We believe in the NYC Medicare Advantage Plus plan and the excellent range of benefits it would have provided our retirees, but a judge’s decision today will effectively eliminate the savings the new plan would have produced and that would have been reinvested in health benefits for our members.

While the NYC Medicare Advantage Plus plan is sound, the program has suffered from serious implementation problems and poor legal arguments, particularly on the part of the city.

Given the judge’s order today, the UFT is withdrawing its support for starting the NYC Medicare Advantage Plus plan on April 1. We will urge the Municipal Labor Committee to suspend its efforts to begin the program until all the implementation and legal issues are resolved.

We realize the city's many missteps have created an anxiety-provoking situation for all of you. The UFT is committed to ensuring that all our retirees maintain their health care benefits without interruption. We will share further information with you as soon as we have it.