Your “Savvy Retiree” Newsletter for June 2022
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Trip cancellation insurance / Accommodation rental agreements between individuals
Leaflet update – Electronic version only
Are you aware that you may be paying an additional premium for prescription drugs?
What is an additional premium?
The information below is relevant only to participants who are 65 or over, since participants who are under 65 cannot choose between the public and private plans.
If you are paying an additional premium, we recommend that you check whether this is still the best option for you. If you would like to make changes, please contact SSQ Insurance’s Customer Service Department by calling 1 877 651-8181.
As you can see from the above table, SSQ Insurance’s regular list covers all the prescription drugs on the RAMQ list, plus some others that are not on the RAMQ list.
The prescription drugs covered by the group insurance policy’s basic plan are those that are covered by the RAMQ list. In other words:
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For participants who choose coverage under the public plan:
The prescription drugs on the RAMQ list (the blue section of the table) are covered by the RAMQ.
The prescription drugs on SSQ Insurance’s regular list but not on the RAMQ list (the green section of the table) are not covered.
- For participants who choose coverage under the private plan (i.e. those who pay the additional premium):
The prescription drugs on the RAMQ list (the blue section of the table) are covered by the group insurance policy.
The prescription drugs on SSQ Insurance’s regular list but not on the RAMQ list (the green section of the table) are not covered.
The prescription drugs covered by the group insurance policy’s expanded plan are those covered by SSQ Insurance’s regular list. In other words:
- For participants who choose coverage under the public plan:
The prescription drugs on the RAMQ list (the blue section of the table) are covered by the RAMQ.
The prescription drugs on SSQ Insurance’s regular list but not on the RAMQ list (the green section of the table) are covered by the group insurance policy.
-
For participants who choose coverage under the private plan (i.e. those who pay the additional premium):
The prescription drugs on the RAMQ list (the blue section of the table) are covered by the group insurance policy.
The prescription drugs on SSQ Insurance’s regular list but not on the RAMQ list (the green section of the table) are covered by the group insurance policy.
Reimbursement rules
When a prescription drug is covered by the RAMQ, the RAMQ’s reimbursement rules apply.
When a prescription drug is covered by the group insurance policy, the policy’s reimbursement rules apply.
Additional premium
The cost of the additional premium is added to the standard cost. For example, a participant who is 65 years of age or older, who has family coverage under the extended plan and who pays the additional premium will pay $733.82 plus tax per month, namely $88.24 (extended plan) plus the additional premium ($645.58).
Here is a link to the RAMQ site, showing the choices available to a person who is 65 years of age or older: Your 65th birthday.
General profile of people insured under the group insurance plan for retired management personnel from Québec’s public and parapublic sectors, as of January 1, 2022
The boxes below show the breakdown of retired management personnel by plan type and protection status as of January 1, 2022.
It is important to remember that the travel insurance guarantee covers accommodation rental contracts entered into with businesses or booking platforms that are accredited or authorized by the appropriate authorities to operate this type of enterprise or provide this type of service.
An accommodation rental agreement between individuals is not a “pre-paid travel expense” and is not covered by trip cancellation insurance under your group insurance policy. As a result, any expenses incurred for this type of agreement will not be reimbursed by the policy if the agreement is cancelled.
The leaflet has been updated and now describes the group insurance plan in force as of January 1, 2022. It is available in electronic format only and can be found on SSQ Insurance’s Customer Centre website or in the Digital Library section of the ACR’s website. It can easily be downloaded if you wish.
The representatives of retired management personnel (ACR), active management personnel (RACAR and CERA) and the Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor (SCT) have discussed increasing group insurance premiums, especially for participants under 65 years of age who cannot enroll for the public prescription drug insurance plan, for many years.
Because of their previous employment connection with the government – the holder of the group insurance policy – retired management personnel under 65 years of age are obliged to join the group accident/health insurance plan.
In recent years, the representatives of retired management personnel at the ACR have proposed a number of solutions, including some that have been examined and documented in a variety of reports by our consultant actuary.
In 2019, a new provision was included in the group insurance policy, allowing participants under 65 years of age to reduce their premiums. After extensive discussion, the SCT and the insurer agreed to review one of the policy’s provisions in order to allow newly retired management personnel under 65 years of age to choose basic plan coverage when they retire and switch to the extended plan on their 65th birthday. Participants who were already retired were also given the opportunity to change their protection by selecting the basic plan and reverting to the extended plan on their 65th birthday. In addition, and as an exceptional measure, retirees who were over 65 years of age on the date on which the amended provision came into force and had selected the basic plan were also given the opportunity to switch to the extended plan if they so wished.
In spite of this new provision, the SCT representatives subsequently reactivated the tripartite committee because they did not believe the outcome was positive. The new committee is composed of representatives of active management personnel, retired management personnel and the SCT. It has been suggested that, this time, the committee’s work should result in a win-win solution to the problem.
The representatives of retired management personnel will meet with the SCT representatives in early June to discuss the conditions for a potential option designed to maintain all the benefits of the group insurance plan for retired personnel.
The newsletter is published several times a year, for retired management personnel. Its content is relevant and focuses exclusively on the community’s needs and interests. It provides essential information to keep you up-to-date with the latest news and gives details of any changes to your group insurance plan.
If you know of any retired management employees who have not subscribed to the newsletter, please send them the following link: Registration on the list of ACR subscribers. Simply cut and paste the link and e-mail it to the person concerned.
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We wish you an enjoyable summer. Be careful if you travel.
Daniel Dubé, Retirees’ Spokesperson, ACR
Line St-Cyr, Coordinator, ACR