MEET OUR RETIREES

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 "I  recently underwent 11 hours of spinal surgery. Consequently, I  currently am unable to go to the bathroom. without assistance. I must  ambulate from house to car (or otherwise short distances) while sitting  in a rollator device. In addition, I have asthma complicated by  interstitial lung disease which causes my blood pressure to drop  severely and spontaneously without warning. I experience intermittent  momentary (a few minutes) loss of consciousness when this phenomenon  occurs. I need to be watched at all times. 

Obviously,  the quality of our mutual lives has diminished considerably because of  all of the emotional and physical challenges presented by our  circumstance. We are fortunate to have “good” medical coverage. However,  I am not sure if we qualify, income-wise, for homecare assistance but  would appreciate any consideration to help with our tremendous current  financial burden for 24-hour home care. In addition, we know that the  current political climate presents a threat to our Medicare and other  medical coverage's. We certainly do not want our existing medical plans  to be caused to change or be modified to our disadvantage."

"My  name is (omitted for privacy), after serving my time as a Nassau County Deputy  Sheriff Sergeant honorably for 27 years, I feel betrayed by County  Government, living on a fixed income in Nassau County and the county  trying to pull the rug out on retirees and add costly co-pays that we  cannot afford. At the same time the county can see itself clear to  appoint political people to high salary jobs! My government, (and I mean  MY!) which my super high taxes pay for to represent me need to stand  beside me and others that are being financially stressed enough and  abide by my contractually given rights that I worked very hard for, i  kept my part of the bargain they should keep theirs!"

"With  the health issues I am now enduring I would like to say it will be  devastating to me to pay out more money. I suffer from congestive heart  failure, kidney disease, thyroid, a fib, and take blood thinners due to  blood clots, Macular degeneration and sclerosis, osteoporosis of my  spine I am constantly being watched by my care team with a monitor on my  pacemaker, which has to be in and plugged in wherever I go. Or use a  remote button. Just this October I was in the hospital twice due to my  heart and my kidneys. If Mr. Blakeman takes away my insurance to make it  where I will be paying more, I won't have money for the special diet I  have to be on now and won't be able to pay my bills not only for  insurance but my mortgage, taxes, and utilities. 

Please keep our medical as is. Thank you for hearing me out."

"My  name is (omitted for privacy). Back in August 2020 I developed ovarian  cancer, uterine cancer and breast cancer. Yes, all 3 different and all  at the same time. I have been under the care of Memorial Sloan  Kettering. Under that time, I have gone through surgery (10 Hours) chemo  (6 months) more surgery (breast) and radiation which was done at  Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida. Both of these cancer centers have  notified me that if my insurance changes I will no longer be covered. I  am pleading for my life (at the time of discovery my age was 64) so,  please, do not change my insurance which has kept me alive. I worked for  Nassau County for over 20 years and retired in December 2022. I am too  young to die. I would like to see my grandkids graduate school. So I am  pleading for my life and everyone else who by no fault of our own, who  got sick, please give us back what we signed on for. We took these jobs,  originally much less salary than what we could have made in the private  sector, so I could have peace of mind when I aged." 

"I  got cancer of my right lung last year that required me to have my lung  removed. This has also caused me to have to deal with multiple breathing  and lung conditions. I’m also dealing with stage 3 kidney disease.  These 2 conditions require me to take many different medications. Just  in the past couple of months I have been diagnosed with kidney cancer  which I’m also dealing with. Just the co pays for my doctor and hospital  bills and prescriptions are astronomical. Please don’t take away or  change my insurance because right now I’m barely meeting my bills. I was  a loyal county worker for the Nassau County Police Dept Ambulance  Bureau. I retired in 2010 and was healthy up until 2021 at which time I  suffered a heart attack and since then have been dealing with this  lung cancer, Kidney disease and now the latest is my kidney cancer.  Thank you for your help and understanding."

"I  live with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Mixed Connective Tissue  Disease, both of which compromise my immune system, making me more  vulnerable to illness. Medically, I am considered immunocompromised. To  manage these conditions, I see three specialists on a rotating schedule  every three months. Unfortunately, many people don’t realize that RA is  an immunological disease, and its effects are widespread and often  unpredictable. Additionally, I live in constant pain due to these  conditions. My condition is severely aggravated by stress, and the  actions taken against us have caused significant and undue stress,  further exacerbating my already painful condition."

"I  could have worked at more lucrative jobs, but I chose to work in public  service because I felt the position was protected from the winds of the  economy, and because I and my family were guaranteed health benefits  after I retired. Now that I am retired, the economy is even worse than I  anticipated and my credit card bills are rising. My ONLY peace of mind  was the stability of my healthcare as a supplement to Medicare, and now  that it is endangered, the stress levels are rising, my savings are  falling and none of it is good for my health. I WAS PROMISED that my  healthcare would be secure, and I feel violated. I don't know how my  wife and I will manage if things get worse than they already are. It is  so precarious that almost anything could send us over the financial  edge."

"Throughout  my 30 years of working for Nassau County I always tried to complain as  little as possible about health issues as possible because it never  helps and because people, even those that care about you, will  eventually grow tired of hearing about your problems. I tried to confine  my doctors visits to 1 or 2 a year.

I  did not realize that I had an expiration date of 70 years and since I  hit that milestone, my life has become a series of one medical issue  after another, despite exercising every other day since college and  always sticking to a pretty healthy diet. I cant avoid doctors visits  any more and at times they are a weekly routine.

Thank  god that I retired with good health insurance because all of the  co-pays add up and I am not finding it easy to make ends meet as it is,  considering the prices of food and insurances and property taxes etc.

 Im  dealing with multiple serious illnesses at the same time and I am not  having an easy time with the costs and dealing with all of the anxiety  that I now deal with on a daily basis. I sincerely hope that the powers  that be in Nassau county dont abandon me and make my life harder than it  already is.

"I was promised heath insurance when I retired !!!

You see I retired in 2012 against my wishes, I was forced to leave due to seveir health issues.

I underwent open heart surgery , 

TRICUSPID valve replaced

AORTIC valve replaced. And

MITRAL ANNULOPLASTY RING replacement All this while on dialysis for kidney failure.

In 2017 I received a kidney transplant and rely heavily on anti rejection medication…

I’m currently living pension check to pension check, along with what little SSI gives me.

I was forced to leave L.I. New York due to inflation and I’m currently living in Florida.

Loosing my health insurance would be detrimental To my everyday life ..."

"I am a retiree of Nassau County for over twenty years. Until the last few years my wife and I have enjoyed the security of the County Pension plan. In recent years I have been diagnosed with a condition that is attacking my heart leaving me with a life expectancy of 3 to 6 years. Two years have already passed. My daily medication for this situation (Vindamax) costs $120,000.00 per year. If it weren't for my present medical insurance and the assistance of Medicare and another foundation I would have no hope. Please leave my present medical plan in tact so that I can enjoy my family, friends and what little life I have left.

In addition, My wife just passed away one month ago. So I don't need further depressing and nerve-wracking changes to my life. 

Your power, reasonableness, and respect for our contract with the county is needed today more than ever. Please work with The Nassauretirees and their legal team to maintain our contract."

" Since I’ve retired my wife has dealt with two bouts of cancer. She will need at least one knee replaced and the second shortly thereafter. I have a bi-lateral hearing loss requiring periodic hearing aid replacement which is attributed to years serving as a Department firearms instructor. I way also diagnosed with dormant tuberculosis which was discovered by a Tyne test administered by the County in 1994 to employees subjected to working with an “at risk” population. While the TB is encapsulated it poses no risk but could emerge as a full case of tuberculosis at any future time as explained by the physician. I will also be requiring a knee replacement in addition to monitoring and heart murmur and managing high blood pressure. As we age our health deteriorates. Placing retirees who calculated managing finances based upon projected health care costs into unknown, restrictive , high deductible or higher copay health plans is creating anxiety about the future. We haven’t addressed the costs of prescription drugs. Add in inflation and ponder the consequences.

Retirees are unable to voice an opinion nor vote but are now subjected to political expediency."