A free medical program for members who lost jobs due to the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike this summer will now be available for a more extended period, according to a majority resolution by the board of trustees of the Directors Guild of America’s pension and health plan.
In August, the plan’s trustees formed the program for members who had lost or were about to lose DGA plan coverage and lost work that would have put them above the salary criteria owing to the strikes. The free plan has now been extended through the end of March 2024 from its original duration of October 1 through the end of 2023.
Lesli Linka Glatter, the DGA’s president, issued a statement:
“I’m so proud the Board of Trustees unanimously voted to extend the vital health coverage of the Major Medical Plan to eligible Health Plan participants and their dependents to ease some of the burden that has come with unemployment during the current and past strikes,”
Linka Glatter continued,
“In difficult times, we all must remember what matters most – taking care of one another. By extending these health coverage terms and making care accessible to more participants, the leadership of the Plans is investing in the long-term wellbeing of our DGA family,”
To prevent members from losing healthcare during the strike, the WGA and SAG-AFTRA health plans and the DGA health plan both underwent extensions.
Qualified participants may include their eligible dependents for the length of the Major Medical Plus Plan coverage. Participants who qualify for the Major Medical Plus Plan will get a letter from the Health Plan with instructions on how to enroll in the plan.
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The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and SAG-AFTRA have just resumed negotiations to achieve an agreement later this month, even though the WGA strike has ended due to a tentative agreement that is anticipated to be approved this week.
The DGA health plan website has details on the strike medical program and eligibility conditions.
