NYC pols, retired city workers blast Mayor Adams’ health insurance proposal [New York Daily News]
Members of Mayor Adams’ administration faced jeers and hours of critical questioning during a
The complicated matter before the Council centers on an insurance plan called Medicare Advantage that Adams wants to enroll the municipal government’s roughly 250,000 retired workers in because it could save the city hundreds of millions of dollars per year, he says.
Courts have for over a year blocked the administration from implementing the plan due to a provision in it that would slap
But the proposal did not get a warm reception at a marathon Council Labor Committee hearing Monday.
Dozens of retired workers — who have maintained that Advantage would dilute their benefits and put them at risk of being denied care — packed into the chamber for the session and repeatedly interrupted
When
“Please be respectful!” Manhattan Councilwoman
At least one municipal retiree had to be escorted out by
But it wasn’t just retirees who were critical of the administration’s Advantage push.
Council members at the hearing also voiced a range of concerns, and not one of them came out saying they’re ready to support the bill that would alter the underlying law, known as Section 12-126 of the Administrative Code. Several members committed to voting against the bill if it ever comes up for a vote.
“I unequivocally say we should vote no on this, and I unequivocally support our retirees,” said
In a sign that distaste for the bill is widespread, all six Council Republicans also vowed to oppose the legislation.
Eight hours into the hearing, a senior
Mayor Adams, joined by most of the city’s public sector unions, has argued it’s critical to implement the Advantage plan because his administration projects it could generate as much as
Such savings will be critical at a time that the city is staring down a budget deficit that could grow as large as
“The delay thus far has already cost the city close to
Ultimately, though, the administration has made clear it doesn’t need to rely on the Council. If the body doesn’t pass the bill, the administration has said it will eliminate all retiree health care plans except for Medicare Advantage, a drastic step that it maintains is legal.
“If they did that, I’m sure we’ll see them in court pretty quickly,”
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