this, is
[40:20] to bring that new card with you to that
pharmacy to let them know that it's
[40:24] changed.
[40:39] question.
>> If you want to save general question
[40:42] just until the end, we'll get Do you
mind or we can answer it now? Why don't
[40:45] we answer it now? Go ahead.
[40:51] » Medicare
from advanced advanced or whatever. So
[40:57] that's the
>> So when you get a letter saying that
[41:00] that something is
is approved.
[41:11] Yes. I believe that that's going to be a
similar structure. Yep. Right. So
[41:15] something's not not covered by by
Medicare, then they would send it over
[41:19] to Right. Yep.
Yep. So that should that should be the
[41:24] same. There shouldn't be much of a
change change there to how sort of the
[41:28] structure of things are. What we have
now is a Medicare supplement plan. If
[41:32] you go to another Medicare supplement
plan, that arrangement will work the
[41:35] same. Okay.
So, let's talk about the plans. Um, so
[41:40] we have our this one's very similar to
the one that we have now. We have
[41:44] Harvard Pilgrim Medicare Enhanced. The
GIC has Harvard Pilgrim Medicare
[41:49] Enhanced. Um, so this is just a Medicare
supplement, very, very similar to the
[41:54] plan that we have here in Belmont. Is it
going to be the same commas in the same
[41:58] places and the same words and the same
numbers, most importantly, the same
[42:02] numbers? Maybe not. It's going to be a
new plan. It's a different plan that the
[42:07] GIC negotiated with Harvard Pilgrim than
the town of Belmont individually
[42:12] negotiated. But generally, this is
pretty much very similar to what it is
[42:16] that we have now. almost almost
identical, but very very close. Um, so
[42:21] that's that's that one there. I can talk
more about it if you have questions, but
[42:25] I I realize we're getting close on time,
so I'll get through the presentation and
[42:28] then you guys can ask some questions.
The next one um is the Health New
[42:33] England plan. So, this is their Medicare
Supplement Plus plan. So, again, works
[42:38] very similar. It supplements the
original Medicare coverage. Um, so you
[42:43] have to have A and B. Um it's designed
by the GIC um for GIC retirees and
[42:50] Medicare eligible folks.
Um
[42:55] so this one I guess you would want to
just confirm with your providers that
[42:59] they take it um because it is different
than what it is you have now. It's a
[43:03] different company. So, it would be good
to reach out to your providers to just
[43:06] let them know if you're interested in
the Health New England um that you ask
[43:11] them, you know, call up your doctor's
offices and just ask them, do you take
[43:16] Health New England plans? And then
they'll either tell you yes or no if
[43:19] it's something that you're interested
in.
[43:22] The TUS plan, for those of you that are
on TUS already with the town of Belmont,
[43:26] you could be in this room, you could be
on Zoom. Um this is going to be a very
[43:30] similar plan to the one that we have
right now. This is that advantage
[43:35] HMO type plan. This is almost exactly
what our TUS plan is uh right now. So,
[43:42] um it works the same way even though
we're we're calling it the advantage
[43:45] plan. It's it's going to be very similar
to the TUS plan that we have. The big
[43:49] difference here is going to be that it
it is the difference to the other plans
[43:54] is that it's a very limited network
plan. So, it's going to probably just
[43:57] limit you to the state of Massachusetts.
So, if you're a retiree that likes to
[44:02] travel a lot, which a lot of you uh are,
um, or if you see yourself maybe
[44:07] traveling or staying in a different
state for a couple of months out of the
[44:10] year, um, perhaps having a more national
coverage plan like the HMO that we like
[44:15] the Harvard Pilgrim plan that we offer
now might be a good option. But the
[44:19] folks that are already on the TUS plan
here with Belmont, they're probably okay
[44:23] with that arrangement. So, this might be
might be a good option to consider.
[44:28] Um, Wellpoint. So, Wellpair Wellpoint's
Medicare extension. Um, so this is the
[44:33] Medicare supplement that's offered by
Wellpoint
[44:37] works the exact same way. So, all all
four of these plans other than well,
[44:42] three of these plans are Medicare
supplements. So, if you're on the
[44:45] Harvard Pilgrim plan now, you want to
take a look at these three other
[44:49] supplements. So, you have the Harvard
Pilgrim one that's offered by the GIC.
[44:54] That's going to be very similar to what
it is we have now. So, if you're
[44:56] somebody that doesn't like a whole lot
of change, that one might be the one
[44:59] that you want to start with saying, "I'm
going to look at this one first and see
[45:02] if it's right for me." If you're
somebody that doesn't really like the
[45:05] Harvard Pilgrim plan that we have now,
maybe you're looking to see what your
[45:09] other options are, maybe you're just
curious. You may want to compare
[45:14] coverage for with the Wellpoint plan and
then the
[45:17] » health similar, but you're saying
>> those are going to be the comparable
[45:20] plans that are there.
>> You know, we got to look into it if you
[45:23] travel a lot.
>> So, let's talk about How are we doing?
[45:27] » Okay.
>> All right. So, we'll talk about some of
[45:29] the numbers. So, I'll do my Medicare
folks first.
[45:34] » So, I know that this is very small, so
put on your binoculars, but I will um I
[45:38] will read them to you so you know, and
then we'll have all this information
[45:42] available um on the on the town's
website as well um after the meeting.
[45:47] So, for the TUS Medicare preferred plan,
the TUS plan I was just talking about.
[45:52] So, the monthly premium cost for that um
is going to be $11.96.
[45:58] That'll come out of your pension once
once a month just like it does now.
[46:02] » What is our current TUS deduction? Does
anybody know
[46:09] » 12780? Some people are cheating by
reading on the on the on the slide
[46:14] there, but that's all right.
Um, so it's 12780. So we're going from
[46:19] 12780 to 10196. So if you're on TUS,
hooray.
[46:25] Um, you're saving 25 bucks a month. I
don't know how much that's going to get
[46:29] you these days, but
>> you're saving $25 a month. Um, now for
[46:34] the other ones. Um, so the Harvard
Pilgrim Medicare Enhanced, the plan that
[46:38] is most similar to the one that we have
now. So, with the um with the GIC, the
[46:44] rate is going to be $150.30.
Does anybody know what our current rate
[46:49] is?
[46:53] » 14737.
I should cover up this part of the
[46:56] screen here, but I'm sure you guys
probably know. So, 14737. So, what we're
[47:01] what you're looking at if you went on to
the GIC's Harvard plan is you're looking
[47:05] at a $2.93
increase. So very very comparable um to
[47:12] to the cost the other two plans. So if
you're on the Harvard Pilgrim plan or if
[47:17] you're on the TUS plan and you're saying
wow I got you're on TUS plan you have 25
[47:21] extra dollars. What can I do with that
25 extra dollars? Maybe I'll go on to
[47:25] one of the other plans. Um so the other
companies there so the Health New
[47:28] England plan uh that one's going to be
15127. So very close um in cost to the
[47:35] Harvard Pilgrim uh Medicare enhance.
It's a $3.90
[47:39] difference from what you're paying now.
Um the Wellpoint Medicare extension is
[47:43] at 14741.
So we pay 14737. So I mean I did do the
[47:51] math on this. This one was this one was
a challenge. It was a three cent
[47:54] difference. Um, so if you're looking to
have no change or hardly any change in
[48:00] what you're paying each month in a
premium, maybe take a look at the
[48:03] details of the wellpoint Medicare
extension. But the other the other ones
[48:09] there, I mean, you're looking at under a
$5 difference in a premium coverage per
[48:14] month. But remember what I said at the
top, the premium is only part of the
[48:21] cost. Um, so even though we're not doing
a whole bunch here, the plans could be
[48:25] different and you want to take a look at
your individual needs, the individual
[48:29] needs of of, you know, of your spouses,
um, to see if which plan will work best
[48:35] for you.
Okay. Um, next, uh, we will go into the
[48:43] non-medicare plans. Um, so for folks
that are here who are and on Zoom who
[48:50] are of Medicare age, there's a lot of
plans here. Um, before I get into those
[48:55] ones, did you guys have any questions
about the rates or or anything like
[48:58] that? The people that are Medicare age.
>> Yeah. Yeah.
[49:07] » Yes. Great question. So, that's a really
good question. The question to people on
[49:10] Zoom was about our dental coverage. So
the GIC transition is only for health
[49:16] insurance. So it's only for health
insurance coverage. Um so your Delta
[49:20] dental will remain the same. That goes
the same for active employees as well.
[49:24] The only thing that the town is changing
is its health insurance coverage. Yeah.
[49:37] » Medicare plans.
[49:41] » Yes. Yeah. They we have those up at the
top, but yeah, we can definitely we can
[49:44] definitely go back and do that. Hang
hang tight on that one, though.
[49:59] » Great question, Sue. Do you know that?
[50:04] two
[50:10] point extension plan. So it is a an
indefinity plan that covers all
[50:16] providers.
So it is much more extensive than just
[50:20] the western house plan.
>> Great. So, yes. So, the the Wellpoint
[50:26] Medicare version or excuse me, the
Health New England Medicare version is
[50:30] going to give you that same national
type level coverage that you're that
[50:34] you're getting now and with the other
plans as well. Yes, sir.
[50:47] » So, well, the co-pays could vary. So,
definitely they could vary. The plans
[50:52] could vary. So, what I would recommend
that you do um is that you go on to the
[50:57] GIC's
website. You take a look at and we can
[51:01] do that at the end of the meeting. I
know that we're probably going to run
[51:03] over time, so I apologize for anybody
that planned, you know, anything after
[51:08] this meeting, but I'm happy to stay here
as long as you need. I know that we have
[51:11] some of our our active employees here,
too. So, if if you want, we can stay at
[51:16] the end and then I can show you where to
go on the on the computer to take a look
[51:20] at those. Yes.
>> Yeah.
[51:23] So that is going to
effective January 1. The renewal date
[51:31] for both the ads and the EM retirey
plans is July 1. So there even though
[51:37] you're going to go through open
enrollments in October to sign up for
[51:41] January, those plans are then going to
be due July 1. So you will have another
[51:47] opportunity in April to look at the plan
you enrolled in and if you want to make
[51:53] changes you can do that effective July
1. At the February commissioner is
[51:59] meeting they vote on what the benefits
are going to be for July. So, what Mitch
[52:06] is going to show you, we put that in the
decision guide. If you have that, we do
[52:12] that's what will be effective January 1.
It could change for July 1.
[52:20] » Yes. One more question and then we'll
move on to the other rates.
[52:28] » GIC. It's basically the same plan with
the exception of the few weeks.
[52:36] » Yes.
>> Yes. Yep.
[52:39] » Perfect. All right. For the rest of the
questions, we'll get through these rate
[52:42] sheets. There's a number of them. Um
because we have a lot of different
[52:45] employee groups. Um so the the first one
here is for our unit A folks. Um they're
[52:52] they are all teachers. I don't know if
we have any teachers here in the room or
[52:56] not. Um but if if you do um these rate
sheets that we're going to be putting
[53:01] online here
um and ESMA maybe if you if you want to
[53:06] run back up to the office maybe on the
drive there's printable it's called
[53:11] printable um GIC rate sheets maybe you
can print off a couple and then bring
[53:16] them back over because we'll probably be
a few extra minutes. Maybe we can get a
[53:20] couple out to people to take home. Um
yes.
[53:25] Yes.
[53:29] Sure. All right. That sounds sounds good
to me. Um, so yeah. So, for the interest
[53:34] of time, like like Jeff said, I know
we're getting close to the close to the
[53:38] end. Um, I can talk about the specific
rates if you have questions about them.
[53:43] Um, but just remember um that when
choosing your GIC plan, you want to just
[53:48] ask yourself a couple of things. Um, so
you want to think to yourself, are my
[53:52] doctors and hospitals covered? Does the
network work for me? What type of health
[53:58] care am I going to need? What will the
actual cost be beyond just the premium?
[54:04] And also thinking about your
prescriptions as well. So, these are
[54:07] some of the questions that you want to
have going in your head when you're
[54:10] taking a look at the different plan
options. Yes, Shane.
[54:15] » Yeah.
[54:20] » Yeah.
[54:24] » Yep. So for the people that are here
active um I'll go over this one rate
[54:28] sheet and then we'll then we'll move to
general questions
[54:34] the main one that people are on. So the
HMO so over here on on on this side here
[54:40] that's going to compare our plans to all
the different plans that are here. So
[54:44] you have your eight different plans that
you can choose from. The new rate which
[54:48] is in the big and big numbers and then
over on the on the side if you're seeing
[54:52] a lot of red that's that's the savings.
So if you're looking at let's choose
[54:56] one. So let's do an individual Harvard
Pilgrim Explorer plan. So for that one
[55:01] uh right now you're paying 8062 if
you're an individual. If you are um on
[55:08] the GIC's plan it's 8070. So it's a two
cent increase for for somebody. Yeah.
[55:20] » Why would they to pay two
[55:29] months?
[55:34] » That's a great question.
[55:37] » That's a great question. Um, so what
what basically it is is it's taking a
[55:42] look at sort of the long-term stability
of kind of our health care situation. So
[55:47] right now the town is self-insured. So
as a self-insured entity, if we have a
[55:53] lot of
increases in health care costs across
[55:58] our risk pool here, that's going to
drive up the cost for everybody else and
[56:02] we're going to have to spread that. So
it drives up the cost and we spread it
[56:06] over fewer people. So that means that
our rate increases each year could be
[56:11] very large like in the double digits you
know 10 12% last year we had a 24%
[56:16] increase
by joining the GIC that risk point the
[56:20] cost the risk pool is much larger
because we're joining a larger number of
[56:25] people the 13 cities the 34 or so towns
across the state and by having that
[56:30] larger risk pool that's hopefully going
to drive costs down on the other side of
[56:35] the equation um is not just the cost for
you but as a self-insured entity the
[56:41] town pays for portion of the claims that
people have. So that cost gets bumped to
[56:47] to the you know the insurance provider
the employer. So we pay money for those
[56:53] claims. So, also what we're seeing on
the other side when we're trying to
[56:57] manage our health insurance trust is
that we have the money coming in from
[57:00] from you guys, the money that's already
there, and then we have these rising
[57:04] claims costs and claims bills that we
have to pay each month and that's
[57:09] draining things at a pretty fast rate,
faster than what we would like them to
[57:12] be. So, in order to maintain our current
situation, we would have to raise it
[57:17] even more, those individual premiums. So
hopefully with this what we're doing is
[57:23] we're shifting that struct that part of
the structure for the town for
[57:26] sustainability purposes of paying those
claims. We're shifting those over to the
[57:31] GIC. So any claims that people are
having and that fall to the employer
[57:36] then they would be picked up by the GIC
as opposed to the town. So it's a it's a
[57:40] cost savings to the town that way.
>> Yeah.
[57:43] » This total
one does total choice does that have is
[57:47] it only split? Yeah,
>> the total choice is only a 50/50 split.
[57:52] So that's the indemnity plan. So that
one that one there is it's a very
[57:57] expensive plan. So when the when the
insurance advisory committee, they call
[58:01] it the PE now met and took a look at um
the different plans, one of the things
[58:06] that was agreed to was that the
indemnity plan and the PO plan that's
[58:11] offered here that offers sort of that
national coverage would be at the rate
[58:15] of a 50/50 cost sharing split. So when
you look at the so for like a family
[58:22] on the indemnity plan when we look at
the cost comparison there um to our PO
[58:29] plan which would be the most comparable
thing now. So to get something close to
[58:32] the indemnity plan you would have to be
on our PO plan. So if you're on a family
[58:37] PO the cost to someone like like you
would be $700.40 40 cents uh each
[58:44] paycheck, which is kind of crazy, right?
With this one, um it it it reduced down
[58:50] to a lower amount. Um but it's $1926
savings. So, there's a difference there.
[58:58] Sorry, I got stumbled there because I
have this thing that's blocking my
[59:02] slide.
[59:05] » It's not. So, the the Harvard Pilgrim
PO, the one that's up at the top, that
[59:10] one too is also a 50-50 cost sharing
split.
[59:15] Okay. Yes.
[59:22] » Yes. So, if you're Yep. So, if you're a
retiree um who is on Medicare enhanced
[59:31] um and you and your spouse are both
there, both you and your spouse will
[59:35] have to enroll in a GIC plan separately.
So, each of you will have to go on the
[59:40] computer, you know, one at a time if you
only have one computer, just one at a
[59:44] time, and you'll have to enroll and then
your spouse will have to enroll and they
[59:48] both will come out of your pension. Yes.
Question.
[59:57] Can each spouse what?
Yes. Yep. Yep. So, you'll be eligible.
[1:00:04] That's a good question.
[1:00:08] Yes. The questions. This one.
>> Okay.
[1:00:18] Perfect.
[1:00:22] And uh yeah,
[1:00:30] » so if that's the case, you're going to
need to have a that copy of that divorce
[1:00:33] decree as your supporting material to
cover your spouse when you when you sign
[1:00:39] up or when they sign up. So if you're of
Medicare age,
[1:00:43] um sorry, I moved closer, but I want to
be on the microphone. Um,
[1:00:51] so if what you would need to do for them
is they would have to have a copy of
[1:00:55] your divorce decree. Um, and then they
would use that as their supporting
[1:00:59] documentation for when they enroll.
[1:01:07] » Yes. Yep. You're welcome. All right.
Perfect. Any other questions? I see that
[1:01:14] the room's moving a little bit. We're at
the end. Yeah.
[1:01:25] Yes. So, a dependent will be a spouse or
children in most circumstances. There
[1:01:29] can be others, but I don't think we have
any across the town.
[1:01:40] » Just the marriage license. If there are
if there are kids involved, then the
[1:01:43] kids need the birth certificate. So, the
birth certificate is used as the backup
[1:01:48] because that's saying that they're your
kids.
[1:01:56] » That does all
>> goes over five of the eight plans.
[1:02:05] » Yep. I'll have to take a look at that
one. It It should be It should be all of
[1:02:08] them, but if you if you bring it up,
then I can take a look at it. We can get
[1:02:12] you another one.
>> Perfect.
[1:02:15] All right,
>> there are several questions on the Zoom
[1:02:18] call.
>> Are they going to be answered?
[1:02:34] » Yeah. So if you're if the if your
husband was the retiree and and he he is
[1:02:39] now deceased and you're you're still
covered by the town, you would choose
[1:02:44] your you would choose a new plan
the same as everybody else here and you
[1:02:48] could maintain your coverage level.
Okay.
[1:02:57] No, no, no. Yes.
[1:03:12] So if if you're
[1:03:17] » Yes. So if you if if if you're a
Medicare age person and they're a
[1:03:22] Medicare age person, then they don't
need they don't need to provide any
[1:03:26] marriage certificate because they're on
their own plan.
[1:03:30] » Yes.
[1:03:33] No, no.
[1:03:38] Medicare folks are special because
they're all on their own plans. The
[1:03:42] marriage certificate proves you're
dependent. Even though they're getting
[1:03:46] their insurance coverage through your
benefit, your spouse, they are on their
[1:03:51] own plan. So, they have their own plan
with the town of Belmont separate from
[1:03:54] you.
We don't need the marriage certificate.
[1:03:57] No. Yeah. Great. Awesome. Any other
questions from folks? Yes.
[1:04:11] » You're just scanning. Yeah. So, a copy
is copy should be perfectly fine if you
[1:04:16] have a copy at home.
[1:04:20] » No, you would only have to go and pursue
a town hall if if you didn't have a
[1:04:25] copy. And if that was too difficult,
Chris, then we could probably just see
[1:04:30] our, you know, see if we have it here,
you know. Oh, you got it here in
[1:04:33] Belmont.
[1:04:37] » Oh, perfect. All right. So, it's not too
not too big of a lift then. Yeah. Okay.
[1:04:42] All right. You're welcome. You're
welcome. All right. Thank you everybody.
[1:04:48] Sorry that sort of broke up at the end,
but lost control of the crowd.
[1:04:53] Yes.
that is
[1:04:57] » the retiree split. So, the retiree
split. Um, and then for the folks on
[1:05:02] Zoom, if you want to hang out for just a
second, um, perhaps I can, um, answer
[1:05:08] some questions for you in just a minute.
Yes.
[1:05:13] Retirey split. So, it's the same that it
is now, right?
[1:05:16] » Um, so are you over 65 or under 65?
Medicare. So, let me go back here. Let's
[1:05:22] see.
So, how this rate is calculated?
[1:05:29] See, there we go.
So, we get the rate from the um the
[1:05:36] total cost here. So, this is what the
plan costs here
[1:05:39] and then there's a 50% subsidy of the
Medicare part B base rate. But whatever
[1:05:46] the Medicare Part B base rate is here,
20290 that comes from the federal
[1:05:51] government, we give you 50% of that back
and that's taken off of the premium.
[1:06:00] » 5050 split.
>> Not quite.
[1:06:05] » Not quite. Depends on depends on this.
So, a 50-50 split of the Medicare rate
[1:06:11] and then that that subsidy gets applied
to whatever the GIC is charging. Okay?
[1:06:17] So, it's a 50/50 of the of the federal
government of their rate that they set
[1:06:22] every year and then that is then
subtracted from the GIC's overall. Okay.
[1:06:29] » Yes,
>> I could probably get the but only
[1:06:34] Yeah, this is an interesting one. So,
we'll see. You might be looking at the
[1:06:38] wrong Are you looking at um like wanting
to get a comparison like this
[1:06:42] » comparison? With all eight
>> all eight. You may have to slide on the
[1:06:46] computer.
>> You may have to slide over to see it.
[1:06:49] » Gotcha.
>> Um I'm not sure why it printed out like
[1:06:52] that,
>> but
[1:06:55] that's what I would imagine because it
looks like it goes over a little bit
[1:06:58] further.
>> It looks like what it is.
[1:07:00] » It doesn't here. No, I totally see that.
I thought you were looking at this one
[1:07:04] here.
>> No,
[1:07:05] » so if you go on to the GIC's website,
>> right?
[1:07:10] » And I'll show you here.
>> Actually, could you print up the other
[1:07:13] one that just come bring it up so I can
take a picture of it?
[1:07:17] » Yeah, sure. Which one?
>> The uh one for employees.
[1:07:21] » So, not that one. This one's you.
[1:07:26] » Yeah. And I'll go on the website, but
thank you very much. Perfect.
[1:07:31] I asked you before
we went over these.
[1:07:37] » Yeah, I can do that with you. Let me
just try to turn the Zoom off.
[1:07:46] » Thank you.
>> Amazing.
[1:07:48] » Thank you.
>> Yeah.
[1:07:49] » Well, we'll do it all again. presented.
Um,
[1:07:53] yeah, if you guys have questions, I know
Jeff was saying maybe
[1:07:57] » we should just add a comment about the H
and the holidays that the retirees are
[1:08:05] going to get.
>> Oh, that's right. Yeah.
[1:08:07] » So, we could talk about that. Okay. For
the next
[1:08:10] » Perfect. Sounds good.
>> Really?
[1:08:12] » Thank you, S.
[1:08:33] So, do the folks that are on Zoom, I
don't know if you can hear me or not
[1:08:37] very well. The room's kind of loud now,
but do you have any questions?
[1:08:43] » I do. This is Linda Shaughnessy.
>> Somebody might be trying to talk. Hold
[1:08:46] on just a second.
This is Linda Shaughnessy.
[1:08:55] » Can you hear me now?
[1:09:00] » I'll be right back. We just have some
folks on the Zoom. I just want to see if
[1:09:04] they have any questions, then I'll come
right back. Okay.
[1:09:10] » Can you hear me, Mitch?
>> Hold on. I'm going into a quieter room.
[1:09:13] I apologize for all the technology
difficulties, but yes, I now can hear
[1:09:18] you, Linda. Right.
>> Yes. I just have a a quick question
[1:09:23] about um my spouse. So, I saw figures
for we live out of state, so I would
[1:09:30] need
>> to continue the hobbit pilgrim that I
[1:09:33] have. Um what would the spouse cost be
>> because I know that's different from the
[1:09:39] employee cost.
So, um, so you retired, Linda, did you
[1:09:44] say?
>> Yes.
[1:09:46] » Okay. So, you're a retiree living out of
state. Um, and then for your spouse as
[1:09:51] well. And are you under 65?
>> No, we're both over 65.
[1:09:56] » Both on Medicare. So, you would have two
of those plans. So, if you have a
[1:10:01] spouse, it would work the same as it
works now. So, those Medicare rates
[1:10:05] would be doubled. So, right now, I think
we're at I think it's 258, I want to
[1:10:09] say, is what's coming out of your
paycheck um for the if you're on the
[1:10:13] Harvard Pilgrim at least, and that's
what comes out of your paycheck for two
[1:10:17] plans, but those are two individual
plans that we just combined together as
[1:10:22] one deduction rate. So, we're going to
do the same thing for whichever um plan
[1:10:28] it is that that you choose.
>> So, I would just take the number and
[1:10:32] double it that that's on the slide. Just
take the number and then you would
[1:10:35] double it, right?
>> Perfect. All right.
[1:10:39] » Yep. Great question. That's a good one.
>> That was easy.
[1:10:42] » All right. Very good.
>> That's all I had. Thank you so much.
[1:10:46] Great job, by the way.
>> Oh, thank you. Hopefully, you were able
[1:10:48] to hear it all. [laughter]
>> I could I could
[1:10:51] » Oh, good. Good. Good. That was my main
worry. The computer wasn't uh the screen
[1:10:55] wasn't working in the room, so we were
just on the laptop. But I won't keep
[1:10:59] you. But thank you for the question.
>> Thank you.
[1:11:02] » Okay. Anybody else?
>> Yes, I have a question.
[1:11:05] » Could you possibly email or make
available somehow online that cost sheet
[1:11:12] that you showed?
>> Yes, those are all going to be on our um
[1:11:17] Give me a second here so you can see.
Let me share my screen again.
[1:11:26] So, let's see.
Perfect. So, if you were just to go on
[1:11:31] to the town of Belmont.
>> Yeah.
[1:11:36] » So, we just Google that. The first thing
that should come up is the town's
[1:11:39] website.
>> Yeah.
[1:11:42] » And then to get all the GIC information,
it's all managed by our HR department.
[1:11:48] » Um, so we go to departments, human
resources.
[1:11:51] » Yeah.
>> And then right over on that left hand
[1:11:55] side there
>> is the group insurance commission.
[1:11:58] » Yeah. So, right here is where we're
going to put all of the um all of the
[1:12:03] information.
>> So, all the rate sheets are going to be
[1:12:05] there and then all of um the the
presentation from today is going to be
[1:12:09] there. Um
>> okay.
[1:12:11] » So, that's where we're going to put all
the resources.
[1:12:13] » All right. And then the other question
is if I'm signing up for a family plan,
[1:12:20] myself and my husband, is it one
application or two separate ones?
[1:12:25] » It will be two. So, if you're on if
you're both on a Medicare plan or even
[1:12:29] if one of you is on a Medicare plan and
one of you is on a non-Medicare plan.
[1:12:33] » No, we're both on we're not on Medicare
yet.
[1:12:36] » Oh, you're both not on Medicare yet,
right?
[1:12:39] » Um, so in that case, both of you Well,
if he's coming on as a dependent in that
[1:12:43] case, then it would just be one one
plan. What you would need to provide is
[1:12:47] you would need to provide a copy of your
marriage certificate,
[1:12:51] » right?
>> So, that's the one thing that you'll
[1:12:53] probably have to get. So for even for
retirees that you know um that that is
[1:12:58] still something that you're going to
need if you have a dependent.
[1:13:01] » Okay.
>> The confusing thing is for people that
[1:13:03] are 65 and over on Medicare because they
have two different plans, two individual
[1:13:08] plans, but it comes out as one
deduction. So a little tricky and both
[1:13:12] of those individuals have to apply
separately.
[1:13:15] » Okay. Thank you.
>> You're welcome.
[1:13:20] » Hi Mitch. Um can you hear me? This is
Chris comment. Uh,
[1:13:24] » hi Chris.
>> Hi. How are you?
[1:13:26] » Good.
>> Good. Um, thank you for the
[1:13:28] presentation. I just have one quick
question. Um, so I understand so, so my
[1:13:34] spouse is on Medicare. I am not. I
understand that we have to fill out
[1:13:40] applications separately. My question is,
how is she defined on the application?
[1:13:46] Because she was not a Belmont employee.
Um, and they usually don't include like,
[1:13:53] you know, spouse, you know, of a retired
employee as a box to check.
[1:13:59] » Yeah. So, she would just be an employee.
>> Okay.
[1:14:03] » So, we're going to we're going to list
um people in your situation, we're going
[1:14:08] to list them as just regular employees,
even though they didn't work here,
[1:14:13] » but they have their own individual plan
with us. So, that's how that would work
[1:14:17] out. Um, the GIC does like to know who,
you know, a survivor is. So, we'll
[1:14:23] probably have to update that information
with them if if that happens.
[1:14:28] » Okay.
>> Yeah.
[1:14:29] » Just thinking through my mind, but I'm
saying that I'm saying, "Oh, that
[1:14:31] doesn't sound all that great." I didn't
mean any offense by it, but if if that
[1:14:35] happens and your spouse becomes a
survivor, then we may have to change
[1:14:38] their their group, but that doesn't
really affect them or you all that much,
[1:14:42] but you would still be applying
separately.
[1:14:45] » Okay? Okay. And I'll and check the
employee box for her even though she
[1:14:48] wasn't an employee. Okay.
>> Yes, that's my understanding right now.
[1:14:52] If anything changes um and they're
giving you a hard time and um you know,
[1:14:56] we'll we'll update you then. But that's
my understanding right now.
[1:14:59] » Yeah. I just don't want to get in
trouble for, you know, lying on the
[1:15:02] application. [laughter]
>> No, no, no. You won't get in trouble for
[1:15:05] that. No, blame me.
>> All right. Okay. Thank you, Mitch.
[1:15:09] » You're welcome.
>> Hi, Mitch. It's Joan Watts.
[1:15:12] » Oh, Joan, it's good to see you. Oh, I'm
glad to be here. Thanks for being sure I
[1:15:17] got the link. Um, I'm still working on
not on that issue with not having
[1:15:23] Medicare Part B. And I called Medicare
and they won't give me such a letter.
[1:15:29] But then I've been told by another
source that the letter has to come from
[1:15:34] the town of Belmont saying that I did
not need um Medicare Part B because I
[1:15:41] was being covered by my medical
insurance from Harvard.
[1:15:45] » Oh, okay. Well,
>> so that
[1:15:48] » I'll check
>> what I'll do, Joan, is um I will check
[1:15:54] with with the folks over at the GIC now
that they told you that um and see if
[1:16:00] it's something we can do for you. Um I
would imagine I would imagine that the
[1:16:05] le letter will have to come from
Medicare though because they're the ones
[1:16:09] that are saying that you're eligible or
not. But um I will ask them.
[1:16:13] » They're saying I am they're saying that
I am entitled to it now. But um then
[1:16:18] other sources say but I don't have to
have it because I had um good coverage
[1:16:24] from Harvard through the town.
>> Oh. Oh okay. So you are eligible for
[1:16:30] Medicare now
>> because I turned 65. They said I could
[1:16:34] have taken it then. And now they're
saying that I since I didn't have to I
[1:16:38] have to pay an enrollment penalty which
is going to be over $400 a month.
[1:16:45] » Oh dear. That's not that's not
>> If we can work around that with the
[1:16:49] information I have that the town of
Belmont can say I didn't need to because
[1:16:54] I was deployed for those 26 28 years.
>> I understand. Yes. So we have done like
[1:17:01] that for people in the past. But then
what that would mean, Joan, is you would
[1:17:04] have to enroll in Medicare.
[1:17:09] We can talk more. Joan, why don't can
you give me a call maybe later this
[1:17:13] afternoon?
>> Sure. Sure.
[1:17:15] » And we can we'll talk it through then
because I don't want to go over your
[1:17:17] whole situation.
>> I know. I just want
[1:17:20] » in front of everybody else. But yes,
that's a good update.
[1:17:23] » Yeah. I just wanted to give you some
more information as I'm trying to muddle
[1:17:27] my way through this.
>> I know it. I know it. Well, hang in
[1:17:30] there and keep me updated like you do
and we'll get through it.
[1:17:34] » Thank you so much. And I thought if we
could see each other face to face, it
[1:17:37] would help.
>> Oh, it's very pleasant to get to see
[1:17:40] you, Joan. Thanks.
>> Thank you. Thank you very much, Mitch.
[1:17:43] Take good care.
>> You, too.
[1:17:45] » Bye.
>> Bye.
[1:17:51] And does anybody else on Zoom that's
that's still there um have any questions
[1:17:56] that they want answered at this time?
[1:18:01] I will say and I'll move through this a
little bit here for the people that are
[1:18:05] on that are on Zoom um that this here is
our contact information.
[1:18:12] So if you do have any additional
questions um feel free to reach out
[1:18:16] directly to anybody on that page or to
the human resources office generally and
[1:18:22] we'll do our best to talk through um
your situations.
[1:18:29] But if there aren't any more questions,
um, then I will end the meeting for us
[1:18:34] all. And like I said, uh, thank you very
much for taking the time, um, to come to
[1:18:39] the information session. If you want to
come to more information sessions, feel
[1:18:42] free. Um, and just know that we're here,
um, to try to help you throughout this
[1:18:46] entire process.
[1:18:51] » So, thank you all and, um, have a good
rest of the day. I'm gonna end the
[1:18:54] meeting.
of this year.