To retire from Pima County, you will need to:
1. Submit a letter of retirement to your appointing authority at least two weeks prior to your retirement date.
You can always submit the letter earlier. Keep in mind that your actual retirement date is important. If your last day worked is the first of the month, then you will keep your current benefits and premiums through the end of that month. If your last day worked is the last day of the month, then your benefits end that day.
2. Contact ASRS 60-90 days prior to retirement to apply for retirement.
The retirement application is available on the ASRS website but we always recommend talking to someone at ASRS prior to submitting the application. You can contact them at 520-239-3100.
3. Decide about benefits going forward.
If you are considering retiring prior to 65, you can consider the following options:
- COBRA
- Coverage through spouse
- ASRS Retiree Insurance
- Marketplace
To retire from Pima County, you will need to:
1. Submit a letter of retirement to your appointing authority at least two weeks prior to your retirement date.
You can always submit the letter earlier. Keep in mind that your actual retirement date is important. If your last day worked is the first of the month, then you will keep your current benefits and premiums through the end of that month. If your last day worked is the last day of the month, then your benefits end that day.
2. Contact ASRS 60-90 days prior to retirement to apply for retirement.
The retirement application is available on the ASRS website but we always recommend talking to someone at ASRS prior to submitting the application. You can contact them at 520-239-3100.
3. Decide about benefits going forward.
Since you are retiring after 65, you can consider the following options:
- Coverage through spouse
- Medicare
You will want to contact Social Security 3 months prior to retiring to apply for Medicare.
You do not have to enroll in any part of Medicare at the age of 65 because you may have our medical coverage. Pima County’s health coverage is creditable coverage which means you can stay enrolled in it and not receive the lifetime penalties for not enrolling in Medicare Part B. Those penalties are for people turning 65 who do not have creditable coverage. Here is some info directly from the
Medicare website:
If you decide to stay enrolled with Pima County, when you retire Medicare will provide you with a form that we will fill out stating that you had creditable coverage. We fill them out all the time.
One more thing to keep in mind is that you can keep contributing to your Health Savings Account (HSA). However, you will want to stop all contributions 6 months prior to retiring. That is because when you enroll in Medicare and/or start drawing Social Security after the age of 65, you will automatically be enrolled in Medicare Part A. They will backdate this effective date 6 months retroactively and make you out of compliance with the IRS. They will not backdate the coverage prior to your 65th birthday so there is no need to stop contributing prior to the age of 65. Here is some more info directly from the
Medicare website:
Health Savings Account
To stop all contributions to your HSA including Pima County’s, you will want to change your HSA eligibility status to “HSA Not Eligible.”
To do this, you will need to declare a life event in ADP. Follow the instructions to update your
HSA Eligibility Certification.
ASI COBRA will automatically send you the paperwork (enrollment packet) 7 to 14 days after you retire.
To enroll, fill out the enrollment packet forms and return them to ASI COBRA with a check for your first month’s premiums. You have a 60 day enrollment window and the effective date of the COBRA coverage will be retroactive to your first day of lost coverage.
For example, if your coverage ends on 4/30 and you don’t return the enrollment information until 5/15 it would still be effective 5/1 since that is your first day of lost coverage.
When you do apply for retirement, you most likely will qualify for a COBRA premium subsidy through ASRS. When you do retire and enroll in COBRA, we will automatically fill out the necessary paperwork and send it to ASRS. You can expect to start receiving subsidy checks about 3-4 months after your last day.
ASRS makes the subsidy determination so if you are curious about the qualifications, you will need to contact them.
View the
2021-22 Monthly COBRA Rates
Keep in mind that COBRA coverage can last up to 18 months. After that 18 months you will need find benefits elsewhere. One option that you have is retiree insurance through ASRS. Your premium subsidy will be applied to these premiums as well so be mindful of that when pricing different benefit options. For more information on these plans, contact ASRS and/or
visit this section of their website
One important thing to remember with COBRA coverage is that it is not creditable coverage. Meaning, if you will turn 65 before the 18 months of COBRA is over, to avoid lifetime Medicare penalties you will want to enroll in Medicare Part B when you turn 65.
Important Contact Information
Specific Retirement Questions:
Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS)
Phone: (520) 239-3100
Address: 4400 E Broadway Blvd, Suite 200
Tucson, AZ 85067-3910
www.azasrs.gov
Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS)
Phone: (602) 255-5575
Address: 3010 E. Camelback Rd.
Phoenix, AZ 85016-4416
www.psprs.com
Social Security Administration
Phone: (800) 772-1213
Address: 3500 N. Campbell Ave.
Tucson, Arizona 85719
www.ssa.gov
Help Through the Retirement Process:
Pima Council On Aging:
Phone: (520) 790-7262
Address: 8467 E. Broadway Blvd.
Tucson, Arizona 85710
www.pcoa.org
Cobra Questions:
ASI Cobra
Phone: (877) 388-8331
Address: 201 W Broadway
Columbia, MO 65203
www.asicobra.com
Deferred Compensation Questions:
Ron Savageau-Nationwide
Phone: (520) 664-5980
Fax: (866) 996-4124
ron.savageau@nationwide.com
HSA Bank Questions:
HSA Bank
Phone: (800) 357-6246
Address: P.O Box 939
Sheboygan, WI 53082-0939
www.hsabank.com