The next AGRE Monthly Meeting will be held on Thursday, December 3, at 6:00 p.m. at 133 Raleigh Road, Oak Ridge, TN.
CORRE held their annual meeting on November 2, and several local and state officials were present for this important meeting. AGRE had a display in the lobby and met with retirees prior to the meeting. Dub Shults, CORRE President, gave an informative presentation on the year's progress entitled "An Up and Down Year."
On November 5, BJC began open enrollment for medical and dental benefits and announced that the rates for retirees for 2010 are the same as this year. While no increase was good news, there continues to be concern because the grandfathered retiree medical rates are significantly higher than those at Y-12 and ORNL while benefits are similar:
Pre-65 GF Medical Rate for Dual - $470.45
Pre-65 Y-12/ORNL Medical Rate for Dual - $336.14
Post-65 GF Medical Rate for Dual - $551.12
Post-65 Y-12/ORNL Medical Rate for Dual - $300.00
Also included in the Open Enrollment packages this year was information about walk-in clinics. These clinics, found in several CVS and Walgreen drug stores, may be used rather than the emergency room for illnesses that are not urgent, at a much lower out-of-pocket expense to the retiree.
BJC has agreed to give new retirees the AGRE informational brochure in future retirement packages, along with a letter and information about CORRE.
AGRE representatives have met this month with representatives of our Congressmen and Senators in both Washington, DC and in Oak Ridge, TN. Meetings with DOE representatives are being planned in the near future.
AGRE has put together a display with information about Grandfathered employees and the organization. This display was at the Oak Ridge Library during the month of September, then it was moved to the Enrichment Federal Credit Union in Oak Ridge in October. The display can be seen at the Kingston Community Center during the month of November.
