Judge blocks NYC from charging retired city workers $15 copay over Adams’ latest Medicare failure

On Wednesday, a Manhattan court ordered Mayor Adams’ administration to immediately stop charging retired city workers a $15 copay for doctor visits.

The ruling by Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Lyle Frank marks the latest in a long string of health insurance setbacks for the Adams administration, which has tried unsuccessfully for more than a year to shift the city’s $250,000 to a controversial cost-cutting Medicare Advantage plan.

The copay case is not related to the dilemma of advantage, but also relates to how the city funds health care for retired municipal employees.

Last January, a $15 copay was slapped on retirees benefiting from city-supported Medicare plans — a fee the administration estimates would allow for significant savings at a time when it struggles to address budget deficits and skyrocketing growth. healthcare spending.

But the New York Public Service Retirement Organization, which last year was involved in several health-related lawsuits with the administration, filed a lawsuit in November, arguing that the extra pay would violate a local law that requires city workers with free life insurance .

Retired city workers march outside Brooklyn City Hall to urge Mayor-elect Adams to keep their Medicare coverage.

In Wednesday afternoon’s ruling, Frank said the retiree group’s argument was “very likely to succeed” in his court and issued a preliminary injunction against the administration barring it from charging the $15 fee as the case progresses.

“The co-payments are made by retirees, most of whom are likely to have fixed incomes and modest means,” Frank wrote in the six-page decision, adding that the levy could cause “irreparable harm” to retirees “if they prioritize other expenses over their healthcare.”

Representatives for Adams and the city’s legal department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Steve Cohen, an attorney for the pension organization, called Frank’s decision a “big win” and linked it to the Medicare Advantage battle, which also saw his clients suing the city.

“Again, retirees were promised certain benefits, and again the city chose to ignore those promises,” Cohen told Daily News. “We are grateful to Judge Frank for carefully reading the contract.”

The decision was made as Adams continues to push for retirees to enroll in Medicare Advantage.

The mayor says Advantage will provide retirees with reliable insurance while also saving the city up to $600 million a year, a critical hedge against a budget deficit that his administration estimates could rise to $6 billion in the coming years. His administration’s plan provides benefits to retirees free of charge, offering them the option to stay in traditional Medicare if they pay a $191 monthly premium.

But thousands of pensioners rejected this proposal.

They say Advantage will wipe out their benefits, pointing to federal studies showing plans run by private companies can delay or deny “medically necessary” care. They also say the $191 waiver fee would be a violation of city law.

Two courts sided with the retirees, ruling that the city cannot proceed with the plan, with a $191 penalty attached, due to the same law Frank cited in Wednesday’s ruling.

As a result, Adams petitioned the city council to amend this law so that the punishment would become legal.

At a contentious hearing on the issue this week, Council members were skeptical of Adams’s proposal, with some opposing it.

“Our retirees deserve the retirement and health benefits they were promised, and it’s our job as their elected officials to make sure they stay the same,” Republican Queens councilor Joanne Ariola said Monday.

Content Source

California Press News – Latest News:
Los Angeles Local News || Bay Area Local News || California News || Lifestyle News || National news || Travel News || Health News

Related Articles

Back to top button