Retired Texas teachers will be facing higher health care costs in 2018, reports The Houston Chronicle.Some families of retired educators in the Lone Star State are facing skyrocketing premiums of up to $1,000 a month and beyond.
The high health care costs are even forcing some retired teachers back into the workforce. The problem lies in the fact that TRS-Care, the health care system for retired teachers created in 1985, is on the brink of insolvency.
To head off catastrophe, Texas lawmakers pumped $350 million into the system last session. But Legislators also approved changes that “led to higher premiums, deductibles and out-of-pocket costs for many retirees.” An outcry from Texas teachers followed, and an additional $212 million was put into the system.
But experts say it’s not enough, and the result is increasing health care costs for retired teachers while their monthly pensions remain the same.