NC Supreme Court Ruling On State Retirees’ Health Insurance Benefits: NCRGEA Releases Statement

Tracie Eubank on March 12, 2022

“We are extremely pleased with the decision filed by the North Carolina Supreme Court today holding that eligible State employees have a vested right in a noncontributory health plan for life.  This Association has worked on this case to support retirees’ rights for almost 10 years.”

“As the Court stated, ‘These employees reasonably relied on the promise of this benefit in choosing to accept employment with the State.  They are entitled to the benefit of their bargain, which includes eligibility to enroll in a premium-free plan offering the same or greater coverage value as the one available to them when their rights vested.’”

“This decision has been a long time in coming.  We are grateful to the attorneys, led by Christopher Whelchel and Michael Carpenter at  the Gray Layton Kersh firm in Gastonia, with great assistance from attorneys Sam McGee and Gary Jackson, who have worked so hard for so long to protect retirees’ rights.  We are also grateful to AARP and the North Carolina Association of Educators for their support.”

“We agree with the Court’s determination that this dispute raises issues of profound importance to the hundreds of thousands of dedicated public employees who devoted their lives to serving their fellow North Carolinians, often for far less immediate remuneration than would have been available to them in the private sector.”

The Lake Case court decision may be viewed on the North Carolina Judicial Branch website. 

Changes Ahead

Tracie Eubank on August 7, 2025

North Carolina State Treasurer Brad Briner provides a recap from June’s “Pension, Protections, and Public Trust” webinar and expands on current and future plans.

2025 RGEA Spring Conference

Tracie Eubank on April 1, 2025

June 17, 2025 | Join us for this FREE event to meet other state and local government retirees and hear from experts on your health and retirement plans, pension and Social Security information, and more.

Let Your Voice Be Heard By The Senate Now!

Tracie Eubank on March 20, 2025

RGEA expresses deep concern that the Governor’s recently released budget does not protect the pension’s long-term stability or provide true inflation relief to government retirees who have struggled for years without cost-of-living adjustments.
 
Specifically, the Governor’s Budget does not meet the threshold of the actuarially determined employer rate as required by law in G.S. 135-8(d)(3a) and would underfund the pension by $206M over the next two years. Since the pension’s inception, this has only happened under one other North Carolina Governor, and it took several years for the pension and considerably more money to recover from this action.
 
Additionally, the 2% one-time supplement in the Governor’s Budget is far from addressing the 20% inflation our retired public servants have faced in just the past five years. It is well past time for a true cost-of-living adjustment, not a one-time pension supplement.
 
The foundation and strength of our public service workforce and the North Carolina Retirement Systems has been from our elected officials’ discipline in fully funding the pension and ensuring government retirees could live with dignity in their retirement years. We ask the legislature to rectify these omissions to ensure that the pension for public service retirees remains strong well into the future.
 
In addition, as you read this, the Senate budget is being negotiated and drafted. Last year, the Senate included no cost-of-living adjustments for government retirees. This must change in 2025, and we need your voice. Please take a moment to complete this call to action, as the Senate needs to know that government retirees need relief from inflation to meet their daily expenses and maintain their quality of life.