Here's a plan likely to cause a major stir.
John Guillen of the Detroit Free Press reports that emergency manager Kevyn Orr is considering a plan to replace city retirees' health care benefits for retirees under 65 with a stipend of $125 a month.
The money would be used to buy coverage beginning next month from the state’s new health insurance exchange, the Freep reports.
The proposed plan is already getting a bad reception.
“It would buy nothing. It would buy absolutely nothing,” John Day, a 52-year-old retired police detective, told the Freep.. “The whole thing is, I don’t know — it’s appalling.”
The Freep writes:
The city intends to help those retirees figure out the best health insurance plan offered under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Michigan’s insurance marketplace where the plans will be sold launches Oct. 1 and coverage is effective Jan. 1.
Retirees over 65 would transition to Medicare, according to preliminary plans Orr’s office previously disclosed as he leads a team to restructure the city’s obligations as part of its filing for Chapter 9 bankruptcy.
