Lockheed Martin Retiree Medical Cost

[roman102]

I was wondering if anyone on this forum can help me with a "sanity check" on the cost of LM retiree medical. I took a voluntary layoff early this year from LM and was not yet 55 so I have been paying for COBRA waiting for my birthday in 2014 so I can transfer to the retiree medical. COBRA for myself and my spouse is $1137 per month so I was sure that I would save money with the retiree medical. I received the notice this week that the equivalent coverage would cost me $1583 per month. Can anyone tell me if this seems like an appropriate cost for someone retiring with over 29 years of service? If so, I guess that I am going to be getting ACA! I am getting no help from the LM Service Center. Thanks, DG

That's sounds about right, totally outrageous! For me and wife we were quoted right at 1600 per month, that includes the so called subsidy. I can get a Blue Cross platinum policy for 300 less per month, better coverage, no subsidy. I think LM is screwing there retirees. LM just give us the subsidy and wish us luck!

 

[2retireearly]

Wow. I am so sorry to you all with these huge costs. I just retired this month,at 57, and if my health insurance was that HIGH, there is no way I could do it. I am freaking out as ours is 2 times employee, banded by salary...which upsets me, as my 'high' salary is moot now, as I now have $0 salary, but my premium is based on my salary..So premium is 'only' $315, which I thought was high! With a low deductible (but no choice on that). So...not to be nosey, but those at LM, is the premium so high,as your salary was so high? I still feel bad for you, but that might explain it a bit.

 

[molly]

I agree totally that LM pulled a fast one on their long term employees. Even now.the promised maximum health care subsidy they have for all practical purposes was reneged on. The honorable thing to do would have been to give retires the $250/month offset as promised. Instead - they have priced everybody out of their promised health plan and kept the $$$ offset because they aren't in the outrageously price plan.

Once Martin Marietta became LM---- it was down the slippery slope.

 

[audreyh1]

I agree totally that LM pulled a fast one on their long term employees. Even now.the promised maximum health care subsidy they have for all practical purposes was reneged on. The honorable thing to do would have been to give retires the $250/month offset as promised. Instead - they have priced everybody out of their promised health plan and kept the $$$ offset because they aren't in the outrageously price plan.

Once Martin Marietta became LM---- it was down the slippery slope.

Sounds like their real plan is to push people out since ACA plans appear to be quite a bit less expensive, especially if you qualify for tax subsidy.

I suspect that's their real plan......

In the past, people with pre-existing conditions would have been forced to stick with the LM plan because they couldn't move into a state risk pool since the retiree plan was available to them, and they would be turned down for individual policies that covered pre-existing conditions.

That constraint went away with ACA (being able to buy individual policies that covered pre-existing conditions).

 

[samclem]

Sounds like their real plan is to push people out since ACA plans appear to be quite a bit less expensive, especially if you qualify for tax subsidy.

I suspect that's their real plan......

I think that will become fairly common, and is entirely rational from the company's perspective. Lots of retirees will actually be better off, after the subsidies. It is cost-shifting to taxpayers, but that's the way the law is written, so it would be dumb not to take advantage of it.

When figuring their compensation and deciding who to work for, employees should probably reduce the estimates of what this employer-provided employee health coverage is worth.

 

[travelover]

........ It is cost-shifting to taxpayers, but that's the way the law is written, so it would be dumb not to take advantage of it............

I think that we saw the first half of this a few years back when retirees over 65 with company paid health insurance were shuttled into Medicare, often with a stipend to pay for a Medigap or Advantage policy.

 

[target2019]

Once Martin Marietta became LM---- it was down the slippery slope.

Some might say that once RCA became MM, it was down the slippery slope!

I believe that LM is self-insured. I don't have figures, but expect the company would like to see all retirees go elsewhere for insurance. Must be a very uncertain part of their business.

 

[unclemick]

Wow! You all must be getting some terrific health benefits for that price!

I guess it depends on your state.

1993 New Orleans. Single. Layed off. Age 49. Cobra about 729/mo to the best of my memory.

heh heh heh - one of the reasons I went 12 yrs in ER without health insurance - too cheap and too mean to get sick. LM was a great place while working though.

 

[audreyh1]

1993 New Orleans. Single. Layed off. Age 49. Cobra about 729/mo to the best of my memory.

heh heh heh - one of the reasons I went 12 yrs in ER without health insurance - too cheap and too mean to get sick. LM was a great place while working though.

Wow - I remember paying 384/mo for the two of us for Cobra in 2000, so yes your Cobra cost was rich!!!

 

[Theduckguru]

The premiums foy my pension's health plan for married couple is $21,936 per year ($914 per month each). And I don't think its that great of a plan.

 

[misty57]

I think that will become fairly common, and is entirely rational from the company's perspective. Lots of retirees will actually be better off, after the subsidies. It is cost-shifting to taxpayers, but that's the way the law is written, so it would be dumb not to take advantage of it.

When figuring their compensation and deciding who to work for, employees should probably reduce the estimates of what this employer-provided employee health coverage is worth.

When we were in our 30s we dialed out SS as far as retirement planning is concerned, but always thought that we would have retiree health insurance and that it would not be nearly as expensive as it has turned out to be.

This is one of the problems with planning for retirement. Corporations and the government, etc. can change anything at any time. If we had known then what we know now, we would have dialed out any subsidy for health insurance (retiree medical and/or medicare). Despite the increased costs for retiree medical, DH took early retirement anyway (this year at age 56). We may have to cut down on some of the world travel that we had wanted to do to pay for medical insurance/care; and if that is the case, so be it. We decided we'd rather he be retired.

There is a lot in the US to see!!

 

[meierlde]

There is a lot in the US to see!!

I agree, and further if your over 62 you can still get the $10 lifetime pass to national parks monuments and the like.

In particular if you drive rather than fly you can see a lot of small towns which are still different one from another. Since one is retired there are at least no time constraints on travel.

 

[digger1959]

When we were in our 30s we dialed out SS as far as retirement planning is concerned, but always thought that we would have retiree health insurance and that it would not be nearly as expensive as it has turned out to be

We dialed out SS/pension and estimated based on our savings only but like you we did not plan for the insurance costs to be so high. Now we are very glad for ACA (assuming that it will be as advertised) and just hope that will be available to us. If not, one or both of us will be going back to work despite all of our years of planning to retire early.

 

[nvestysly]

I didn't work at LMT but another mega-corp establishment. For the last 10 years I worked there I obtained the retiree medical insurance information every year in anticipation of FIRE. I watched with amazement as the retiree premiums increased every year (faster than the heavily subsidized employee premiums). It became obvious that we needed to plan for our own medical insurance so we compared policies on ehealthinsurance.com and bought a policy from/through the online site.

I'm still eligible for retiree medical from mega-corp. Their premium for 2 adults is just over $1200/month for a high deductible health plan that is HSA compatible. We pay just under $500/month through the individual market for a similar HDHP HSA plan.

 

[Bigbass]

2014 retirees Kaiser coverage for self, is $45 a mo, adding spouse is $345, up from $22/$245 from this year. But since I'm still working, coverage from my new employer is still a little cheaper than my retirees coverage, plus it's before tax $. But since my retiree high deductible plan for self is still $0 for next year, I did enrolled for myself only...just in case I needed a second opinion.

I grow up in a family that had no health coverage and watched my parents worry about losing their life savings in their fifties and early sixties till they reached 65.(They were lucky, no major illnesses, till after 65) That's one of the main reason I stayed with the same company for 31 years so I can get retiree benefits...actually, I would still be working for them, had they not sold my dept to my new employer. But looks like the benefits I worked all these years for will start costing some $$$...still grateful I have the coverage!

 

[2retireearly]

What a wonderfully low premium Kaiser offers you! I also stayed with a company for 34 years, but Genworth,which DOES offer retirement benefits (yay) charges according to your most recent salary,when working. So,if you had a high(ish) salary,your health benefits are pretty high. As a 'ER', age 57, trying to live mostly on savings,vs taxable Income from 401K. So, I findmyslef looking at other options,that I always,in the past, assumed, I wouldn't need to...such as ACA. But, I am the last of the employees at Genworth,to even get this Early Retirement Health insurance Perk.That was another reason i took the ER. I felt I had a perk, that was so good, that no one else was offered it.

 

[Dash man]

I was wondering if anyone on this forum can help me with a "sanity check" on the cost of LM retiree medical. I took a voluntary layoff early this year from LM and was not yet 55 so I have been paying for COBRA waiting for my birthday in 2014 so I can transfer to the retiree medical. COBRA for myself and my spouse is $1137 per month so I was sure that I would save money with the retiree medical. I received the notice this week that the equivalent coverage would cost me $1583 per month. Can anyone tell me if this seems like an appropriate cost for someone retiring with over 29 years of service? If so, I guess that I am going to be getting ACA! I am getting no help from the LM Service Center. Thanks, DG

I retired from LM this year after 16 years of service and looked into the retiree medical plan pretty thoroughly. My premium would have been $1843 for the two of us, both aged 57. We would get $240 subsidized by LM, which is 30% of the $800 maximum subsidy a 30 year employee would get. Premiums do vary by state somewhat, and I'm in Pennsylvania.
One thing you may want to check on since it may only apply to employees hired after 1995, but you only qualify for retiree medical if you are 55 when you retire from LM.

 

[Nunthewiser]

Reviving an old thread for potential LM retirees:



LM HealthWorks for $811.24 for you only or $1,622.49 for family coverage or the LM Essentials plan for $478.35 for you only or $956.71 for family coverage. If you elect to continue your active coverage through COBRA in 2015, the estimated cost for the LM HealthWorks plan would be $518.33 for you only or $1,762.34 for family coverage.

I am bailing out of LM after 34 years of service effective 1 Feb.

Most likely scenario will be a United Healthcare Silver Compass HSA 3600 for $273 month after subsidy ($36K pension only for starters). The $2200 Deductable/MaxOOP is very comparable to the better LM plan. We will also be able to cover the y2kid under the Florida Healthy Kids program for (eventually ) $20/mo.

When I talked about using the ACA as a method of early retirement with my co-workers, I got nothing but blank stares. Most of them were shocked to know they were looking at $12K of retiree HC, unlike the $4K number they were used to as employees.

I guess everyone else really expected to be working until they dropped...

 

[roman102]

I am bailing out of LM after 34 years of service effective 1 Feb.

I quit last Jan after 28 years, just before my 59th birthday (just wanted to be able to say I retired at 58). Best decision I ever made.

I went with BCBS policy better than LMC retiree medical for 1/2 their price, thanks to the ACA.

Wife and I have 3 adopted girls ages 12, 7, and 6. My "job" now is getting them off to school, helping out with the STEM program, working at the church on Wednesdays, and other projects that I WANT to do.

Oh, yeah, bought a new motorcycle, did a 3 week cross-country tour last October.

Life is too short to spend it working.....

 

[unclemick]

1993 I went for 12 years with absolutely no medical insurance - my COBRA was ballpark 700-800/mo. LM insurance would have required me to go back to work.

After Katrina and moving bought BC/BS for 268/mo at age 62.

heh heh heh -

 

[jim584672]

My Megacorp Retiree Medical is at 50% of the COBRA rate, plus a Medigap policy when you get Medicare. Years of service plus age must add to at least 75, and you must be at least 55 yo.

I left at 49 so this is moot for me. Going on ACA/Medicaid in 2015. Retiree medical, just another scam companies use to get workers to work till they drop.

 

[ShadowBloom]

I had the shock of my life the other day when I finally received info from my Megacorp about my retiree health benefits.

According to the info package, my pre-65 retiree medical plan costs $0.00 per month. I called the benefits center and they confirmed it. I'm still not completely sure I believe it and half expect it to be an error when I go back to enroll on Monday.

They don't offer a choice of plans to retirees, just one. It's not the same HDHP I have now, but it's a plan I used previously. I'd been happy with it and only switched because the HDHP was much lower cost. That calculation no longer applies!

I had budgeted a significant amount of $$ for insurance so if this is really real it will have a major impact on my security in early retirement.

 

[stepford]

One of the (few) ways in which Boeing still provides decent benfits to its employees is in its early retiree medical benefits. When I quit at 55 with 28 years service I'll have a choice of various subsidized plans ranging from Kaiser ($50/mo) to Blue Cross/Blue Shield ($75/mo). If one puts in a full 30 years I believe these numbers drop to zero.

The downside: No retiree dental and no subsidy at all after 65. Once I qualify for Medicare I'm on my own.

PS. These cost figures are for an individual plan and would double if I included my DW. As she will continue to work and remain on her own plan though, no worries.

 

[Nunthewiser]

^^ I think Lockheed followed Boeing's lead recently and is ending its defined pension plan. Current employees will have their pensions frozen in a couple of years. They have nothing good to look forward to with regard to company funded healthcare. Tough nuggies....

update on my situation from post #43 above..we are going to split up our coverage and DW will get the silver HSA plan with 1100deduct/1100 OOP max . I will get a bronze HSA plan. Kid will get Florida kid care. Total monthly cost will be about $200 for all of us vs the LM retail rate of about $1622/mo. I take on more risk ($6200 deduct/OOP max) but I am healthy so far.

 

[38Chevy454]

I work for a LM company. Correct there is no more pension plan for new employees. Switch was about 2011 I think? I just started working there this past year, so now in lieu of the defined benefit pension plan, LM sticks 6% into 401k of the employee, regardless of the employee participation in the 401k plan, which I refer to as the pension offset (3 year vesting req't). 401k is matched additional 6% on employee's 9%, (no vesting req't). So effectively if the employee puts in 9%, you get 12% additional, or approx 21% total savings each year. However, the non-pension employees do not have any retiree medical, once you leave, that is it, no more ties to company. Just the 401k money.