WGA Strike To Officially End At Midnight As Guild Leaders Approve Tentative Deal With Big GainsPension & Health Plans voted today to extend access a free major medical plan for participants who lost coverage because of thestrikes. Those who elect it now are eligible to use the coverage through March 31, provided they remain on the plan through December 31.
The new DGA benefit comes in the wake of a similar move by the Motion Picture Industry Pension & Health Plan – which covers members of IATSE, Teamsters Local 399 and several other unions – which recently eased the requirements that their members need to qualify for health coverage in order “to help participants and dependents affected by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.”
SAG-AFTRA has been on strike since July 14, and its members are also facing the loss of health care coverage. Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the guild’s national executive director, said in a recent podcast “As far as health and pension go, eligibility requirements are going to remain the same” during the strike.
Hearing aids, chiropractic, acupuncture and foot orthotics are excluded from coverage under the Major Medical Plus Plan, as are dental benefits, vision benefits and special arrangements with UCLA Health/EIMG.