GasWorkers.org Local 18007

HEALTH CARE CONCERNS

Richard Passarelli — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:57:33 +0000

About 160 million people obtain their health coverage through the workplace, primarily through larger employers. 69 percent of all U.S. employers offer health insurance to their employees, including 99 percent of companies with 200 or more employees.
Beginning in 2014, the Affordable Care Act requires employers with more than 50 full-time employees to offer qualified health insurance coverage, or pay penalties. A qualified plan must be comprehensive (paying at least 60 percent of healthcare expenses) and affordable (costing less than 9.5 percent of employees’ household incomes).
According to the CBO, 6-7 million people would acquire employer coverage for the first time because the requirement would increase workers’ demand for coverage through their jobs. Another 1-2 million who currently have employment-based coverage would instead move to the exchanges, because the coverage would be more affordable. About 8-9 million others covered under an employer plan under current law would lose employer coverage, because companies would choose to no longer offer coverage. Employers, the CBO adds, will pay about $52 billion in additional assessments between 2014 and 2019.
In a recent survey that the number of workers offered employer-sponsored health benefits would decline by 10 percent by January 2014. 13 percent of workers would lose access to employer-sponsored health benefits, and three percent would gain benefits.
According to another survey by Fidelity Investments, 65 percent of large employers said they’re not seriously considering eliminating healthcare benefits. But when asked what they would do if others dropped coverage, 36 percent said they too would consider eliminating coverage.
When compared with the cost of covering an employer and beneficiaries, the penalties an employer must pay for not meeting quality standards — or offering coverage — are light. And since these penalties are static and medical inflation is not, they become even lighter over time.
These facts we know:
1. Congress cannot impose stiffer enforcement rules due to Republican opposition.
2. Congress cannot loosen enforcement rules due to Democratic and White House opposition.
3. State insurance exchanges would pick up most of the non-covered individuals, even though few exchanges will likely be prepared for high volumes by 2014.
For private industry, the wage-to-benefit split is roughly 70:30, where health insurance accounts for 7.5 percent.
Among different industries, the percentage amount that businesses spend on health insurance can vary by 60 percent or more. In transportation and warehousing, for example, a large employers
The differential for Union workers who earn 15.1 percent of total compensation as an insurance benefit, and non-union workers just 6.6 percent.

Research was done from CBO

Obama Care Link

REFER TO ABOVE LINK

P.E.A.C.E Team News! Feb-2012

Ray Tischina — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 06:32:24 +0000

Remember our Safety tips located at the bottom of our safety page.

We’d like to welcome our new P.E.A.C.E. coordinators

South Shop- Valerie Beverly #626
Central Shop- Antoinette Wheat #379
North Shop- Brian Murray #161
Division St- Ed Montes #381

Our New Coordinators will help assist in the scheduling and help answer questions about observations.

Attention Senior employees: We need you all in for safety. Please sign up to be an observer!

Will employers drop health care coverage in 2014?

Timothy Jaroch — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:21:50 +0000

As America inches closer to the opening of federally-mandated insurance exchanges, executives at big companies are weighing their options

President Obama’s health care reform law mandates that a government-subsidized insurance market open in 2014, which might actually encourage some employers to quit offering health care benefits.

Employer-sponsored health insurance is a long-standing pillar of the U.S. health system, but its role appears likely to evolve soon. A new survey by Towers Watson, a consulting firm, finds that many mid-sized and large companies plan to stop offering coverage once federal insurance exchanges, a central element in President Obama’s health care reform law, open in 2014. The exchanges are designed to provide a marketplace where people will be able to buy government-subsidized insurance. Here’s what you need to know:

How many companies plan to stop offering health benefits?
Nearly 1 in 10 plan to drop coverage once their employees have the insurance exchange option, according to the July survey. And that number could rise, as another 20 percent say they still aren’t sure what they’ll do. Another big benefits consultant, Mercer, got similar feedback in June, when 8 percent of the employers it asked said they were either “likely” or “very likely” to end health benefits once the exchanges are up and running. Together, the surveys covered more than 1,200 companies.

What does this mean for employees?
That’s not entirely clear yet. Most, of course, will see no changes, as the majority of companies say they’ll continue offering health benefits. Some speculate that companies will boost workers’ salaries to make up for the loss of benefits, which would permit employees to simply buy coverage on their own. But others fear employees will be unable to afford the coverage they once had. The Obama administration says such fears are overblown.

How much money could companies save by dropping coverage?
The average annual premium for employer-sponsored family health coverage was $13,770 per worker last year, and companies paid most of it, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust. Of course, if companies stop offering coverage, they can’t just pocket that cash. Under the Affordable Care Act, businesses with more than 50 employees will face penalties of up to $3,000 per worker if they don’t offer health benefits.

Is this the beginning of the end for employer-sponsored insurance?
Some experts do predict a dramatic domino effect. “If one employer does it, others likely will follow,” said Paul Fronstin, director with the Employee Benefit Research Institute, as quoted by the Associated Press. But threatening to drop coverage and doing so are two different things, says former insurance executive Bob Laszewski. Companies might reconsider when they factor in the fines and tax headaches they’ll incur, plus the extra pay they’ll have to offer to prevent employees from walking out the door en masse.

Important News for CDL Drivers

Richard Passarelli — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:35:31 +0000

New Federal CDL/Medical Merge Criteria

If you are an Illinois CDL holder, you most likely received a letter from the Secretary of State sometime during the Fall of 2011 describing the new Federal requirement to declare what type of CDL driver you are. This bulletin has been put together to aid you through this transition time.

This new Federal requirement was enacted so that law enforcement personnel can easily determine what type of Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) driver you are. The information you declare will be loaded into a national driver’s license database.

Between January 30, 2012 and January 30, 2014, all Illinois CDL holders must visit a Secretary of State CDL testing facility to declare their driving status. You must declare in person. When you declare, you will need to inform the Secretary of State that you are a Non-Excepted Intrastate (NA) Driver. See section labeled “Important” if you drive a commercial motor vehicle outside of your employment.

• When should I go to declare? You do not need to go immediately. Look at the expiration date on your license and if it expires between January 30, 2012 and January 30, 2014, you can declare when you renew your license. Remember that when you renew, will you will need to go to a CDL Testing Facility.

• My license expires after January 30, 2014, when should I declare? You will need to declare prior to January 30, 2014. The Secretary of State allows you to renew your driver’s license up to one (1) year prior to the actual expiration date. As long as your driver’s license expires prior to January 29, 2015, you will be able to renew and declare at the same time.

• My license expires after January 30, 2015, when should I declare? You will need to go to a Secretary of State CDL Testing Facility prior to January 30, 2014, to declare.

What CDL Testing Facilities can I go to?

PGL & NSG Employees

Elk Grove Village
650 Roppolo Drive
Elk Grove Village, IL
847.981.7447 South Holland
41 West 162nd Street
South Holland, IL
708.210.3540 West Chicago
1280 Powis Road
West Chicago, IL
630.293.1191

Manlove Field Employees

Champaign
2401 West Bradley
Champaign, IL
217.278.3344 Danville/Tilton
#5 Southgate
Tilton, IL
217.442.1564 Rantoul
421 South Murray Road
Rantoul, IL
217.892.8773
What happens after I declare?
You will only need to declare one time. Moving forward, anytime you renew your CDL license, the process will not change from that which you currently followed up to this point.

What happens if I do not declare prior to January 30, 2014?
Your commercial motor vehicle privileges will be cancelled. You will still have a CDL license, but you will not be able to drive a commercial motor vehicle. If pulled over driving a commercial motor vehicle, the officer can write you a ticket at their discretion. A ticket can be either operating a CMV without a valid license or driving out of classification. Either way, the vehicle will be placed out of service until someone with a valid license can drive it.

Will I be allowed to go to the Secretary of State to declare on company time?
No. Employees will be required to declare on their own time as they would for a standard license renewal. Currently the only times employees are allowed to go to the Secretary of State on company time is when they obtain their CDL for the first time.

Do I still need to carry my CMV Physical Card?
Yes. Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas is not engaged in Interstate commerce (meaning state-to-state), but rather Intrastate Commerce (meaning within the state), the Secretary of State will not ask to see your CMV Physical Card. It is highly recommended that you have your CMV Physical Card with you when you go to declare in case you are asked to produce the document. You are still required to have a current CMV physical and required to carry the CMV physical card with you whenever driving a commercial motor vehicle.

What will happen if I am not able to pass the CMV physical?
The same process that we follow today will continue. You will not be able to drive a commercial motor vehicle until you have successfully passed your CMV physical. Your license will remain valid and you will be able to drive any vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 lbs or less. Should you drive a commercial motor vehicle without a valid CMV physical and be pulled over, you will subject to penalties determined by the law enforcement officer (see above information).

Important
If you drive a Commercial Motor Vehicle outside of Peoples Gas/North Shore Gas (i.e. for a side business or second job), the following may apply.
You will need to determine what type of driver you are when you declare and you will be responsible for any actions that may be necessary to maintain your license.

The following information was detailed in the letter you should have received from the Secretary of State:
“All drivers for their initial certification with the Secretary of State’s Office can only be done in person at one of our CDL services facility. If you declare yourself as an Non-Excepted Intrastate Driver (NA), we will renew your CDL as before without asking for any medical information off of your DOT Medical Card. Keep in mind, that all law enforcement officials in the U.S. will show that you did not declare as an Interstate driver. So, if caught in an Interstate operation you will be medically out of compliance. Anytime your driver’s situation changes, you must notify our Secretary of State office so we may change your certification and the new information will be sent out nationally.”