By The Herald Editorial Board
The scramble during “open enrollment” for health care insurance can be harried enough as employees and retirees sift through information and the details of various plans. For recent retirees and those turning 65, Medicare’s open enrollment allows less than two months — between Oct. 15 and a Dec. 7 deadline — to research, make decisions and complete applications.
For 65 retirees of the Snohomish Health District their window was even shorter, as they weren’t expecting to have to consider their options for health coverage until notified they were losing their state Public Employee Benefits Board plans at the end of the year. And, at the earliest, that notice didn’t arrive in mailboxes until Nov. 16.
As reported by The Herald’s Joy Borkholder on Saturday, the merger of the Snohomish Health District into Snohomish County has meant that as of Jan. 1, when the district becomes a county department, those retirees lose their state-administered PEBB coverage, leaving them to find coverage under Medicare or an exchange plan, with the option to continue current benefits through a temporary federal COBRA plan, although at much higher premiums.
The merger has meant that current health district employees will become county employees with the same pay and vacation benefits and the health insurance coverage provided to county employees, but the county is unable to continue the district retirees’ PEBB coverage or extend county retirement benefits to them.
To its credit, the county did make an effort to see what coverage might be possible.
“A lot of people spent a lot of time looking through what are the options,” county spokesperson Kent Patton told The Herald.
Ultimately, taking on the district retirees as county retirees would have been considered a “gift of public funds,” Patton said, a determination made by a joint county and district task force charged with implementing the merger.
There was knowledge this would be an issue for the 65 retirees, yet follow-through to notify them was delayed.
The Snohomish County Council approved the health district merger in early June. The joint county-district panel made its determination about the PEBB plans at a Sept. 23 meeting at which time an agenda item indicates the county intended to work with the state Health Care Authority, which manages the PEBB plans, on a “game plan” for notification.
However, the state Health Care Authority made no notification to the former health district workers until Nov. 16, and again on Nov. 22.
The HCA’s explanation of its duty to the retirees for timely notification leans conveniently on statute: “HCA is not aware of any notice requirements to an employer group’s retirees when that employer group stops purchasing benefits through the PEBB Program.”
And while the state agency was morally if not legally obligated to notify the retirees of the loss of their coverage and their need to find new coverage, there was awareness and opportunity for the county, the health district or both to warn retirees and advise them to contact the HCA for more information.
The county and the district — both making clear their appreciation for the years of service and dedication provided by the former employees — now are working to respond to calls from the retirees seeking more information and guidance with the application process. For those who missed deadlines, special enrollment periods may be available.
Yet some of this scramble — for the retirees and for county and district employees now working to answer questions — could have been avoided with earlier notice.
One retiree told The Herald that she spent a week of 12-hour days researching Medicare Advantage, Medigap and Part D plans to complete her application on time.
Notification just prior to Oct. 15 would have given her and other retirees another month to consider their options, get answers and apply.
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