Eligibility and Enrollment > Who's Eligible > Certified Retirees
Certified Retirees
Generally, if you're a Certified Retiree, your coverage includes the same benefits
provided to active participants, including the option to select any plan for
which you're eligible. However, depending on when you retired, the benefits
available to you may vary from those of active participants, so be sure to refer
to the Summary Of Benefits for details.
As a Certified Retiree, you're required to pay a premium for dependent coverage if you:
- Are on active coverage
Or
- You are between the ages of 60 and 65
You're not required to pay a premium for dependent coverage if you:
- Aren't eligible for active coverage under the Fund
And
- Are age 65 or over
Before you qualify for coverage as a Certified Retiree, you must:
- Satisfy certain employment minimums; and
- Submit a Certificate of Retirement from the administrator of the Producer
Writers Guild of America Pension Plan to the Administrative Office.
If you retired before January 1, 1997, you're considered a Certified Retiree
if you:
- Retired under the Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension Plan on or after
March 1, 1974;
- Accumulated at least 20 Qualified Years* or 80 Qualified
Quarters before your retirement;
- Accumulated at least 400 Credited Weeks* before your retirement;
and
- Accumulated at least 3 Qualified Years after December 31, 1954.
If you retired on or after January 1, 1997, you're considered a Certified Retiree
if you:
- Are at least 60 years old;
- Retired under the Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension Plan;
- Accumulated at least 68 quarters of earned eligibility before your retirement,
calculated as follows:
- A Qualified Year under the Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension
Plan for each year before 1988 equals four quarters of eligibility for
each year before 1988; and
- Each year of eligibility earned under the Writers' Guild-Industry Health
Fund during 1988 and every year thereafter equals four quarters of eligibility.
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Important!
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You're not considered to be earning eligibility if you participate in
the Fund's Extended Coverage Program or the COBRA continuation coverage
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* Definitions of "Qualified Years" and "Credited
Weeks" are included in the Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension Plan summary
plan description.
Medicare Part B
Medicare is the two-part medical care insurance program for persons age
65 and older administered through the United States government. Part A, which
covers hospitalization and certain follow-up services, does not require you
to pay a premium (you've been funding it through regular payroll taxes throughout
the years). If you enroll in Part B, you pay a monthly premium (which is deducted
from your Social Security monthly benefit). The coverage helps pay for physician
visits and other medical bills.
You must enroll in and pay premiums for Medicare Part B in order to receive
your full Certified Retiree benefits through the Fund. Medicare will generally
be the "primary" plan and pay benefits first, while the Fund's plan will be
"secondary" unless you have active earned coverage.
If you fail to enroll in Medicare Part B, the Fund will pay your claims as if
you were enrolled in Medicare Part B and Medicare had already paid its share
of your claim. You'll be responsible for the portion of eligible expenses the
Fund doesn't pay. (See "Understanding Coordination
of Benefits (COB)" for details about primary and secondary plans.)
You'll receive information from Medicare before you turn age 65
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