This bill amends existing laws related to benefits for retirees of the state's retirement systems, specifically the teachers' retirement system plan 1 and the public employees' retirement system plan 1. It introduces a new provision that beneficiaries receiving monthly benefits on July 1, 2023, will see an increase of three percent effective July 1, 2024, with a cap of $125.00 for both retirement systems. Additionally, the bill clarifies that these increases do not apply to individuals receiving benefits under specific RCWs (41.32.489, 41.32.540 for teachers and 41.40.1984 for public employees).

Furthermore, the bill establishes a new section that mandates any self-insured medical plan offered by the public employees' benefits board to apply savings incurred when the plan acts as a secondary payer to reduce overall medical claims costs, rather than recording these savings as a benefit reserve for covered individuals. It also modifies the existing law regarding the insurance benefit allocation to include a subsidy for medical and prescription drug insurance premiums for retired or disabled employees eligible for Medicare, while removing previous provisions related to separate health care subsidies for Medicare supplemental insurance policies.

Statutes affected:
Original Bill: 41.32.4992, 41.32.489, 41.05.085