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WCRTA Trip: Dubuque, IA & Galena
October 26, 2011 $30 per person - What a bargain! For complete details, click on Unit Info above and cursor down to WCRTA Trip Dubuque, IA. SOLD OUT! Contact Gayle to be put on the waiting list. 
Scholarship Presentation June 16, 2022 WCRTA presented $1500 each in scholarship awards to future teachers at Gerry's Pizza and Italian Restaurant in Rockford. The Blanche J. Martin scholarships were given to college students pursing a degree in Elementary Education. Blanche was a retired elementary school teacher, principal, assistant superintendent of elementary education and regional superintendent of Boone and Winnebago Counties. She requested WCRTA to award these scholarship in her name. The 2022 recipients are Annah Dulaney graduate Pecatonica H.S., attending Judson University and Kylee Semenchuk graduate Harlem H.S., student Marian University. Fred Kunz Memorial scholarships were given to students planning to be teachers with an emphasis on Volunteerism. Fred taught 47 years and was an active WCRTA board Co-President. The Kunz scholarships were presented to Sarah Peterson graduate Hononegah H.S., attending University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, Lyndsie Haak graduate Guilford H.S., will attend Olivet Nazarene University and Holly Janowski graduate Hononegah H.S., starting senior year at Western Illinois University. Pictured aloe are the scholarship attendees and WCRTA officers left to right: Scholarship Chairman Michael Cannariato, Scholarship Winners: Sarah Peterson, Kylee Semenchuk, Annah Dulaney and WCRTA President Gayle Haab. *************************************** Teacher Health insurance Security Fund under attack! Click on Pension/Legislative News above, January 24th **************************************************** Donate To The Legal Defense Fund Legal action is very expensive which is the reason IRTA started the Legal Defense Fund in 2012. The outpouring of support from our membership has been fantastic for the fund and it continues to grow. The amount needed will be large, especially if repeated legal battles must be fought such as this. So, we thank everyone who has contributed and ask those who have not to do so. This money is in a dedicated fund and cannot be used for any other purpose. Here is the address for sending donations to the Legal Defense Fund. IRTA, 828 S. Second St., 4th Floor, Springfield, IL 62704 Please make your check payable to IRTA and write "Legal Defense Fund" on the check memo line. ************************************************************************* Click on Schedule of Events 2022 above to see what's planned. *************************************** *************************************** WEP/GPO Bill Click on Legislative News above for important information! *************************************** *********************************************************** If you are curious about what happens at our Board meetings, or you would like to join the Board, feel free to attend one of the Board Meetings. Due to the COVID-19 virus, board meetings have taken place via ZOOM. We welcome new Board Members who will bring fresh ideas to the planning table! Please fill out a contact form if you would like to join the board or attend a ZOOM meeting. You can find the contact form under Unit Info above. ************************************************************ Thank you for your Membership! Not a member? Join Right Now. HI, I’M MIKE SCHMIDT THE IRTA MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE CHAIR, AND I’D LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT TODAY IS FEBRUARY FIRST AND ALL OF US RETIREES KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS. YES, IT’S JUST NINE DAYS TO THE 56th ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST BEATLES APPEARANCE ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW! OH, NO, NO, NO, I MEAN TODAY IS THE DAY THAT IF WE ARE AT LEAST 62 YEARS OLD, THIS YEAR’S PENSION PAYMENT INCREASES BY A COMPOUNDED 3%. HOPEFULLY YOUR 3% INCREASE WILL MAKE 2020 THAT MUCH MORE ENJOYABLE THAN 2019 WAS. BUT JUST REMEMBER THAT WE WOULDN’T HAVE THAT INCREASE IN OUR BANK ACCOUNTS IF THE IRTA’S INSTITUTED LAWSUIT, HEATON VS. QUINN, HADN’T SUCCEEDED. YOUR MEMBERSHIP IN OUR ASSOCIATION MADE THAT SUCCESS POSSIBLE, SO PLEASE SHARE THE VALUE OF THE IRTA WITH YOUR RETIRED COLLEAGUES WHO AREN’T YET MEMBERS. ASK THEM TO JOIN THE ONLY STATE-WIDE ORGANIZATION THAT IS DEDICATED SOLELY TO PROTECTING THE BENEFITS OF RETIRED EDUCATORS. IT’S EASY TO DO IF YOU JUST DIRECT THEM TO OUR WEBSITE AT IRTAONLINE.ORG 1 THEY’LL LOVE US - YEAH, YEAH, YEAH, YEAH. |
Health Insurance Update
Click on TRIP/TRAIL Information above for the latest information on the change to Aetna. Please read this message: If you are a WCRTA member who is covered under the TRAIL Health Insurance plans administered by the CMS, then you probably got an email on, or about, Wednesday, September 20th regarding changes to your health insurance plan. Be sure to read that email. WCRTA would like to offer some valuable perspective about this change from WCRTA member and former IRTA President, Dave Davison, who is the present Region 1 director. In an email written last week, Dave addresses some of the more practical aspects of this change. There is bound to be concern about CMS changing our TRAIL Health Insurance provider to Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO. I talked to Jim Bachman twice this week. One time on Monday morning before he became aware that CMS had rejected United Health Care’s appeal to CMS, he thought the appeal was ongoing. It sounds like the appeal was officially rejected on the previous Friday. Jim emphasized on Monday and again last Thursday that Aetna is: “a good insurance company”. Both days he said that the specs in the “request for bids” had not changed this year from the last time they went out, so the benefits should be the same as with our present United Health Care plan. When we first went with the United Healthcare Medicare Advantage PPO, we told people that “If a health provider accepts Medicare, it will accept the United Healthcare Medicare Advantage PPO”. I asked Jim specifically if that statement is true with the Aetna plan and he said it should be. He emphasized that IRTA was not critical of the Aetna Plan, but the concern is that some of our members may get lost in the cracks in the process of changing insurance carriers. I just read the following statement Jim made in a Members Benefit Committee meeting recently: Jim Bachman addressed the change in the TRAIL Insurance carrier and clarified that IRTA only wanted to inform our members and in no way did IRTA discredit Aetna. The plan should be comparable to the UHC Medicare Advantage PPO. He advises members to check with their healthcare providers to see if they accept Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO. In summary: The positives: --Aetna is a good insurance company. --The benefits should be comparable to what we have with United Health Care. --We expect the statement: ”If a health care provider (doctor, hospital, walk in clinic, etc.) accepts Medicare patients, it should accept patients using our new Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO” to still be true. To me, this means we should be able to continue going to the same health care providers we use now. However, it sounds like that may not be true all over the state, especially around Champaign where it seems Aetna and the Carle Clinic have not reached an agreement on a contract. --Per a change from original information from Jim Bachman, IRTA Executive Director: CMS has now stated that no action will be required to enroll in the Aetna MAPD, unless a participant wants to opt out of the Aetna MAPD PPO Plan. If you and your Medicare-eligible dependent(s) are currently covered under the United Healthcare MAPD Plan or a MAPD HMO Plan, you and your Medicare-eligible dependent(s) will be automatically enrolled in the Aetna MAPD PPO Plan with coverage beginning January 1, 2023. This is a change from original information we received. The Negatives: --To be sure of coverage, we should contact our present health care providers to make sure they accept the Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO. (Note: It is very important that you check with your providers!!) --We are not going to know for sure how the change will be implemented until either CMS, Aetna, or TRS puts out information. We could hear from multiple sources. --Losing HMO plans may be a concern to some people. Other: --Jim expects specific information to be coming out in a week or two. --The change goes into effect on January 1, 2023. Therefore, we will still be using United Healthcare until December 31, 2022. The fact is, we don’t have all the answers yet. But maybe some of the above will alleviate some concern until we have more specific information. UP TO DATE INFORMATION WILL BE FORTHCOMING. BE SURE TO READ ALL EMAILS AND TEXTS FROM IRTA, CMS, AETNA, AND TRS. KEEP INFORMED. David Davison, IRTA Region 1 Director ********************************************************* Stay informed! Update on Teacher Health Insurance Security Fund Litigation Our lawsuit challenging the underfunding of the Teacher Health Insurance Security Fund is proceeding in the Circuit Court for Sangamon County. The defendants, who include the TRS Board of Trustees, the Director of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, State Comptroller Susana Mendoza and State Treasurer Michael Frerichs, have answered our complaint, and they responded to our requests for discovery shortly before the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Our attorneys and expert witness will carefully analyze the data they have produced about the current fiscal status of the Fund. The answer and discovery responses have pointed to one key legal dispute in this case. The defendants acknowledge that “retired teachers have a constitutionally protected right to the benefits specified in sections 6.5 and 6.6 of the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971 (5 ILCS 275/6.5, 6.6),” but they disagree that retired teachers have a constitutionally protected right “to a particular program of benefits that CMS has established under that authority at any given time.” This appears to mean that the defendants believe you have a constitutionally protected right to participate in some type of health insurance program, but not to any particular level of benefits. We strongly disagree with that argument and will continue to advocate for the full extent of your constitutional rights in this litigation. S *************************************** Trail Insurance Information: Please click on TRIP/Trail Information above. ************************************** Message from IRTA President John Flaherty Click on Pension/Legislative News Above *************************************** To contact the Winnebago County Retired Teachers Association: Click Contact form under Unit Info above. ***************************************** TRS Position on Pension Funding Click on Pension/Legislative News above **************************************************** We need your help to continue to keep our pensions safe! Illinois Retired Teachers Association Political Action Committee $1/month Enrollment Illinois Retired Teachers Association Political Action Committee is a statewide, nonpartisan Political Action Committee (PAC) organized by members of the Illinois Retired Teachers Association to benefit the entire retired educator community through political contributions to state candidates. To donate using your credit card, go to the LINKS above and click on IRTA. Cursor down to Political Action Committee. On the right, click on the DONATE button. You can donate using your credit card or fill out the $1 per month TRS deduction form. You can also send a check to Illinois Retired Teachers Association PAC, 828 S. Second St., 4th Floor, Springfield, IL 62704. *************************************************** |
