Medicare Advantage Plan for retirees: Not the Progressive Choice
The Scott Administration is planning to shift more than 6,000 retirees to a private insurance plan entitled Medicare Advantage. This is a private, out-of-state insurance plan with more financial incentive to deny coverage than retirees’ current plan which was agreed upon through collective bargaining. The current plan has been provided to state retirees for decades. We echo the concerns brought forth by the Vermont State Employees Association (VSEA) and the Vermont Retired State Employees Association (VRSEA) in their statement. Vermont ought to offer better protections for our public servants. This proposal would only secure more power for private insurance companies with financial incentives to deny care to retirees who have vocally opposed this roll back of adequate coverage. Governor Scott’s intentions undermine State Employees’ collectively bargained contracts.
We question whether or not the Governor’s proposed shift is even legal. 3 V.S.A. § 479(a) clearly requires that retirees shall be covered with the same coverage as current state employees. Employees should be able to trust that their employers will grant them the coverage they were promised, at the time of employment, under the assumption of a clearly articulated and secure retirement plan.
Beyond retiree’s healthcare, our state statute also includes the promise of universal access to healthcare. Despite this, such access is far from available for hundreds of thousands of Vermonters. Vermont statutes are clear: 18 V.S.A. § 9371 requires that the State of Vermont must “ensure universal access to and coverage for high-quality, medically necessary health services for all Vermonters,” yet 44% of Vermonters under 65 are underinsured. We must pass Universal Primary Health Care in alignment with the language of our state laws and the values that we claim as Vermonters.
Progressives have been sounding the alarm for years — healthcare is a human right and should be treated as such. Progressives urge Gov. Scott’s administration to ensure quality Health Care to public servant retirees in our state, as well as all other residents of the state. Decommodifying health care is a crucial step toward ensuring that State retirees and all Vermonters have the ability to thrive.
