Health Plans: Before you Choose, Know

Jan 16, 2002 3:44 PM

D ear Colleague,

The UFT is proud to offer you an excellent array of health insurance plans and options, which we negotiated with other municipal unions on behalf of all city workers. This booklet describes the various choices available to help you select the one that is best for you and your family.

In addition to your basic city health benefits, the UFT Welfare Fund provides you, your spouse or domestic partner and your covered dependents with plans for prescription drugs, dental and optical care, accident and sickness disability benefits, a death benefit and various supplementary benefits. The Welfare Fund spells all of that out in a separate publication called The Red Apple, which is also available on our Web site.

With the cost of health care rising, intense pressures are building to curtail health benefits for working families. For example, in the spring of 2003 the city demanded $600 million in health-care and pension concessions from the municipal unions. The unions resisted, suggesting other savings instead. An impasse emerged and the city chose to lay off several thousand workers.

In the past, the UFT has found ways to save while maintaining or even enhancing quality health-care options for our members. That’s certainly our intent for the future, as it was during the rancorous war of words with the mayor in the spring of 2003. I assure you that health benefits will stay at the top of our agenda.

Naturally, we hope you never have to use anything but preventive health services, but rest assured that if you need them, you can rely upon a great package of health and Welfare Fund benefits – as well as caring people at your union who will help you out.

Sincerely,

Randi Weingarten
President