Tag Archives: Health & Welfare

H&W: What to Expect When You Get Your COVID-19 Vaccine

When it’s your turn to get a COVID-19 vaccine, we want you to be prepared. Here are some things you can expect:

Getting 2 injections. All but one of the vaccines that have been or may be approved for use require two doses. The doses are given several weeks apart, and the same authorized vaccine brand must be used for both — the vaccines are not interchangeable. Continue reading

H&W: Important Changes to 2021 Participant Eligibility Levels & Monthly Co-Premium Payments

Though, as usual, there are some changes to the Plan, the Trustees have made every effort to help our participants retain their coverage for 2021, even as we continue to protect and preserve the financial future of the Trust for the coming years.

Below is a summary of material modifications to the Plan. Continue reading

H&W: The New Coronavirus

How Does it Spread?

The 2019 strain of the corona virus is what is known as a novel coronavirus, which means that it is a new strain of coronavirus that has not been previously identified. The 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), is not the same as currently known coronaviruses that commonly circulate among humans and cause mild illness, like the common cold. Continue reading

H&W: How Does the Taft-Hartley Act Affect My Union-Sponsored Health Plan?

The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, along with the Wagner Act, enacted 12 years prior as part of the “New Deal,” laid the foundation for the current collective bargaining process as it relates to the formation, funding and administration of employee benefit plans. But, the way in which Taft-Hartley achieved this goal was not in a pro-union manner. Continue reading

H&W: 2020 Health and Life Insurance Eligibility

Professional Musicians and Employers’ Health & Welfare Fund:

Eligibility & Enrollment Information

Please watch your mailbox as the Fund will be mailing Eligibility and Enrollment information to eligible participants in approximately mid-November of this year. The Fund will mail enrollment materials to the participant’s last address on file with the Fund’s Administrative Office, so please ensure that the Fund has your most up-to-date address information. Continue reading

H&W: What’s New in 2020

Changes Ahead For Life/Dental/Vision Coverages

The Board of Trustees of the Professional Musicians, Local 47 and Employers’ Health & Welfare Fund (the “Fund”) is committed to providing the best health insurance delivery and cost platforms available to the Fund’s participants. In furtherance of that goal, and as reviewed in this article, the Fund has modified its benefit plan menu with reference to the Fund’s Life Insurance, Dental Insurance and Vision Insurance Plans. Continue reading

H&W: 2020 Participant Eligibility Level Reduced to $700; Monthly Co-Premium Payment Reduced

2020 PARTICIPANT ELIGIBILITY LEVELS

Commencing with the January 1, 2020, coverage year, the minimum initial eligibility threshold to qualify for enrollment in medical plans sponsored by the Professional Musicians, Local 47 and Employers’ Health & Welfare Fund (the “Fund”) will be reduced to $700 in Employer contributions. Thus, effective with the current Qualifying Period — October 2, 2018 through October 3, 2019 — the amount of Employer contributions necessary for eligibility at the Fund’s “C Level” of coverage/benefits shall be $700 (including any available permissible carry-forwards from the 2017/2018 Qualifying Year). Continue reading

H&W: Employee Reporting Procedure

Professional Musicians and Employers’ Health & Welfare Fund:

In order to ensure that all Employer contributions are properly and timely received and recorded by the Fund, each Participant is responsible for notifying the Fund of engagements they have performed (including date and location) and for which Employer contributions are due to the Fund. Employer contributions that are not received at the close of the Qualifying Period are not “timely,” and will generally not be applied to that Qualifying Period (they are applied prospectively to the next Qualifying Period). Continue reading

H&W: The Facts About Sleep Apnea

Sleep is supposed to be a rejuvenating experience. But this isn’t so if you have sleep apnea, a condition that causes you to stop breathing over and over during sleep.

The majority of people with sleep apnea don’t even realize they have it. But if you suffer from this disorder, you may have been told that you snore loudly and gasp for air when sleeping. And you may be extremely sleepy during the day and have trouble concentrating. Continue reading