Quinn signs bill requiring retirees to pay part of health insurance

[Nuclear Unicorn]

Gov. Pat Quinn today approved legislation requiring thousands of retired state employees to chip in on the costs of health care insurance that many of them get for little or nothing.

The law attempts to rein in the state’s rising costs but also seeks to share the expense with the 78,000 retirees who pay no premiums for their insurance now.

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Currently, retired legislators get free premium health insurance after four years, retired judges after six years and retired state and university employees after 20 years of service — one of the most generous plans in the country.

The annual cost to taxpayers is nearly $800 million and threatens to hit $1 billion in the new budget year that begins next month if left unchecked, according to legislative supporters.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-quinn-signs-bill-requiring-retirees-to-pay-part-of-health-insurance-20120621,0,2875681.story

For the most part I wanted to post this because it struck me as a further encroachment against public sector employees -- in Illinois no less.

Then I read how legislators get free lifetime health insurance after only 4 years. FOUR YEARS?!?!? Not only are the public workers getting the shaft but the lawmakers had no problem feathering their own nests in order to contribute to the funding shortfall.

[elleng]

1. Amazing to me that they haven't, til now.

Fed employees contribute to premiums, along w the govt, and have co-pays. No 'encroachment'' at all. Its reasonable.

[IllinoisBirdWatcher]

2. Meanwhile IL Teachers have ALWAYS Paid

One of the little-reported issues in Illinois was the huge inequality of retirement benefits. Teachers have always paid toward retirement health insurance (while the Teacher Retirement System was grossly and continuously underfunded by the state) while Legislators paid ZERO for retirement insurance (and always funded THEIR pension system at a higher level than others).

[Nuclear Unicorn]

3. IL legislator

Sounds like a nice job if you can afford to buy one.

[Ed Suspicious]

4. I think I would rather extend their benefits to others rather than remove theirs. This just feeds

into the selfish, "I got mine" GOP way of thinking.

[Teamster Jeff]

5. Race to the bottom