Kentucky's practice of providing health insurance benefits for retired state and local government workers under 65 has to go.
Kentucky's $8.9 billion in unfunded health insurance liabilities for public retirees can't be made to go away quickly, but the practice of offering these benefits should be phased out as soon as possible.
The Commonwealth ranks 8th in the nation in per capita unfunded health insurance liabilities for public retirees. That is especially bad when it is considered that we are 42nd in per capita income and that all of the states with higher unfunded liabilities have more money than we do.
In other words, we are the single most unprepared state in the nation in terms of ability to dole out overly rich benefits to public employees. But we are doing it anyway.
Funny neither of the major newspapers in the state picked up on this story this week right after we raided the same fund of $50 million. But I guess we should be used to it by now.
