A Prescription for Retiree Health Care: How Worcester can vanquish its OPEB liability while keeping its workforce happy and healthy

This report addresses a crisis local governments are facing across the nation: how to pay for OPEB – “other post-employment benefits” that were promised to retirees in better fiscal times. It examines the genesis of retiree benefits, their runaway growth, and the threat to municipal solvency, and suggests new policies to fulfill old promises while continuing to make healthcare affordable and obtainable for Worcester’s public employees and retirees.