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THE NYPD DEA Dental Plan Debacle · NYPD Through The Looking Glass

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Bill Mack is a retired NYPD sergeant and runs the NYPD retiree emblem GHI Doctor and Dental Information Facebook page.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Marik Bartolas is a retired NYPD detective and host of Mons on the Mic podcast available on YouTube.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: Bill, Marik, welcome to the show.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_01: Hi, thank you for having me.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_01: Hey Vic, thanks for having me.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: Bill, for me and countless other retired NYPD members you've helped.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for setting up this Facebook group and keeping it uh retirees informed about our health benefits.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: My pleasure.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: Glad to help.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: Phil, the last time we spoke, you started a GoFundMe page called Healthcare for Heroes to Raise Money to Fight a Lawsuit to strip away health care benefits from retired NYPD members living out of New York City.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: Are there any updates on that case?
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_01: No, the could the case is currently in court.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_01: We won the last part of the case, but um the group um that is uh trying to go back to the original plan uh put in an appeal, so we're fighting the appeal.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um we should know something in the next month or so.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_01: It's going through the court process right now and it's very draggy right now.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: Bill, for our retired NYPD members who are listening, where can they donate to this fund to protect our medical benefits?
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the GoFundMe is listed on both of our medical groups.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: The the non-retetiree ones, which you mentioned before, and the Medicare advan uh the Medicare group that we have too, for the older retirees that are on Medicare.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: We had to separate into two different groups because it was just too complicated to run it into one.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_01: So it's a lot easier for those on Medicare to just deal with the Medicare sweat.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, I'll post both Okay, so I'm gonna post both those links to this episode.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: And the one I remember was called Healthcare for Heroes on uh the GoFundMe.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: That's the name of the GoFundMe, yes.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: So, Bill, the Detective Endowment Association dropped letters on its retired members and they're changing its dental plan to an inferior one, forcing its members to make a uh major decision with like literally two weeks.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: Can you go into what's going on with this?
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, um, from what I read and what I was told from other detectives is that um there they have a shortage in the DEA fund.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_01: As you know, the city pays for the they pay for the dental prescriptions and optical benefits per member.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_01: The member pro the price that the city pays is the same for active members and retiree members.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: But because they have a a shortage in the fund now, they're expecting the uh retirees to pay more to go up to the same plan that the actives currently have.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_01: So they're giving the actives a lower graded plan.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: And if you want to get the same plan as the actives, the retirees have to buy up into it.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Bill, has anyone you know reached out to DEA leadership and gotten a straight answer why the Cigna plan for us was dropped?
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Is it just over dollars and cents?
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: This it was it was dropped because the Cigna plan was too expensive.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_01: And when they went to renew it, Cigna wanted more than twice, I believe, of the going price that they're paying now.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_01: So because of the substantial uh increase, they couldn't afford to go with that plan anymore.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_01: And because there was also a shortage in the fund, they had to go with a cheaper plan.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_01: They chose the MetLife plan.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_01: That was their decision.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_01: As far as getting in touch with anyone, they as far as I know, the DEA website, um, all the links have been disabled and you can't really contact anybody other than the general numbers there.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_01: There's been a couple of people that uh have recorded messages that DEA uh board members were talking.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_01: They caught them talking when they thought the phone call was disconnected, and they caught part of the phone call.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: It's posted on our group as well.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not gonna get into that, but um anyone can go on the site, they can listen to it for themselves and make their own determinations and judgments about it.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: Rick, you've done a lot of research into this and you have a lot of questions for Bill, so please fire away.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, first, Bill, I wanna I wanna thank you for all your work.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_02: You're doing this on your own time, and you know, you got a lot of heart, and you could be just sitting back and relaxing in the sunshine and drinking beers.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_02: So thank you for, you know, all of your effort to protect stuff for cops that you probably don't even know.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but I was I was looking into this because like a lot of this stuff, I I'm sure a lot of detectives are in the same boat as me that I don't really know where my benefits come from.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_02: I just know when I was active, I got this, and when I retired, I got this.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_02: So a lot of the things like so you were talking about how the city pays$29 million into an a DEA administrative fund for our dental vision.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_02: Um, it it covers like prescription, uh hearing aids, and then any kind of catastrophic payment the DEA also offers to members, right?
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_02: So what the DEA then does is it takes the money from the administrative fund and they distributed it to two separate funds, one for active guys and one's for retired guys.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_02: And so$29 million a year is supposed to cover for all of those benefits for active and retired guys.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_02: And how they divide it depends, I guess, on how many members they have for each one.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_02: So the Cignet plan that we got, now I'm assuming here, but I'm assuming Cigna, when they met with the DEA, they looked at the usage from Healthplex, and because nobody got their teeth checked with Healthplex because it didn't cover anything, they assumed that the costs were going to be X.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_02: And then when we got the Cigna plan and we saw that it was basically like the gold standard of dental care, everybody went.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_02: And so it actually cost, I think, I don't know,$30 million extra.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_02: And Cigna hadn't planned for that.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_02: So the Cigna plan originally was for$12.5 million per year for coverage.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_02: Uh no premium, unlimited benefits.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_02: Everybody knows the plan that we had.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_02: It was, it was great, right?
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_02: And of course, you know, I like probably many people figured it was gonna stay and I didn't get any teeth work done because I'm like, ah, we got it now and I'm I'm good, right?
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_02: So I I made a mistake of doing that.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_02: But the renewal for Cigna, when Cigna realized the charges that it was actually gonna cost, the uh premium that they charge was a 220% increase.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: I didn't realize it was that eye.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_02: So it was gonna cost the DEA$40 million per year for retired and active for the same plan, right?
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_02: So when it's gonna cost us$40 million a year, but the city is only giving the DEA$29 million per year, that's why we couldn't afford the Cigna plan.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_02: So then I was looking back, and here's where my questions are because I'm not really sure about this.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_02: So that so for people who don't know, that's basically what happened.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_02: It it is a dollar and cents thing, like Vic was saying.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_02: There just isn't the money for it.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_02: It costs$11 million more just for the dental plan than what we bring in every year.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_02: So back in January of 2022, um, the DEA told um the members that, and that was when we had the contract, that the city was gonna stop putting money, putting that$29 million into our administrative health and benefits fund for 21 months beginning February 1st of 2022.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_02: So the DEA says that's okay.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_02: We have 52 months worth of reserves, and so we can handle that type of loss.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_02: But I'm thinking that that was what funded our raise or the active detectives raise, right?
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_02: I don't I don't I didn't get a piece of that raise.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of retired guys didn't get a piece of the raise.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_02: So that pause caused a loss of$37 million in revenue for this fund over the course of 21 months.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_02: So it still wouldn't have funded the Cigna dental plan, right?
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_02: Not at the new cost, no.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_02: And but the thing is, did that cause some of the financial strain?
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_02: And are we in maybe the red now because of that pause where they basically charged the retired guys to fund a raise for the active guys?
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_02: Is that is that a correct analogy or a lot of it?
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_01: Perfectly stated exactly what happened.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_02: That's exact that's you had another question.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_02: So the the other question is because I was yeah, so I was looking at the other unions, right?
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_02: Because I think the SBA, the the LBA the LBA and the um the captains, they kind of pool their resources and have their own dental and health, and then the SBA does their own thing.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: For the SOC.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_02: But they have for active the SOC, right.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_02: So they have the same benefits for active and retired guys.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, they do.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_01: The uh the SBA has the same benefits, the same dental plan, same optical, and same prescription plan.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_02: Do you understand why looking Okay, so why is the DEA deviating and forcing retired guys on a limited budget?
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_02: Can't make overtime anymore, right?
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_02: Um no collars for dollars anymore for us.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_02: So they're charging us we have to pay sixteen hundred dollars a year to get the basic plan that the active guys are getting.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_02: And even then the plan kind of sucks.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_02: But is there a reason why they sold out the the retired guys in 2022 and again now with this plan?
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, there's a very simple reason.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: It's called voting rights.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: Uh none of the police unions have voting rights.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: We can't decide on who's administering our funds and how they're being administered.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: We have no say in that.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_01: Unlike the UFT, where retirees have a weighed vote.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: Like I believe it's like two to one or three to one or something like that.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_01: So every three retirees' votes in the UFT would count as one vote to an active uh in in an election, as opposed to one for an uh one for one as an active member would.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's to keep a balance so retirees don't run the union.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_01: The police unions are not letting us vote.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_01: They've never let us vote.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I asked the SBA almost three years ago about this, and I'm still waiting for a response from Vinny Valley Long, who refused to answer me at the meeting, the retirement meeting.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Instead, he banned me from the meetings because I was guessing questions about union stuff that he didn't want me to ask.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: So that's basically what he did.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_01: He said I couldn't come to any more meetings.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: So um the that's one of the things we're talking about with the the attorney right now.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: We were talking about forming a lawsuit to get act uh to get retirees the same voting rights for union membership leadership as uh actors have.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: If that's the case, then we have a say in our benefits and we can't be subject to whatever they decide.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_01: Uh we need to have some kind of uh a vote.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_01: And um that's one of the lawsuits we're considering right now.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: The seeing what union would be.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_01: And this is the reason why we're considering this lawsuit because of what's going on with the DEI.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_01: If you have no vote and you have no say and you have no power, they're gonna take advantage of you.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_01: They're not gonna take care of the they're not gonna take advantage of of the activist who will just vote them out the next election.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_01: So that's exactly what's going on right now.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_02: So basically what we have is it sounds like the the because our and for people who don't know, the the dues that we pay, because retirees pay dues, we just had to pay a lump sum for lifetime, which is until you're 65.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but those dues go into a separate bucket.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_02: They don't go towards uh any of the benefits or anything.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_02: It goes towards um like legal representation and and collective bargaining and all that stuff, right?
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_02: That that goes all those dues go into a separate area.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_02: It has nothing to do with the health and benefits.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_02: So it's not like by paying, we're paying for our own thing.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_02: It's still the city who's paying for our benefits.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_02: But the question is let's say we go with a lawsuit, right, and we are able to somehow manage to get representation through the DA since we are still paying dues, right?
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_02: We're we're giving them money and we're not we don't have a voice in decisions that are being made.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_02: How would that the DA would be forced to work with us?
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_02: So is there a framework for how that might look or that's not true?
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_01: That's why uh the uh the attorney Lou said to suggested to form our own retiree union and we can we can use our board members as liaisons to deal with the union repres union leadership.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: So we can have a repertoire between us and um and we can let them know what we have and what our problems are and how we can be f we can fix them.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_01: We can give them solutions, see if they want to go with it, but we can have some kind of communication with them because right now we don't.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_01: We have other unions that you know we have the retired detectives association and we have this the RSA, but basically they're just fraternal organizations.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_01: It's not like the SBA was years ago under Patty when he was watchdogging them.
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_01: That all stopped when Bobby took over.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it's pretty much the same thing with the retired detectives.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_01: They they work hand in hand with the union trying to get information out, blah, blah, blah, blah, but they're not fighting them and questioning them on on what they're doing, and it's not asking what rights are what what they're doing for retirees, basically.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what we're hoping to accomplish with this.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: And we I like I said, once we form this uh if we have enough people that want to do it, first off, and we go forward with it, then um we'll we'll we'll reach out to the unions and let them know we're gonna be watching everything they're doing, we're gonna request paperwork, we're gonna want to see books.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: We want to know what's going on with the funds.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: And um maybe they'll wanna work with us rather than go to a court because if we go to court, it doesn't look good for anybody involved here, especially unions, if they're getting sued by their own retirees.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: So we're trying to avoid that, but they're just pushing us away and and they don't want to talk about it.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_01: So unfortunately it looks like we'll have to go to court for it.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_01: And since the U the UFT already allows retirees to vote, we I think believe we have a good shot of getting this uh benefit going forward.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: Precedent with other unions would have a lot of standing, I would imagine, in court.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_02: I I try and do balance, everything is balanced, right?
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_02: So I was talking to a lot of members of law enforcement down here in Florida um and in other jurisdictions as well.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_02: And just as to take this into consideration, just to cover all the bases, a lot of most, actually all other police departments in the country, retired guys do pay fees for the benefits.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_02: This isn't like something that we're not used to it because it's never been that way.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_02: Not saying it's right, I'm not justifying, I'm just putting in perspective of what goes on with every other department.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_02: Some departments down here, once you retire, you don't even get medical benefits.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_02: You have no medical, you have no dental, you have no uh, you have nothing.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_02: So you either go on, you know, your wife or your husband's plan, or you got to get another job just to get benefits because it, you know, Obamacare is a fortune.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_02: So, like closest to us, Suffolk County PD, um, once they retire, um, they they have to get on a plan, they have to pay for it, and they have to pay extra to get the same plan that the active guys are on.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_02: So it's similar to what the setup is.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm assuming what the DEA is saying is we're just gonna copy what actually happens in police departments all over the country.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_02: Not saying it's okay, not justifying it, believe me.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_02: I fought the union when they were doing the vaccine mandates.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_02: I was not for that.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_02: So I I'm used to fighting the union, it's an uphill battle.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_02: But just to put it in perspective, this is what goes on for the rest of the country, we've kind of had it really, really good.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_02: And now the DEA is saying, okay, we're gonna treat things differently.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_02: The other unions aren't doing that.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_02: And the question you're asking is why suddenly now are the retirees being treated differently than the active guys, which has never happened before.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_02: The healthplex was the same plan, the Cigna was the same plan, other unions have the same treatment of retiree and actives.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_02: So what is it now?
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_02: And does this also have lasting effect?
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_02: Because if the if the fund is actually mismanaged, what other potential fallout are we gonna have?
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, the city is talking about not funding the pension temporarily, putting the same type of stay that they did on our health benefits.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_02: What are we looking at long term that the ground is gonna fall out from us from other things?
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_02: Do you see anything like that happening or what's what's the we're gonna have shortages if they don't fund the pension?
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's plain and simple.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: The pension is very uh from what I understand, it's very full right now.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_01: We have an overabundance.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: We have it's covered.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_01: We we are good right now, especially since they're not hiring as many police officers as they as they were in the past.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_01: So the money is there for the pension itself.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_01: That's a totally separate interest.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not worried about the pension money.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_01: That's being managed, the the mayor can't touch it right now.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: But going back to the benefits, if the city is paying retirees for their care, then and the same amount that the actives are getting, then if the unions are not gonna give that money to us and it's dedicated for us, then why is the city giving it to the unions?
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_01: That's what that's my uh my point right there.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_01: If if they're giving the money for us, it's dedicated for us, it's meant for us, then then why are they giving it to unions?
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_01: If you're not gonna give it to us and you're gonna keep it for whatever you're using it for, to get actives better benefits or whatever, then maybe they maybe they should stop giving it to us if it's not if we're not the recipients of that fund, of those payments.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: Stop giving it to them, or just issue each retiree a check.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_01: And we can well we with that check from the funds that instead of the DA getting it, give it to the retirees and let us let a group of us go out and go out and get a better plan for all of us together then.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: We can find a better plan.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_01: There's better plans on marketplace than this market plan they're giving you right now for MetLife.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's not a good plan.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_01: You can get better stuff on marketplace.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_01: People have already found other plans.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_01: If you go onto the site and you look, people have found Cigna plans that are almost the same for$90 a month for a couple or um a family plan for$115.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_01: They're finding better plans out there.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_01: There I'm lucky because my wife used to run Aetna, the New York City accounts.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_01: She was an account manager for it.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_01: So she understands this business and she knows how it works.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_01: So she's able to help me with most of this stuff.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like the legal jargon, she would tell you, I would give her something, the legal stuff.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_01: She would translate it to me, and then I would translate it to cop jargon so that we could understand it, because we have no idea what they're talking about in the medical industry.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: So but if the like I don't want to get all off on a tangent on this, I just want to focus on what you asked.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_01: And if we're getting paid for it and we're getting the same amount as an activist, then we should get the same benefit that they're giving the actives.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: And because we can't vote on it, they're taking advantage of that fact.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's not our fault that they mismanaged it and they chose not to keep reimbursing the fund and put it off for two years to give raises to active people.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you get detectives now, they're getting the$200,000 a year, and you got retirees here, husband and wife, uh$30,000 pension.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: How are they supposed to afford to get this stuff?
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it's just not the the dental.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: If it goes forward with the dental, what's next?
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_01: The optical, then the prescriptions?
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's gonna be one thing.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_01: It's it they're testing us to see if we're gonna fight back and how far they can get.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_01: And if we don't fight back now, they're gonna take it all away from us.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: Every union is watching right now to see what's gonna happen.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_01: And if we don't fight, they're gonna the next one will be the SBA or the SOC or the PBA.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: They don't care about us, we're retired.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: And you have to realize that the the unions didn't go to court to fight for any of our retiree rights.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: What did they go to court to fight the last thing for?
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: To stay on the job till they're 65 so they can retire and go right on Medicare.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: So they don't have to worry about health care.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: They're still staying on their board positions because they have no term limits, they'll stay there till they're 65, retire and go on Medicare.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_01: And they don't have to worry about any of this stuff.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_01: They can go out and get another Medical Plan because they're all gonna get jobs with the companies they're going in business with.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_01: They're working on MetLife now.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_01: Who's gonna be working for MetLife when they retire?
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: Or who's gonna be working with Anthem when they retire?
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_01: That's exactly what this they're setting themselves up for the future, and they don't care about us.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_01: And that's how I feel.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_02: Did you have any other questions?
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_02: And it's the DEA who's deciding what to do.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_02: And for the active guys who might be listening to this, like I just retired in 2022.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_02: You're gonna be retired one day.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_02: You're gonna want to have good benefits, you know.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_02: Like it's and and eventually what might happen, depending, you don't, you know, it's it's gonna fall down onto you guys too, where you're active and it's gonna be like uh, you know, our teeth are so bad that we're gonna be confused for like the Brits because it it's you know, we're gonna have like horrible no coverage for the dentist.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_02: So when you're think about it, when you're active, it's like, yeah, well, you're good and you don't have to worry, but you're gonna be retired one day, so you need to get involved in this as well.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_02: And we need to unite and work as one DEA detectives together, active and retired, to fight the union because they certainly didn't stand up for us during COVID with the vaccine mandate.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_02: And like you said, they're selling us out now to protect themselves.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_02: And it's it's sad, it's a shame because they're supposed to be our and one other thing too.
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_01: We change the subject to something else.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_01: I just want to point out that the thing, it's the prescriptions that we really have to worry about.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_01: If they don't cover those prescriptions, we're not gonna be able to afford them.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_01: We can't afford them now, a lot of them.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: And that's this is just the they're just testing us.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_00: I I think the testing though started before this with the vision care.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_00: Because living out of state, uh it was the gold standard for vision care.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: I used to go to this like hospital where I they walked me through and I got all these tests, and then at the very end I sat down with a doctor, and then all of a sudden, it's the same with this with this um dental plan.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: I got this letter, congratulations, we're moving on to this, and now I'm going to Costco.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, it's um it I should have seen this coming.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_00: Uh another thing with the DEA, which I really don't understand.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_00: It's funny, it's funny, but it's Costco has good glasses.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_00: All right, all right.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: So while I'm picking up vitamins, so but here's another thing what I don't understand.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_00: The DEA gets involved with MetLife, which I I came on in '87.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: We got involved, the PBA or the unions got involved with MetLife with a life insurance.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_00: Older guys will remember.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_00: 93.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: And then that backfired, and then there was a huge lawsuit with that, and you know, then everybody got their money back or prorated or something.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't understand why they would rush to get into bed with MetLife.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I just full disclosure, when I when I when I was active, I took things for granted.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, things get taken out of your check, right?
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I was under the impression my union dues got taken out of my check forever.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_00: No one said anything to me, and I retired.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I thought I was still paying my union dues.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: And a couple years into my retirement, I realized I'm not getting my DEA cards, and then I'm not getting my Spring 3100.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_00: So again, I'm ignorant.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: I pick up the phone and I call the union, and I'm like, what's your tax number?
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: What's your name?
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_00: And blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_00: And where have you been?
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, what?
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you have a shortage, you you know, you owe us, and it was just, it was the lack of communication, the way I was treated on the phone.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Yeah, okay.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I hung up.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: And now 15 years later, I get this letter in the mail.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: Listen, if that was the case, if I paid into that bucket that you would that we were talking about earlier in the$491 something, fine, I'll write you a check.
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_00: If that's gonna, if that's gonna make make the dental plan solvent.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, it was just the way the lack of communication with the union, with its retired members that I guess we're in the predicament that we're on now.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_02: But it doesn't even go into that bucket to do that.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_01: Whether you pay your dues or not, you're s you still pay your dues or not, you're still entitled to your optical prescription.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: In your dental plans.
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_01: It has nothing to do whether you pay your dues or not.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_01: You're still entitled to that.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: All you do is get cards, a calendar book, and maybe a small burial fund.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_01: That's all you get from paying your dues.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_01: Because at the the SBA, that's all you get from it.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, at the SBA, they charged me$300 when I retired back in 2009.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_01: And uh that's all they charged me.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_01: $300, lifetime member, goodbye.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_01: No dues every month, every year, anything like that.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_01: It was one-time fee.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_01: That's it, and that's what I was entitled to.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_01: My cards and my book and my$2,000 burial of fifty, I think it's$900 now or some nonsense like that.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_01: Doesn't even pay for an urn.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_01: But I mean, you you don't have to pay your dues to get those benefits.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_01: And I want to make sure that everybody understands that.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_00: And for our retired members that are living in the New York City area that are listening, the next DEA meeting is on September 8th at 9 a.m.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_00: at DC 37 headquarters located at 125 Barclay Street in Lower Manhattan.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_00: And from what I'm hearing, there's going to be some retired NYPD members going there to air their grievances about this subcar plan.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_00: Again, it's on September 8, 2026, at 9 a.m.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: at DC headquarters at 125 Barclay Street in Lower Manhattan.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_01: And just to let you, I can't sue because I don't have standing.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not a retired detective.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_01: We need to form this uh new organization we're gonna do.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_01: We need to have standing.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_01: And to be to have standing to sue, you have to have a retired uh DEA person running it.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: So that's why we're forming that organization.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_01: And we and then if if it all works out, we plan on looking for uh b uh benefits and bigger packages.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many more of us if we do packages together and we can get better plans for a cheaper price.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what we're hoping to be able to do.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_01: Not do you're with MetLife and you're with Anthem and you're with Cigna and you're at Yomana.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_01: No, it doesn't work out that way.
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_01: You're picking little plans up and you're not doing you're not doing as good as you could be doing.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_01: So hopefully that will change going forward with this if if this pl uh organization does come about.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_01: We're pushing for it now, but we're we're gazing gauging interest now on it.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_01: And right now we have over five hundred people, I think, uh pro for it.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_01: And uh that's pretty much it.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_01: And we'll work it out from there.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_01: We'll have uh bylaws and elections and term limits and everything like that.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_01: So we're gonna r run it the right way.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_01: I don't want to do it like you're union president and you stay there till you die.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_01: No, that's not we need fresh blood.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: And plus I'm I'm getting really tired.
• 24:27
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sorry I took up so much time talking.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_01: But you got a good audience and you get the word out there.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_02: Oh no, are you kidding?
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_02: This is important stuff.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_02: You know, and to to Vic, to your point about the whole MetLife thing, um, so the Blue Line Planning, which I think is a broker for these insurance companies, like Suffolk uses them.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_02: They actually they rent an office out of a out of the Suffolk County um PBA building.
• 24:49
  SPEAKER_02: They rent an office out of there.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_02: So they're the broker, and they provide uh health insurance and dental care and stuff to the unions all over the place.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_02: Like the Suffolk County PBA gets their union out of there too.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_02: And they also have MetLife.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_02: So I think the that the company Blue Line Planning just recommends MetLife.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_02: I don't I have no proof of anything going on there where they, you know, kickbacks or whatever, but that's where the MetLife play comes in, is that I think we hired Blue Line Planning as a broker to find us a uh deal that we could afford, and that's what they came up with because that's who they deal with with business with.
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_00: Which is another way to find it.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think the blue line planning, that's who you got to go through to register with MetLife for this plan.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I was just talking to a guest that was on this podcast, a retired detective, and he said he couldn't do anything on the internet with Blue Line, and then he called him up and he got an answering machine.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_02: He's like, what the what the hell is this?
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, because I think it's just it's it's a very small company.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I I signed up for it at first.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_02: I I filled out the form because I thought I would have to do the buy-up, but then they called me the next day, and I'm like, no, I'm not gonna do the buy-up because I'm okay, you know.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_02: But um, I think it's just a really small company and they aren't prepared for the type of demand that they're gonna have yet.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_01: Who owns that company?
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: And what's their relationship to the police departments?
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_01: That's what I'd like to know.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_02: So, yeah, so I I looked that yeah, I looked that up, and the the owners of the company uh were not retired cops, they're all financial people.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_02: This guy, Anthony Greco, I forget the other guy's names.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_02: Is it Anthony?
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_02: No, it's not Anthony Greco, it's something Greco.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_02: Um but they they I don't I couldn't find any ties between the NYPD DEA and any of the people who work at that company.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_02: I I looked for it because I assumed that some I couldn't find it.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_02: It doesn't mean, you know, obviously it's not there.
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_02: They're not gonna put it on paper, but yeah.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's a little strange because they use the term blue.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_02: But it could also be that they are a company that works with first responders to find them healthcare.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_02: Trevor Burrus, Jr.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: But it's just food it's weird that they use blue response.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 26:43
  SPEAKER_02: I think they just they they're a company that works for first responders because he's got other companies too.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_02: It could be a coincidence, but I did I did look for that because I made that assumption, but no.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: We'll have to look into it all.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 26:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um Marie, do you have any more questions?
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_02: No, but thank you.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_02: I first of all, Bill, seriously, thank you very much for what you're doing here.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_02: This is a lot of work.
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_02: I'd love to team up with you and and work with you if I, you know, if you need the help or whatever.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_02: You know, all I got is time.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_02: And uh I am a pain in the ass.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_02: So I really love to uh I really love to to to poke the bear.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_02: It's one of my favorite things to do, as Vic will tell you.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_02: You might be a problem.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_02: Let me know.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_02: I I'll get your contact information from Vic and I'll reach out to you.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_02: Well, you know what?
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_02: When I was first looking into this, I did take the DEA side, and I'm like, well, they made a good, they made a good financial decision.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_02: They can't afford signal, they went to this other plan.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_02: But then when you look at everything else and and put everything together, it's like, wait a second, we're getting totally screwed here because we're retired.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_02: So um, but yeah, I want I want to help you out.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much for what you do, and I appreciate it.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_02: And Vic, thank you very much for hosting this because I think there's a lot of people that have a lot of questions and there isn't a lot of information out there.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_02: So, you know, if you can get to that meeting on September 8th and attend and voice and let them know that we aren't just a silent majority, we're we're a loud one.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_02: And uh and definitely join um join Bill's uh Healthcare for Heroes, GoFundMe, and let's let's throw some money into that.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_02: And we can make a difference.
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_02: We we've if we work together, active and retired, we can make a difference.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you both for uh Yeah, same as well.
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_00: Bill Mack, thank you again for everything you do.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you guys.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_01: I really appreciate it.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: It means a lot.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_00: And thank you, Bill, for everything you do for retired NYPD members.
• 28:24
  SPEAKER_00: Marik, just before before we sign off, I want to thank you as well.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_00: What's the name of your book and where can our listeners pick up a copy?
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_02: Well, if you if you want to find out, it's 20 and out.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_02: It's available on Amazon uh for hardcover, paperback, and Kindle.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_02: So uh it's it's good to read while you're waiting for the meeting to start.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_00: I fell in with her.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_00: And what's the name of your controversial podcast on YouTube?
• 28:47
  unknown: Yes.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_02: Uh my podcast is Mons on the Mic.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_02: You can find it on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're a retired NYPD member and you'd like to be a guest on Rek's podcast, you can reach out to her on YouTube.
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_00: Guys, thank you so much.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_00: I can't thank you enough and have a great weekend.
• 29:04
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you very much.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_01: Take care now.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: Bye-bye.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks, Vic.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_00: As always, I'd like to thank everyone for tuning in, especially my listeners in Bronx, New York, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Manhattan.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_00: If you worked in law enforcement, had an interesting criminal background, please drop me a note on Twitter or Instagram at VicFerrari50.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: If you're watching on YouTube, please hit the like and subscribe buttons.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_00: If you enjoy the content, check out my Amazon Auth.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_00: Just type in my name, Vic Ferrari Like the Car, where you can preview all my NYPD books for free.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks again, everyone, and I'll see you next week.
• 29:31
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: Take care.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: Bye bye.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.