“This ensures that every retiree can afford some level of supplemental coverage above basic Medicare.” - Acting NFLPA Executive Director Richard Berthelsen
In the words of ESPN College Game Day analyst Lee Corso, not so fast my friend. Retirees who are on Medicare can now afford decent medical coverage, however, this supplement plan does not cover EVERY retiree as Mr. Berthelsen suggests. To be on Medicare, a retiree needs to be age 65 or on Social Security disability. And for those on Social Security Disability, Medicare is not available until 30 months after their granted onset of disability.
Upon further review…after earlier correspondence from Harold Henderson we were under the impression that no additional pension and disability reforms could be instituted until after the a new CBA is in place. Guess not?
There is no doubt this supplemental benefit will help those retired players who are in dire need of gap insurance and is a good start for the Alliance as they stroll down the road to making substantive changes to improve pension and disability benefits for ALL retired players.
