Postretirement health care benefits.

Existing law generally authorizes a state employee or annuitant to enroll in an approved health benefit plan administered by the Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System pursuant to the Public Employees' Medical and Hospital Care Act. Existing law establishes percentages for levels of benefit coverage afforded under the approved health benefit plan in which the employee or annuitant is enrolled. Existing law specifies the number of years of state service a state employee needs to receive the full employer contribution payable for annuitants and the rate at which the employer contribution is required to be paid to an annuitant based on credited state service at the time of retirement. This bill would prohibit a state employee who is hired by the state for the first time on or after January 1, 2015, from receiving any portion of the employer contribution payable for annuitants unless the employee is credited with 15 years of state service at the time of retirement, at which point the employer contribution would be 50%. The bill would increase the employer contribution payable for postretirement health benefits for an employee subject to these provisions by 5% each credited year of service, reaching 100% for an annuitant with 25 years of credited state service at the time of retirement. The bill would also prohibit an annuitant subject to this section from receiving an employer contribution towards health benefits that is more generous than that provided to active state civil service employees. Existing law requires the board to pay to an employee or annuitant who is enrolled in, or whose family member is enrolled in, a Medicare health benefit plan the amount of monthly premiums, not exceeding the difference between the maximum employer contribution and the amount contributed by the employer toward the cost of premiums. This bill would require an annuitant to use medicare benefits, if he or she is eligible to receive those benefits, to the fullest extent possible.