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Public hearing on bill to raise PERS retiree health subsidy draws mixed reaction from employers and retirees
Summary
Senate Bill 847 would raise a long‑unchanged Medicare retiree subsidy and expand eligibility for a pre‑Medicare subsidy; PERS staff presented cost scenarios and local governments and school districts warned about increased employer costs, while retirees and union representatives supported expanding and raising the subsidy.
The Senate Committee on Labor and Business held a public hearing March 6 on Senate Bill 847, which would change the calculation and eligibility for retiree health‑insurance subsidies administered through the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).
PERS staff described two related proposals in the dash‑1 amendment. The first would raise the small Medicare‑eligible subsidy that has not changed since 1988 from $60 to $100 per month and would open that subsidy to future Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (OPSRP) retirees. The second change would expand the retirement health insurance premium account (RIPA) — which subsidizes pre‑Medicare coverage for certain retirees — to make OPSRP members employed by state agencies eligible for the subsidy.
Why it matters: PERS staff told the committee the current PERS…
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