tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post437707720683673521..comments2024-03-06T20:20:23.420-08:00Comments on samoasoftball: Click and send your gripes to your leaders.samoasoftballhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06244238117702878406noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-41594306668555076882009-03-27T09:11:00.000-07:002009-03-27T09:11:00.000-07:00What other country on earth wants you to pay $4,00...What other country on earth wants you to pay $4,000.00 to stick it in your _________?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-66151516959344424102009-03-27T08:37:00.000-07:002009-03-27T08:37:00.000-07:00While I appreciate your situation, it sounds to me...While I appreciate your situation, it sounds to me like the people working for the public agencies aren't the only ones that have a chip on their shoulder. Try being self-employed and paying for your own health insurance like me. The monthly premiums are staggering, and the only way to make it even reasonably affordable is to have a very high deductible. My deductible is $7,000, so I can't afford that $4,500 colonoscopy that all my 50 something peers have been getting recently. It's not just unscrupulous employers that are to balme here. The insurance companies and our government are to blame for our nation's health insurance woes.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-58577353462288596542009-03-26T19:08:00.000-07:002009-03-26T19:08:00.000-07:00Dude....GET IT TOGETHER!!! Your ignorance is painf...Dude....GET IT TOGETHER!!! Your ignorance is painful at this point. <BR/><BR/>It appears you have been given a fish each day of your life, but have no idea whatsoever how to fish.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-5532023164343746732009-03-26T19:06:00.000-07:002009-03-26T19:06:00.000-07:00I am going to attempt to give you the readers dige...I am going to attempt to give you the readers digest version of what has taken place in regards to Evergreen Pulp Inc. and their medical plan. <BR/><BR/>Evergreen Pulp Inc., like lots of larger employers chose to self-fund their employee health benefits plan. Evergreen Pulp had been self-insured for years. The risk to self-insure is reduced by purchasing re-insurance. Their re-insurance took any claim over $60,000 in their plan year. Western Self-Insurance Service (WSIS) of which I am the owner, administered this medical plan. The plan works like a fully funded insurance plan. An employee has a service done at a hospital or doctor office, we receive, adjudicate and pay the claims. Here at WSIS we pay claims weekly. Its a simple process when we can actually pay the claims. Evergreen Pulp Inc. stopped funding the bank account to pay their claims on the first week of December 2008. We were assured that although most of the employees had been terminated/laid off that they had every intention on keeping the plan funded. The plan was terminated December 31st 2008. Claims can take months after the time of service to get to our office and to complicate manners our office had just taken the account over from the previous administrator located in Illinois. Claims kept getting mailed to the previous administrator causing even longer than usual delays. I communicated the increasing weekly totals to the President on down to the HR department. They kept telling me that the parent company (Lee and Man Paper) owed them money. <BR/><BR/>During the month of December 2008 and January 2009, the mill was in negotiations to be purchased. Everyone who was owed money, placed liens to get paid. I consulted with my attorney and it was made clear that we could not put a lien on the money owed because they did not owe WSIS. They owed the money to each individual provider. By this time the liens outweighed the value of the sale by a large sum. In the mean time I was contacting the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers Local 49 (AWPPW) who represent the 200+ employees informing them that they would be responsible for this accumulating debt as individuals. I also contacted the prospective buyers to see if this debt was to be included in the sale. It was not, but the new owner agreed that the employees should not be saddled with the debt. After a meeting with the new owners and the AWPPW Local 49 president, it was determined that this new venture now called Freshwater Pulp would provide funds not to exceed $300K to pay for claims which at that time totaled just under $280K. In addition the new owners would provide a piece of equipment valued at $130K to be sold to take care of anticipated additional claims. Here is the kicker. These funds would only be released "if and when the mill becomes fully operational". The latest news to come from the new owners is that the pulp mill will probably not be brought back for at least two years. This has triggered the providers to start demanding payment for these bills from the individuals.<BR/><BR/>In my efforts to keep this communication as brief as possible, I will not go into the details of the conversations that we have here on a daily basis with folks who are faced with these bills. I know of 7 employees who owe more than $15k, two who owe more than $30K and lots who owe more than $2K. It is causing folks to file bankruptcy and or lose their homes. It is very difficult to be the person telling these folks that they have been screwed by Evergreen Pulp and are 100% responsible to pay these claims. The total debt is now around $360K. It is truly a hardship for all involved, especially an unemployed mill worker with a bill that is impossible for them to pay.<BR/><BR/>In short, Lee and Man Paper purchased this mill and had 100% of the pulp production barged to their plant in China. For a couple of years they paid Evergreen Pulp (owned by Lee and Man) for this product. When the pulp market softened, they spun Evergreen Pulp into some sort of offshore corporation. They withheld payment for the final load of pulp, essentially breaking the company and then sold what was left. It is a crime in my eyes, but I understand these type of business tactics happen from time to time. In all of the bail out stories and appropriation of funds I thought there may be something that our government could do to protect these folks from an economic catastrophe. A catastrophe cause by a company that is still doing business in the United States and caused devastating effects in a small community like Humboldt County. Liz, I truly appreciate you conveying this story to Mike and I hope that there is something that he can do.<BR/><BR/>If you need any more information or if there is anything I can do for you, please do not hesitate to call.<BR/><BR/>Thank you.<BR/><BR/>Jeff Pauli<BR/>Western Self-Insurance Service<BR/>619 5th St.<BR/>Eureka, Ca. 95501<BR/><BR/>707.445.5496 Office<BR/>707.445.5498 FaxAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-90606635871371959412009-03-26T18:16:00.000-07:002009-03-26T18:16:00.000-07:00Why call government offices when you don't know th...Why call government offices when you don't know that your situation is a public matter?<BR/><BR/>It seems to me your issue concerns the terms of the settlement agreement that the union signed to release the lien. The lawyer who wrote the agreement is the correct person to direct your first questions to.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30719375.post-87397661400884878472009-03-26T17:20:00.000-07:002009-03-26T17:20:00.000-07:00Richard, thank you. This is perfect and easy to us...Richard, thank you. This is perfect and easy to use. I would also suggest that they call as well. Our Represenatives get busy when they are being bothered. A weekly call or a daily/e-mail is a real bother to these people. I do not know if any of them are coming up for re-election but just a thought to mention to them that they are voted in by us. Again, thank you for informing us here for doing most of the hard work.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com