SFC Ollie
Still Marching
That is the title that the local newspaper gave to my Letter to the editor. I won't past the link because it gives my full name and all that but since i wrote it there is no copyright that says i can't republish it here......
I was really surprised it was published today. It was in response to an article they had run that claimed that Military retirees made $50K on just their pensions. Plus free healthcare. Obviously BS.
Once again the powers that be need money, and once again they look at the Military Retiree.
In 1971 as a young Private, who enlisted in the US Army, I was told that if I served my country for 20 years I would receive free health and dental care for the rest of my life. The truth is we really didn't think much about it back then. It was just part of the package.
I went on to serve 22 years, retiring in 1993. By 1995 the free health care was gone. We had Tricare and we had to pay for it even if we went to the on base hospital. And forget about seeing a dentist.
But it wasn't so bad and we accepted it. $460 a year, $12 co-pay for a Doctors visit. And $3, $9, or $22 for a prescription, depending on what it was.
Now is where it turns common sense on it's head.
You get a little older and end up on Medicare with Tricare for Life as a secondary. Tricare for life is free, you no longer pay the doctors visit co-pay. But what many forget is that you now don't pay the $460 a year, but you do pay roughly $2400 a year for medicare, for yourself and spouse.
Now that increase on a fixed income isn't enough; they want us to pay an additional $200 a year (not sure if that is per individual or family) plus the first $500. (Again not sure who this covers)
But it looks like they now want an additional $1400 a year from military retirees on a fixed income. Not to mention our prescription rates are also going up to $5, $15, and $25.
Haven't we given enough?
P.S. I consider myself to be fairly average and I have never Made $50,000 a year with my work and military pension combined as your article alleges.
I was really surprised it was published today. It was in response to an article they had run that claimed that Military retirees made $50K on just their pensions. Plus free healthcare. Obviously BS.