9/15/09: NTEU supports congressional efforts to increase consumer protections and transparency for those who purchase long-term care insurance policies, its leader said today.

NTEU national President Colleen Kelley expressed that support in a letter to Sen. Herbert Kohl (D-Wisc), chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and committee member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), sponsors of S. 1177. The legislation would provide consumers with a better understanding of the coverage and cost of their plans in the years ahead.

President Kelley cited the example of those among the 224,000 federal employees and retirees who bought long-term care insurance policies under a government-sponsored plan run by the private sector. Those policyholders with an Automatic Compound Inflation (ACI) feature are currently facing the first increase in seven years, and for some the increase is significant.

“While there was a disclaimer about premium increases in a brochure,” President Kelley wrote, “consumers had to hunt for it.” She added: “Consumers should not have to hunt for information. While (the Office of Personnel Management), to its credit, is seeking ways to make the premium increases less onerous by working with families to redesign their policies this fall, we must prevent these kinds of surprise hikes in the future. Federal employees and retirees should be able to examine plans and costs in a transparent way.”

The NTEU leader noted that S.1177 seeks to strengthen rate standards in the future so when consumers purchase plans, they have a better sense of the costs and the protections they offer. “This, combined with greater overall transparency and improved marketing,” is necessary, Kelley said.