Report: N.Y. public employees face $250B gap in covering retiree health care costs

A new report has found a gaping $250 billion hole in what New York state and local governments have promised to public employees to help pay for their retiree health care costs -- a $45 billion increase since 2010.

The Wall Street Journal: Retiree Health Costs Rising
State and local governments in New York will have to come up with an additional quarter of a trillion dollars to pay the entire tab for retiree health care, according to a new report. The $250 billion bill for retiree health coverage is up from $210 billion two years ago, said the study issued by the Empire Center for New York State Policy on Wednesday. Referred to as "other post-employment benefits," or OPEB, the unfunded obligations represent a troubling strain on budgets (Gershman, 9/5).

The Associated Press/Wall Street Journal: $250B Health Cost For NY Public Retirees Predicted
A new report says New York's public sector employees have been promised $250 billion in retirement health benefits, though the state and local governments have not set aside money to cover them. The Empire Center for Public Policy of the fiscally conservative Manhattan Institute says the obligations have increased by $45 billion since 2010 (9/6).

In California and Oregon, new care coordination and public employee pension agreements are held up as new standards for finding health care cost savings --

Los Angeles Times: CalPERS Saves $37 Million As Medical Groups Coordinate Health Care
An effort by three health care organizations that saved the California Public Employees' Retirement System $37 million in the last two years is gaining national attention as Medicare and employers search for ways to control rising medical costs (Terhune, 9/5).

San Jose Mercury News: New Money-Saving Agreement Approved For Palo Alto Management And Professional Employees
Starting in October, 202 unrepresented management and professional employees who work for the city of Palo Alto will pay an increased share of their pension and health care costs under a new compensation plan. The city council voted 8-0 in favor of the agreement Tuesday night. Council Member Sid Espinosa was absent. The compensation plan is expected to save the city about $536,000 annually. Instead of paying just 2 percent of the employee contribution to their California Public Employees' Retirement System pensions, members of the management and professional group will foot the full 7 to 9 percent (Green, 9/5).

The Oregonian: Union Agrees To Cut PERS Costs For Oregon Health & Science University
Like a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, the 5,300-member local representing Oregon Health & Science University employees has agreed to a labor contract to limit escalating costs of the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System. On Wednesday evening, Local 328 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees finished voting on a three-year contract that exchanges pay hikes for reduced OHSU cost-share on retirement pay. Voting began Aug. 23. The vote comes as OHSU expects lean years ahead with reduced public and private reimbursements -- 3 percent growth projected compared to 6 percent in previous years. The goal of the contract is "maintaining the financial strength and mission stability of OHSU," says Lawrence Furnstahl, OHSU's chief financial officer (Budnick, 9/5).