Tennessee – Early Retiree Reinsurance Program
Rising health care costs have made it difficult for employers to provide quality, affordable health insurance for workers and retirees while also remaining competitive in the global marketplace. The percentage of large firms providing workers with retiree health coverage has dropped from 66 percent in 1988 to 29 percent in 2009.1 Health insurance premiums for older Americans are over four times more expensive than they are for young adults,2 and the deductible these enrollees pay is, on average, almost four times that for a typical employer-sponsored insurance plan.3
The Affordable Care Act creates a new program called the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program to help address this challenge that employers and older employees are facing. The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program provides $5 billion in financial assistance to employers and unions to help them maintain coverage for early retirees age 55 and older who are not yet eligible for Medicare.
Businesses, other employers, and unions that are accepted into the program will receive reimbursement for medical claims for early retirees and their spouses, surviving spouses, and dependents. Savings can be used to reduce employer health care costs, provide premium relief to workers and families, or both. Applicants who are approved into the program receive reinsurance for the claims of high-cost retirees and their families (80 percent of the costs from $15,000 to $90,000). The program ends on January 1, 2014 when State health insurance Exchanges are up and running.
HHS has approved the following sponsors from Tennessee. More applications are being approved each day.
- Aerospace Contractors' Trust
- Aerospace Testing Alliance
- Alabama Laborers Health and Welfare Fund
- Arlington County School Board
- Babcock & Wilcox Technical Services Y-12, LLC
- Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation
- BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee
- BMWE Health and Welfare Plan for Brassell Harry L TTEE
- Campbell County Board of Education
- City of Brentwood
- City of Bristol
- City of Chattanooga
- City of Columbia
- City of Etowah Utilities Department
- City of Germantown
- City of Jackson, TN
- City of Johnson City, Tennessee*
- City of Kingsport
- City of Knoxville
- City of Loudon
- City of Morristown
- Claiborne County Board of Education
- CLARCOR Inc.
- Clarksville-Montgomery County School System
- Cleveland Utilities, Dept. of City of Cleveland
- County of Campbell Office of County Judge
- County of Carter
- County of Hamilton
- County of Rutherford (TN),Office of Budget Director
- DeKalb Telephone Cooperative Health Trust
- Deloitte LLP
- East Tennessee Children's Hospital, Inc
- Eastman Chemical Company
- Electric Power Board of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County
- Evergreen Packaging, Inc.
- Federal Express Corporation
- First Horizon Natonal Corporation
- Florida UBC Health Fund
- Gaylord Entertainment Company*
- General Council on Fin & Admin*
- General Shale Brick, Inc.
- Greeneville Light & Power System
- Hamilton County Department of Education
- Health and Welfare Benefit Trust for Employees of
- IBEW 915 Health and Welfare Fund
- International Paper Company
- Ironworkers Local 167 Welfare fund
- Jackson Energy Authority
- Johnson City Power Board
- Knoxville Utilities Board
- LifeWay Christian Resources
- Local 666 Benefit Trust Fund (IBEW)
- Louisiana Electrical Heath and Welfare Fund
- Louisiana Laborers Health and Welfare Fund
- Louisiana-Pacific Corporation
- Lucite International, Inc.
- MAHLE Industries, Incorporated
- Maryville City Schools
- Memphis City Schools, Board of Education
- Memphis Construction Benefit Fund
- Memphis Light Gas and Water Division
- Metropoiftan Govemment of Nashville and Davidson County
- Metropolitan Board of Education
- Mid-South Trans. Manag. Inc.
- New Orleans Electrical Health Plan
- NGK Metals Corporation
- Nissan North America, Inc.
- Oak Ridge Associated Universities
- Operating Engineers Local 474 Health and Welfare Fund
- Pirelli Armstrong Tire Retiree Medical Benefits Trust
- Plumbers & Pipefitters Local Union No 572 Health & Welfare Fund*
- Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 150 Health and Welfare Fund
- Scott County
- Sheet Metal Workers' Health Plan
- Sheet Metal Workers Local 15 Medical
- Sheet Metal Workers Local 177 Health and Welfare Fund
- Sheet Metal Workers' Local 4 Health and Welfare Fund
- Sheet Metal Workers Local 435 Health Fund
- Sheet Metal Workers Local Number 48
- Sheet Metal Workers' National Health Fund[
- Shelby County Board of Education
- Shelby County Government
- Southeast Laborers Health Fund
- Southeastern Carpenters and Millwrights Health Fund
- Southeastern Pipetrades Health and Welfare Fund
- Southern Operators Health Fund
- State of Tennessee
- Sullivan County Government
- Tennessee Valley Operating Engineers Health
- The Krystal Company
- Town of Greenville
- UA Local 614 Health and Welfare Fund
- Unaka Company, Inc.
- United Furniture Workers Insurance Fund
- UT-Battelle, LLC
- VITRO AMERICA, LLC
- Washington County
*New program participants as of May 24, 2011. List to be updated monthly.
[1] Kaiser / HRET. Employer Health Benefits: 2009 Survey.
[2] Center for Policy and Research. Individual Health Insurance 2009.
[3] Kaiser Family Foundation. 2010. Survey of People Who Purchase Their Own Insurance.