As more information has been provided to us on the SHBP Annuitant Years of Service Subsidy Policy (Subsidy Policy), we felt it necessary to update our membership. Below is information that you should find helpful to answer some of the questions that our members have asked. For specific information on the Subsidy Policy, you should visit the DCH website HERE.

 

In addition, PAGE has sent a letter to DCH outlining our concerns regarding the implementation of this new Subsidy Policy. Finally, we encourage our members to email DCH with their questions and concerns at [email protected] .

 

To determine whether the new Subsidy Policy applies, an educator should ask himself/herself two questions.

1. Were you enrolled in SHBP on January 1, 2012?
2. Did you have 5 or more years in a state retirement system on January 1, 2012?

If the answer to BOTH questions is "Yes", then the new Subsidy Policy does NOT apply to you.

 

If the answer to EITHER question is "No", then the new Subsidy Policy DOES apply to you.

 

Since our first report on this issue, PAGE has learned that the date of January 1, 2012, is determinative. If an educator had SHBP on that date, even if she dropped SHBP coverage at a later date and picked it back up before retirement, she still meets that portion of the analysis. Next, PAGE has learned that "enrolled" means that the educator must have had SHBP coverage in her own name, not as a dependent on a spouse's SHBP insurance.

 

If the new Subsidy Policy applies to you, click HERE to read the resolution and see the chart (Exhibit B) outlining what your subsidy would be based on years of service in the retirement system. Your subsidy will fall somewhere between 15 percent and 75 percent.

 

If the new Subsidy Policy does NOT apply to you, then you remain under the basic subsidy plan and the subsidy you will receive is the same or similar to what is offered to an active employee. (Exhibit A under the resolution.) In some cases this is more than 75 percent.