In order to achieve the purposes of the Retiree Health Care Act, the board may take all actions reasonably necessary to implement that act, including but not limited to the following:
A. employ or contract for the services of the state fiscal agent or select its own fiscal agent in accordance with the Procurement Code [13-1-28 to 13-1-199 NMSA 1978];
B. employ or contract for persons to assist it in carrying out the Retiree Health Care Act and determine the duties and compensation of these employees;
C. collect and disburse funds;
D. collect all current and historical claims and financial information necessary for effective procurement of lines of insurance coverage;
E. promulgate and adopt necessary rules, regulations and procedures for implementation of the Retiree Health Care Act;
F. negotiate insurance policies covering additional or lesser benefits as determined appropriate by the board, but the board shall maintain all coverage as required by federal or state law for each eligible retiree. In the event it is practical to wholly self-insure part or all of the retiree health care coverages, the board may do so;
G. procure group health care and other coverages authorized by the Retiree Health Care Act in accordance with the Procurement Code and the Health Care Purchasing Act [Chapter 13, Article 7 NMSA 1978];
H. establish the procedures for contributions and deductions;
I. determine methods and procedures for claims administration;
J. administer the fund;
K. contract for and make available to all eligible retirees and eligible dependents basic and optional group health insurance plans. The optional coverage may include a lower deductible, lower coinsurance or additional categories of benefits permitted under this section and all other applicable sections of the Retiree Health Care Act to provide additional levels of coverages and benefits. Any additional contributions for these optional plans shall be paid for by the eligible retiree or eligible dependent. The coverage provided by the plans shall be secondary to all other benefit coverages to which the eligible retiree or eligible dependent is entitled. In the event a covered eligible retiree becomes employed by an employer offering its employees a basic plan of benefits, the coverage provided by the plan under the Retiree Health Care Act shall be secondary to such coverage regardless of whether the employee enrolls in that employer's plan. In the event the eligible retiree or eligible dependent is entitled to receive medicare hospital insurance benefits at no charge, then the coverage provided by the plan under the Retiree Health Care Act shall be secondary to medicare hospital and medical insurance to the extent permitted by federal law;
L. provide, at its discretion, different plans for eligible retirees and eligible dependents covered by medicare than the plans provided for eligible retirees and eligible dependents who are not covered by medicare; and
M. promulgate and adopt rules and regulations governing eligibility, participation, enrollment, length of service and any other conditions or requirements for providing substantially equal treatment to participating employers.
History: Laws 1990, ch. 6, § 7; 1997, ch. 74, § 5; 1998, ch. 45, § 2.
ANNOTATIONSThe 1998 amendment, effective May 20, 1998, deleted "who are independent public employers and their retirees and participating employees" following "employers" in Subsection M.
The 1997 amendment, effective July 1, 1997, inserted "and the Health Care Purchasing Act" following "the Procurement Code" in Subsection G and deleted "plan or" preceding "plans" in the fourth sentence in Subsection K.