
Brannan’s bill would preserve choice of healthcare for city’s retirees
CITYWIDE — CITY COUNCIL HAS BEEN WORKING SINCE LAST FALL ON A BILL TO PROTECT the traditional Medicare coverage for municipal retirees. City Councilmember and comptroller candidate Justin Brannan (D-47) released a statement calling the Court of Appeals’ decision “nonsense.”
“When city workers signed up to serve, they were promised traditional Medicare,” he said. “You don’t get to change the deal after they’ve put in 30-plus years. Passing Intro 1096 is more urgent than ever. Retirees don’t need lip service; they need legal protection.”
A bill he is sponsoring “would amend the Administrative Code to preserve health care choice for retirees from city service. The bill provides that the City must offer Medicare-eligible City retirees and their Medicare-eligible dependents at least one Medigap plan with benefits equivalent to or better than those available to City retirees and their dependents as of Dec. 31, 2021,” according to the legislation’s web page.
The bill has bipartisan support from several Brooklyn Councilmembers, including Inna Vernikov (R-48), and from Republicans representing Queens and Staten Island.
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