Pensions and duty‑disability changes: state narrows post‑injury health coverage window

MICA staff summarized pension and corrections headlines that affect counties and local governments. The legislature passed changes limiting new duty‑disability health insurance to five years for prospective claimants; the change does not affect currently enrolled beneficiaries or total/permanent disability coverage, which remain in place. MICA said the change was prompted in part by concern about the fiscal health of the police and fire pension plan and that the new law was enacted quickly with bipartisan support.

Staff also noted other pension‑related actions: adjustments to the paramedic/other plan funding threshold (lowered for turn‑off) and formation of a working group to evaluate differential pension designs for certain 9‑1‑1 telecommunicators and probation officers, with MICA holding an appointee to that group.