The email below was sent to the membership for whom VCCCDRA has email addresses by Rene Rodriguez, President.
Dear VCCCDRA retiree,
AT A SPECIAL VCCCDRA MEMBERSHIP MEETING attended by 113 retirees, held on February 5 at the Wright Event Center on the Ventura College campus, the leadership of the VCCCDRA, headed by Benefits Committee Chair, Gary Johnson, began the process of informing the general membership of its findings, thus far, regarding the District’s proposal to replace our current Anthem/Blue Cross and Kaiser plans with CalPERS Health Plans.
For those retirees not able to attend the meeting, AN AUDIO RECORDING OF THE PROCEEDINGS was made, and can be accessed, along with all the handouts distributed at the meeting, at http://www.blog.vcccdra.org/audio-recordings-and-pdfs-of-membership-meeting-on-february-5-2020/
The handouts can be viewed on your computer while you listen to the related presentations. THIS IS THE FIRST OPPORTUNITY FOR THE GENERAL VCCCDRA MEMBERSHIP TO BECOME INFORMED ON WHAT THE DISTRICT IS PROPOSING AS A REPLACEMENT TO OUR CURRENT HEALTH PLANS, AND WE URGE YOU TO BEGIN THE PROCESS OF INFORMING YOURSELVES NOW, BY LISTENING TO THESE RECORDINGS, AND VIEWING THESE HANDOUTS.
The next VCCCDRA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING will take place in about three weeks, on Wednesday, March 11. It will be held at the Wright Event Center, at 57 Day Road, located on the Ventura College campus at the corner of Day and Telegraph roads, starting at 1 p.m. The Monitor – Spring 2020 will be sent out soon with more details.
We will see if Ventura College can waive the need for parking permits for that afternoon. If this is not possible, parking permits will be made available to you at the door when you arrive. We will let you know one way or the other.
The purpose of the meeting will be to further educate the general membership regarding the comparison of the CalPERS Health Plans to the current Anthem/Blue Cross and Kaiser plans, and also for a panel of Benefits Committee members to answer questions regarding these health plans.
In this regard, I would HIGHLY ENCOURAGE YOU to read the CalPERS Health Plan that you would fall under, so that you can be prepared to ask questions and judge for yourself how you would fare under that CalPERS Health Plan.
The District is offering two plans to retirees, the PERS Choice Supplement Plan, and the PERS Choice Basic Plan.
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- You would fall under the PERS Choice Supplement Plan if you are currently enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B.
- You would fall under the PERS Choice Basic Plan
a. If you are under the age of 65
b. If you are 65 or older but do not qualify for Medicare
c. If you live outside of the United States
d. If you are enrolled in Part A only, you would be required to enroll in Medicare Part B within a year.
e. If you qualify for Medicare but are not currently enrolled, you would be required to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B within a year.
ATTACHED find a copy of the PERS Choice Supplement Plan AND a copy of the PERS Choice Basic Plan. Download and print the appropriate plan for you.
Now it may seem like a BIG job to read one of these plans.
Here is what I did.
I printed the Supplement plan and started by reading the Table of Contents, looking for anything that struck a bell. One thing stuck out… hearing aids on pages 9 and 10, so I read that section and found that what CalPERS offers is far inferior to what Anthem/Blue Cross offers. Strike one.
Then, I decided to just peruse the entire plan, page by page, looking at the headings in boldface type. I found another problem, Self-injectable drugs on page 14 under “General Exclusions”. Strike two. I take a self-injectable drug. See my presentation to the Board of Trustees regarding these two topics at http://www.blog.vcccdra.org/rene-rodriguez-presentation-to-the-vcccd-board-of-trustees-september-10-2019/ (Note: at a later Board of Trustees meeting, a Burnham rep explained that the self-injectable drug I mentioned at the previous meeting is covered under the OptumRx pharmacy plan. I questioned the appearance of this “General Exclusion” in the CalPERS Choice Supplement Plan, and whether it took precedence over the OptumRx pharmacy plan, and that there might be a delayed reaction on the part of OptumRx)
There is an even more serious problem with both plans that I encountered while perusing the Supplement plan, and that involves a section early on in each plan that is titled IMPORTANT INFORMATION in boldface type. I have made this the subject of several meetings including two Board of Trustees presentations, but is too involved to get into here, but which I addressed in my presentation at the February 5 meeting. See http://www.blog.vcccdra.org/audio-recordings-and-pdfs-of-membership-meeting-on-february-5-2020/
My point is, that it should not take you long to see if you notice anything problematic that might affect you personally. For a detailed analysis of these two plans, you need to listen to Marta Freixas’ presentation at the February 5 meeting and read her handouts. For that go to http://www.blog.vcccdra.org/audio-recordings-and-pdfs-of-membership-meeting-on-february-5-2020/
Gary Johnson has been our leader-in-chief in this and all health issues that have come to the VCCCDRA. For the broadest and most thorough understanding of what the district proposal entails, you must listen to Gary’s presentation at the February 5 meeting at http://www.blog.vcccdra.org/audio-recordings-and-pdfs-of-membership-meeting-on-february-5-2020/ and also to all of his presentations to the Board of Trustees which can be found in the VCCCDRA blog at blog.vcccdra.org by searching “Gary Johnson”.
This may seem like a lot to ask of you, but it is most certainly in your self-interest to look into the appropriate plan that would apply to you to see how you would fare if the District insists on this direction.
There is also the question regarding whether the District would have to violate contractual and settlement agreements to enter into an agreement with CalPERS. We are looking into these legal questions as we study the District’s proposal.
I look forward to seeing those of you who can manage to attend the upcoming VCCCDRA Annual General Meeting. We need to hear from you regarding what you think of these CalPERS Health Plans. At some point, we will have to take a formal position regarding whether to support or oppose the District’s proposal, and you can help us make an informed decision.
Warmest regards to all,
Rene G. Rodriguez
VCCCDRA President
