Arkansas Firms Getting Health Insurance Subsidies For Early Retirees

David Kinkade with The Arkansas Project has been toiling on a variety of subjects since restarting his once-defunct blog this summer.

One of his latest posts examines news coverage and analysis of how the implementation of some early aspects of the new federal health care law is benefitting some large Arkansas companies and public entities.

From The Arkansas Project:

Here’s an Obamacare wrinkle that may have slipped past your radar: Under a little-known program enacted under the 2010 health law, the federal government has provided millions of taxpayer dollars to state government agencies and private companies to subsidize health insurance coverage for employees who have retired early, but are too young to enroll in Medicare.

Arkansas angle: The temporary program, known as the Early Retirement Reinsurance Program (ERRP), has supplied more than $1.5 million thus far to Arkansas government and to private companies like Tyson Foods and Murphy Oil, with more to come.

Here’s the list of Arkansas participants and their total received under the ERRP, as of June 10, 2011:

• Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield  $64,386.78
• Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church  $10,946.88
• Arkansas Municipal League  $175,419.08
• Arkansas State Police  $252,581.99
• Murphy Oil Corporation  $139,157.06
• State of Ark., Dept. of Finance and Admin., Employee Benefits Division  $718,101.05
• Tyson Foods, Inc.  $222,338.42

There could be more subsidies for early retirees to come, Kinkade notes. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has approved additional participants in the program. Click here to read more.