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Good and Welfare:
RETIREE BREAKFAST
Free Retiree Breakfast sponsored by the Counseling
Service Unit Stay Connected Program. Thursday September 25th. 10:00 am to 12:00 noon. at the Staten Island CSU
located at 1688 Victory Blvd. To register please contact Greg Smith at 212-570-1693 x317 (smithgj@fdny.nyc.gov) or Karen Volpe at 718-815-4111. This is monthly program check with CSU for date and time. P6/08
HELPS
HELPS is a new retiree
health care benefit that provides a tax-free distribution of up to $3,000 from retirement plans to help retirees pay for health
insurance or long-term care insurance.
The IAFF won an unprecedented congressional
victory with the passage of the Health Care Enhancement for Local Public Safety Officers (HELPS) act. Under it, retirees
can receive a tax-free distribution of up to $3,000 from retirement plans to help pay for health insurance or long-term care
insurance premiums. The IAFF encourages affiliates to remind retirees about the HELPS benefit.
Under the benefit, the IRS will allow
retired fire fighters to exclude from income distributions made from eligible retirement plans up to $3,000 annually to pay
the costs for accident or health insurance or long-term care insurance. The funds can cover the retiree, spouse or dependents.
The distribution must be made directly from the retirement plan to the insurance provider. Eligible retirement plans include
qualified trusts, section 403(a) plans, section 403(b) annuities and section 457(b) plans.
This is from the IAFF web site. I am
sure more detailed info will come. P2/08
Catastrophic
Insurance
It has come to our
attention that some retirees do not understand the deductible clause of the Catastrophic Insurance we purchase through the
unions. There is a $10,000 deductible that must be met before the Catastrophic
Insurance will cover the cost. However the deductible is not out of pocket expenses. Any expenses occurred even if they are
paid for by Medicare or your secondary insurance coverage count toward the deductible. The money does not have to come out
of your pocket.
It does not take
much to meet the deductible. A few days in the hospital, an MRI , Cat Scan, blood tests and doctor visits will quickly meet
the deductible. After that everything you have to pay out of your pocket is covered. Keep in mind you can get a second opinion
from a doctor or hospital covered by your plan.
Takes some time
to read about your insurance coverage before you need it. P1/08
FDNY
Expands WTC Medical Treatment to Staten Island
The FDNY has expanded its ability to treat
active and retired members. The FDNY has opened a satellite office on Staten Island for active and retired members who are
participants in the WTC Medical Monitoring & Treatment Program. If you are a retiree and recently had a WTC Medical Monitoring
exam, or if you are active and recently had your Company Medical, you may be eligible to visit a satellite office. The satellite
office will not be used for duty determination. It will be open one day per week (Wed) to start out and will not perform actual
medicals, focusing instead primarily on lung issues, as well as GERD, sinus and mental health issues. The SI office will also
be able to provide active and retired members with WTC-related prescriptions. For more info or to make an appointment, contact
FDNY BHS WTC Medical Monitoring & Treatment Program 718-999-1858 or by emailing . For more info go to www.fdnyinsider.com P9/07
City Joins UFA Plea On Tax-Free Disability
Status
The City, UFA and other local unions have
asked the IRS to keep the disability pension for civil servants injured on the job completely tax-free. The issue arose after
a question about the retirement fund's tax-free status was raised earlier in the year. The central component of the pension
- payments worth 75 percent of a worker's final average salary - will likely remain tax-free, city and union officials maintain.
The extra benefits that might be taxable include the annuity fund and increased take home pay (ITHP). P 9/07
Counseling
and Support services
There
are several organizations that will provide counseling and support to active and retired firefighters and their families.
They offer a vast variety of services.
Friends
of Firefighters – 159 1/2 Columbia St. Brooklyn 11213 - 718-643-0980
Safe
Horizion – 26 Broadway Suite 767, NY 10004 – 212-747-0733.
Crisis
support line - 1- 800-621- HOPE or 212-577-7777 – Web Site -www.SafeHorizons.org.
If
you, or anyone in your family are having reactions from a traumatic event such as 9/11 please contact them.
Retiree
Checklist
The
UFA has posted a Retiree Checklist on its web site (www.ufalocal94.org). It has a lot of updated
information on Security Benefit Fund benefits and carriers. It also has a list of procedures and notifications that must be
made. (Similar to our “What to Do” section)
The
Security Benefit section contains a list of forms that may be downloaded They include NYC, NYFD, and UFA forms. The NYC and
FDNY forms are pertinent to members of both the UFA and UFOA. P11/06
Workers' Compensation Law for Retired Firefighters who worked at Ground Zero
Members who retired prior to 9/11/01
and worked at the WTC site between September 11, 2001 and September 12, 2002 are eligible for benefits under this legislation.
The site location is defined as anywhere in Manhattan south of Canal Street, the Staten Island Landfill, barge operations
or the NYC morgue. All retired members who worked at the site should register even if they are not sick of have symptoms at
this time. The deadline for registering is August 14, 2007. Our retirees worked as volunteers, although the law is vague on
defining exactly who is a volunteer, we are urging our members to register. WTC Workers Comp Filing Extended 1 Year: to Aug. 14, 2008
To register on the internet, go
to www.nycosh.org and click on the link near the top of the page. Or call 212-227-6440, ext. 23 to request a form. On the form, you must write
the dates and locations of the rescue, recovery or cleanup work you did and the name of your employer, or the organization
you volunteered with. If you did rescue, recovery or cleanup work for no pay, you should register as a volunteer, even if
you were not a part of an organized group of volunteers, giving the details of the work you performed. The registration form
must be a sworn and notarized statement, so it is very important to make certain it is accurate and complete. P 10/06
Retiree Liaisons
Mike Donavan, is the Retiree Liaison for the
UFOA Family Protection Plan. The FPP is co-directed by Kevin Sullivan and Rich Goldstein.
James Dahl is the Retiree Liaison for the UFA
Security Benefit Fund.
9/11 Medical Monitoring
The FDNY Bureau of Health Services has invited retirees to participate (at no cost) in an BHS World Trade Center Medical
Monitoring Program. It has been jointly developed by the BHS, NIOSH, Mt Sinai, UFA, UFOA and EMS Locals.
It consists of a four hour medical exam and follow-up testing. The exam includes a comprehensive medical, an electrocardiogram,
chest imaging, pulmonary function and hearing tests and screening for cholesterol, prostate cancer, liver, kidney and blood
diseases. A mental health survey and interview and three WTC monitoring exams over the next five years.
For more information and Retiree Contract Form contact the Medical Office at 718-999-1858 or WTCMed@fdny.nyc.gov P1/18
FDNY VFW Post:
The
FDNY now has its own VFW post. FDNY Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #
12033 was instituted on 8/12/2005, in memory of SSGT Christian P. Engeldrum of
Ladder 61. He was the first NY Firefighter to die in the war in Iraq. 103 NY Firefighters have been activated since
9/11. Chris also fought in the first Iraq war.
In
keeping in the spirit of our national organization, we have been steadfast supporters of the rehabilitation of disabled
veterans from Walter Reed and Bethesda Hospitals, assisted the widows and orphans of disabled and needy veterans and promoted
Americanism through education in patriotism and service to the community of New York City.
Anyone interested in joining can contact them on there web site www.FDNYVFW.com . It has a list of current members as well as contact and meeting information. P10/24
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