FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, January 4, 1999

CONTACT: Bruce J. Milhans (202) 606-1800 bjmilhan@opm.gov

OPM Director Lachance Seeks Long-Term Care Group Insurance for Federal Workers

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Janice R. Lachance today launched an effort to offer group-rate long-term care insurance to all federal employees and retirees.

The announcement came at a White House long-term care event in which Lachance participated with President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Vice President Al Gore and his wife, Tipper Gore, joined the gathering via satellite broadcast from California.

The President and Vice President place enormous importance on securing affordable and high quality long-term care for all Americans, and I am pleased that OPM is able to take the lead in seeking this important protection for the nations civil servants, Lachance said. Legislation is necessary to allow OPM to offer this coverage to federal workers and retirees, and I hope Congress will act quickly. In order to make this a reality, we need fast legislative action.

The Clinton/Gore Administrations proposal would make private long-term care insurance available to federal employees, retirees and eligible family members at negotiated group rates. Coverage would be paid entirely by those who choose it. OPMs cost of administering this benefit would be about $15 million over five years.

Long-term care coverage would be handled separately from the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, which covers 8.7 million federal workers, retirees, and members of their families. However, a similar number of persons would be eligible to obtain long-term care coverage through their or their sponsors federal job, should they choose to do so. OPM estimates that approximately 300,000 people would take advantage of this opportunity to obtain group long-term coverage.

The goal of the initiative is twofold. First, to educate federal employees and retirees about long-term care options; and, second, to offer them high-quality, long-term health care at group rates estimated to be 15 to 20 percent below individual policy costs.

People eligible to purchase the insurance would include:

• Federal employees and retirees.
• Spouses of federal employees and retirees.
• Former spouses who are entitled to annuities under a federal retirement system.
• Parents and parents-in-law of federal employees and retirees.

Lachance noted that once legislation authorizing the program was obtained, OPMs first efforts would be to inform possible participants, and to seek, evaluate and select insurance companies interested in providing this coverage.

We would carefully select carriers based on quality, service and price, Lachance said. Then we would set a basic benefit package, but we would also like to be able to offer expanded optional coverage plans.

Following those essential first actions, OPM would conduct an enrollment for all eligible participants. New employees -- and employees signing up for the coverage in the initial open enrollment period -- would be subject to no or minimal underwriting requirements. Once enrolled, coverage would be guaranteed renewable and could not be canceled except for nonpayment of premium.

The President and Vice President believe that federal government should be a model employer. We are eager to fulfill their vision and accomplish our mission, Lachance said.

We are pleased to take the lead in answering the Presidents call to create a better American workplace for the 21st century. We were the first to fully implement the Presidents Patients Bill of Rights for the nearly nine million people covered by our health care program -- at a cost of less than a quarter per year per policyholder. We have instituted many of the Presidents visionary family friendly policies in the federal workforce. Long-term care insurance is one more building block toward the workplace of the future. All workers should enjoy such choice in their workplaces, she said.

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