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Case Studies Public Sector
About the Client
Customer name:
The City of Lynn and The City of Fall River
Location:
Massachusetts
Industry:
Government
Size:
Mid-size
Challenge
Two mid-sized Massachusetts municipalities, the City of Lynn and City of Fall River, were facing a myriad of financial and administrative challenges.
Upon review, a major contributing factor identified that many of their public sector retirees did not qualify for Medicare due to not having paid into it while they were actively working. Because of the Social Security Act of 1935, which created a social insurance program that paid a continuing income to retired workers aged 65+, some public employees paid into their pension system rather than Social Security. However, such pension plans can be costly for retirees and municipalities, as they do not capture federal Medicare subsidies.
Facilitating such a migration requires a depth of expertise and resources, as such a migration process is time-intensive and costly for municipalities. As a result, they were losing out on an additional plan savings opportunity of upwards of thousands of dollars.
“Transitioning to Medicare is confusing and can be complicated for anyone. There is so much advertising on TV and through the mail with all the insurance companies competing for business. RetireeFirst was extremely helpful to us in this transition. They took the time to speak with our retirees and answer all their questions and were very patient and professional throughout the whole process. RetireeFirst has been a great ally for our team.”
Nanci M. DeJoie, Benefits Director Treasurer’s Department, City of Lynn
Solution
Rather than take on such a great administrative burden and force the retirees to pay penalties to move them to a Medicare plan, these municipalities relied on RetireeFirst and a consultant to provide a stress-free migration process for retirees.
Retiree First also took the administrative burden off the municipalities, creating a stress-free experience by crafting all announcements and collecting documentation, fielding questions from retirees, and also setting up reimbursements to the member through direct deposit.
35 Members Migrated to Medicare
Migrated 35 members to Medicare, thus enhancing the retirees benefits and strengthening the position of Medicare medical and prescription drug plans.
+380K Annual Cost Savings
Contributed to cost savings of more than $380,000 annually, significantly reducing the financial burden off the municipalities.
Dozens of Hours Saved
Saved the municipalities dozens of hours by having RetireeFirst manage the migration process and all associated administrative tasks.
