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Who Is ProtectSeniors.Org?
ProtectSeniors.Org was formed by Jim Casey, a Verizon retiree and 9 year board member of the Association of BellTel Retirees. It was formed to concentrate on one issue: Get HR1322 through Congress and made into law.
Passage of HR1322 will make it illegal for a corporation to take away the health benefits earned by their retiree family which they promised in lieu of salary or hourly wages, and vacations. The Association of BellTel Retirees gave a grant to help ProtectSeniors.Org get started.
There are many pension issues that concern retirees that are being aired in the news media. As a result Congress is also interested and numerous bills are winding through the legislative process. NRLN has been deeply involved in this process, attempting to sort out the good and bad components of these bills and communicating their concerns to our representatives. Some of you have been assisting in this process.
However, with all that is going on, retiree healthcare issues have been largely ignored. ProtectSeniors.Org has decided to lead the charge to see that the Emergency Retiree Health Benefits Protection Act of 2005, HR 1322, gets passed. It is essential that protections, similar to those afforded by ERISA for pensions, be put in place to protect promised healthcare benefits. Yes, at this time it is perfectly legal to steal retiree’s earned healthcare benefits.
How can that be true? This is how: Years ago, GM offered fully paid healthcare benefits to managers and their spouses for their entire lives if they would retire by a given date. Thousands took that offer but a number of years later, GM cancelled those benefits. Outraged retirees filed a law suit named Sprague vs. GM and won in a lower court. GM appealed and won on appeal. Not to be denied, GM retirees took the case to the Supreme Court. It is hard to believe but the Supreme Court refused to listen to the case because they determined “the law has been upheld.” Yes, the Supreme Court says that it is legal to offer someone something if you will do something in return. You do it, then they renege on the deal and that is legal. Obviously the law is flawed and must be changed.
This is why we feel compelled to make an all out effort to put a new law (HR 1322) in place to protect you, a corporate retiree, from this sort of robbery of your earned benefits - a theft that seriously jeopardizes your financial security. ProtectSeniors.Org is the vehicle that will allow us to do that.
Won't you please join us in this fight to change the law?
The current all volunteer ProtectSeniors.Org Board of Directors are:
Jim Casey - President
Bill Jones Chairman of the Board
Eileen Lawrence - Secretary-Treasurer
Our intent from the beginning was to hire a professional association manager who has lobbying and PAC building experience. That search resulted in the appointment of Paul Miller to be our Executive Director and Chief Lobbyist. In 26 short months he has positioned us in July, 2008, to have a very good chance of passing HR1322 either as a stand alone bill or inside HR6143, the Pension Protection Act Amendament Bill. He can't do it alone so we are asking you to write to your members of Congress to push them to support HR1322 ad HR6143. Also we need you to visit the members of Congress in their home District during Congressional recesses. Many hold Town Hall meetigs where you can address this issue in from of your freinds and neighbors.
As part of that team, they have worked to make ABTR a viable and financially solvent organization and have learned the complex legal requirements for legislative action, and the importance of grassroots efforts as an integral part of any successful action plan. Out of their dedication and determination to make corporate "theft of earned health benefits" illegal, ProtectSeniors.Org was conceived and founded.