Employees of the Commonwealth Ports Authority remain excluded from the government's health and life insurance coverage that will be administered by new carrier Individual Assurance Company, according to the NMI Retirement Fund.
Fund Administrator Mark A. Aguon and IAC agent Donald C. Barcinas confirmed this during Thursday night's assembly of retirees at the Susupe Multi-Purpose Center.
Aguon disclosed that the ports authority pulled out from the government's group health life insurance program in the 1990s and procured its own insurance policy.
To date, there are a total of 192 CPA personnel on three islands who are not included in the government-funded insurance program.
Aguon explained that, although CPA is part of the CNMI government, it will be responsible for procuring insurance coverage for its own personnel.
He said CPA executive director Edward Deleon Guerrero had expressed willingness to have all the employees covered by IAC but the decision ultimately rests with the CPA board.
“We will try to bring them back into the program and the CPA executive director has been notified about this. He will raise the issue to the CPA board for a decision,” Aguon said.
Saipan Tribune learned that IAC had initially expressed willingness to bring CPA back into the fold if 75 percent of eligible members of the ports authority will enroll in the plan.
Last Friday was the deadline for enrollment in the program but the Fund hinted that the schedule would be extended for Rota and Tinian.
'Unfair for CPA employees, retirees'
During last Wednesday's board meeting, board chair Sixto Igisomar described the situation as “unfair” to CPA employees who have no choice but to take the offer of CPA management.
Igisomar cited the need to revisit the law that allowed CPA to get its own insurance policy in order to find a way to help ports authority employees who may want to be covered by the Fund's insurance program.
He referred the matter to a committee for review and recommendation.
As of Thursday, the Fund had yet to determine if CPA is the only autonomous agency that will be affected by the IAC coverage.
“We are in the process of finding out if there are any other agencies that are going out on their own [insurance coverage for employees],” Aguon told Saipan Tribune.
CNMI autonomous agencies include the Commonwealth Utilities Corp., Commonwealth Development Authority, and the Public School System.
Aetna Global terminated its contract to administer the government's health and life insurance in Dec. 15 last year due to some contract dispute with the Fund.
The Fund issued an emergency request for proposal and IAC was awarded the contract, effective Jan. 1, 2010.
Saipan Tribune learned that IAC formerly handled the same government insurance program prior to Aetna Global.
Because there was a gap between Dec. 15 and Dec. 31 during which no insurance carrier was onboard, Aguon said the government will still be liable for any death insurance incurred in the intervening 15 days.
According to Public Law 10-19, which transferred the administration of the Group Health and Life Insurance Programs to the NMI Retirement Fund, the government is responsible for paying for the health and life insurance of employees and not the Fund. The law was enacted in order to provide a critical safety net for government employees and their families.
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