Gov. Gregg Abbott has signed HB 3976 into law. HB 3976 will make significant changes to the retiree health insurance program, TRS-Care. Primarily, HB 3976 increases the amount of money retirees must put into TRS-Care to keep to program solvent.
For pre-65 retirees, the increased burden falls under the umbrella of a high deductible health care plan. For retirees over the age of 65, the changes require all Medicare-eligible participants to join Medicare Advantage. You can learn more about these changes in this summary.
These changes will begin on Jan. 1, 2018.
New Facebook Live Stream to Occur June 28, 2017, Featuring Top TRS Officials
The Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) is excited to welcome Brian Guthrie and Katrina Daniel to an upcoming Facebook Live stream. Guthrie serves as the Executive Director of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), and Daniel works as the TRS Chief Health Care Officer.
The stream will take place on June 28, 2017 at 11AM. You will be able to watch the stream on TRTA’s Facebook page.
TRTA’s Executive Director, Tim Lee, will host the event. The topics will include information about HB 3976, and what members can expect from the new TRS-Care insurance program, as well as member submitted questions that TRTA has received by phone, email and social media.
The stream will last for approximately one hour.
If you are unable to watch the live version, the video will be saved on TRTA’s Facebook page, which you can view here.
Britt Harris, Former TRS Chief Investment Officer, Moves to UTIMCO
Britt Harris has served as the CIO of TRS for seven years. During that time, Harris has helped lead TRS investments through the ups and downs of the stock market, and the pension fund has grown to be the nation’s seventh largest.
When Harris started, the TRS pension fund was $88.7 billion. By the end of 2016, the TRS pension fund stood at $134 billion.
Harris is now moving to work at the University of Texas Management Company (UTIMCO).
TRS has not announced who will replace Harris as CIO.
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