A New York Supreme Court judge recently ordered that New York City was “permanently” blocked from requiring any city retirees and their dependents to enroll in a private Medicare Advantage plan managed by Aetna or seek their own health insurance.
On June 5, the court had issued a preliminary injunction in the case, which involved 250,000 retired employees and their dependents. The switch to Medicare Advantage had been slated for Sept. 1.
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In the decision, New York Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank determined that the planned switch to Medicare Advantage would violate the guarantees by the city that active and retired city workers are entitled to city-funded healthcare through Medicare and other supplemental insurance.
In the preliminary injunction, Frank had said that “numerous promises were made by the City to then-New York City employees and future retirees that they would receive a Medicare supplemental plan when they retired, and that their first level of coverage once that retired would (be) Medicare.”
In response to the order on Friday, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said he was “seriously concerned about the privatization of Medicare plans, overbilling by insurance companies, and barriers to care under Medicare Advantage. It is vital that all seniors—and all New Yorkers—get quality health coverage as a basic human right.”
“At the same time, given the growing costs of healthcare for both retirees and active employees we cannot ignore that there are real cost questions facing the City when it comes to healthcare. It is time for all parties to come to the table to identify creative and effective solutions,” Lander said.
City officials said they were disappointed in the ruling and planned to appeal Frank’s order, according to media reports.