Feds to Protect St. Vincent Catholic Medical Center Pensions

John Commins, for HealthLeaders Media, September 15, 2010

PBGC will not have specific information about SVCMC pension benefits until it becomes trustee of the plan, when PBGC will send notification letters to all plan participants. SVCMC retirees who draw benefits from PBGC may be eligible for the federal Health Coverage Tax Credit.

SVCMC previously filed for bankruptcy in 2005 and emerged in 2007. As part of the plan of reorganization in that bankruptcy, PBGC negotiated an additional contribution of $75 million to the retirement plan and additional payments in later years.

PBGC is a federal corporation created under ERISA. It insures basic pension benefits of about 44 million American workers and retirees in more than 29,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. PBGC receives no general tax money. Operations are financed by insurance premiums paid by companies that sponsor pension plans and by PBGC's investment returns.

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John Commins is a senior editor with HealthLeaders Media.

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