Season Of Giving: NFL, NFLPA To Subsidize Former Players' Medicare
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Berthelsen Says Medicare Subsidies Ensure
Some Supplemental Coverage For Every Retiree |
The NFL and NFLPA have created a new plan in which they will pay a "combined $100 a month toward the Medicare costs of retired players," according to the AP. The program begins January 1 for former players over age 65 "who are vested in the league's pension plan," and the money "will go to the monthly premium of the player's coverage." Acting NFLPA Exec Dir Richard Berthelsen said in a statement, "This ensures that every retiree can afford some level of supplemental coverage" (AP, 12/9). BLOOMBERG NEWS' Aaron Kuriloff reported the agreement comes after former players including Pro Football HOFers Mike Ditka and Gale Sayers "told U.S. lawmakers that the NFL and union need to fix the system for helping retired players who suffer from disabilities such as dementia and short-term memory loss caused by their time on the field." N.Y. Univ.'s Tisch Center sports business professor Robert Boland said that the move is a "small but positive step," and that sports leagues and unions "have been slow to recognize that the post-career success of players is a business issue" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 12/9). The EXAMINER's Paula Duffy wrote, "If you know anything about the cost of medication today, that small stipend doesn't get you very far. But as the league likes to say, it's better than anything that other sports organizations offer for their retired players well after they have retired" (EXAMINER.com, 12/9).
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Birk Encourages Fellow NFLers To
Donate Part Of Game Check To Retirees |
LEADING THE CAUSE: In Minneapolis, Mark Craig reports Vikings C Matt Birk is "at the center" of the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund's (GGAF) second annual "Gridiron Guardian Sunday" fundraising initiative, in which current NFL players will be asked to "donate part of their Dec. 21 paychecks to assist disabled former players who are impoverished." Birk wrote a two-page letter "committing a donation of $50,000 and encouraging his colleagues to contribute as well." Birk: "I want all the former players to know that this is an issue that is important to a lot of current players. ... This movement is gaining momentum. The bigger it gets, the more we talk about it, people aren't going to be able to ignore it anymore. ... They can't keep sweeping this under the rug." Meanwhile, Craig notes the GGAF yesterday announced a $1M donation "in money and medical services from the Laser Spine Institute" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 12/10). Birk said that current NFL players have medical benefits "for five years after leaving the sport but that's not the case for all retirees." Birk: "They had to deplete their savings in order to pay for their own health care and then that's why a lot of them find themselves in dire need today. It's through no fault of their own that the injuries have really taken control of their lives" (KARE11.com, 12/9).
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