Texas' Retired Teachers Face Billion-Dollar Health Care Dilemma
Texas' retired teachers are urging lawmakers to plug a billion dollar hole to help fund their health care benefits.
Some lawmakers say teachers might simply have to pay more money for health coverage amid a tight state budget cycle, but retired teachers say their wallets are already stretched thin.
"You know teachers spend their whole life taking care of kids, teaching children, and we were expecting to have our health care costs paid during our retirement," retired AISD teacher Donna Haschke said.
But Texas teachers might not be able to count on the same level of healthcare in retirement as in years past. The state's teacher retirement healthcare system is expected to have more than a $1 billion shortfall in the next budget cycle due in part to rising drug costs and more former teachers using the system.
Read more: http://www.twcnews.com/tx/austin/news/2017/03/21/texas--retired-teachers-face-billion-dollar-healthcare-dilemma--.html