WEBVTT - CBA Updates - Part I

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to the NFL Legends Podcast, an NFL podcast for

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<v Speaker 1>the players, by the players. Here is your host, four

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<v Speaker 1>team year NFL veteran and Hall of Famer Enius Williams. Hello,

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<v Speaker 1>and welcome to the NFL Legends Podcast. I am a

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<v Speaker 1>Nius Williams. In early the NFL and the Players Association

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<v Speaker 1>signed a new collectively bargain agreement which includes many changes

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<v Speaker 1>to the NFL Legends earned benefits. Today, we're going to

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<v Speaker 1>talk about those changes and how they affect the lives

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<v Speaker 1>of NFL legends and their families. With us today are

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<v Speaker 1>Tracy Perlman, who I would consider in the league office,

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<v Speaker 1>Powderful Pound, one of the heaviest hitters in the league

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<v Speaker 1>office and NFL Senior Vice president of Football Communications and Marketing.

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<v Speaker 1>Blenda Learner, executive director of the NFL Player Care Foundation,

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<v Speaker 1>And Jacob Frank, NFL Manager of Collectively Bargained Player Benefits. Today,

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<v Speaker 1>we're going to give answers to the questions many legends

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<v Speaker 1>and their families have and give you the tools to

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<v Speaker 1>get additional information that you need to take advantage of

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<v Speaker 1>these earned benefits. The first thing I want to talk

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<v Speaker 1>about is what are the new benefits for legends and

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<v Speaker 1>their families in the new c b A and how

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<v Speaker 1>does it compare to what was in the two thousand

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<v Speaker 1>eleven deal. Where can I learn more about this? Tracy, Well,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna let Jacob and Blenda take you through the

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<v Speaker 1>new benefits, but we reiterate over and over and over again.

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<v Speaker 1>The place to go for information is the Legends Portal

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<v Speaker 1>at Players dot NFL dot com. The portal can take

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<v Speaker 1>you to all the information, but you can also ask

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<v Speaker 1>the Legends director at your club. You can also talk

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<v Speaker 1>to any of the twenty four Legends Community directors and coordinators.

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<v Speaker 1>You will see information in the newsletter um. You can

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<v Speaker 1>also follow the Legends community on social media where we

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<v Speaker 1>will put out that information, and you can go to

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<v Speaker 1>NFL Player Benefits dot com. So there are multiple ways

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<v Speaker 1>to get the information. And if you feel comfortable, you

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<v Speaker 1>can also call us and make a direct connection so

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<v Speaker 1>that Jacob or Belinda can actually walk you through the

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<v Speaker 1>information personally. Before I get going, Tracy, could you just

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<v Speaker 1>kind of give us feedback in terms of the landscape

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<v Speaker 1>when this agreement was signed. How often did you hear

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<v Speaker 1>about players about Legends and how excited, uh, what kind

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<v Speaker 1>of feedback did you get from the Legends community. So

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<v Speaker 1>I think the Legends community was kind of waiting with

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<v Speaker 1>faded breath to see if this was going to get done.

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<v Speaker 1>And I think what we keep hearing is it's amazing

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<v Speaker 1>that the current players and the league really took this

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<v Speaker 1>as seriously as they did, and that this was really

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<v Speaker 1>at the forefront of the conversation. So as we talked

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<v Speaker 1>to players, they are really excited that this was something

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<v Speaker 1>that was held up high, as this is one of

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<v Speaker 1>the things we really need to get done, and now

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<v Speaker 1>guys really want to know how to use it. Because

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<v Speaker 1>leading into this, I think players were unsure of how

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<v Speaker 1>important is this to everyone. And I think the league

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<v Speaker 1>and and Belinda and Jacob being parted the part of

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<v Speaker 1>the team who negotiated this, I think the league and

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<v Speaker 1>the current players really wanted to make sure that they

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<v Speaker 1>took care of the icons of the game. And that

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<v Speaker 1>was huge because a lot of the conversations I had

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<v Speaker 1>with Legends, it was kind of like a wait and

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<v Speaker 1>see approach. So thank you for sharing the landscape. There

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<v Speaker 1>were many benefits for the Legends in the previous c

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<v Speaker 1>b A. What has changed in this agreement In the

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<v Speaker 1>Health and Wellderness Area d S. I'll take that one

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<v Speaker 1>and I'll start off with the NFL's Dedicated Hospital Network.

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<v Speaker 1>It's new under the NFL Player Insurance Plan, and it's

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<v Speaker 1>a brand new program designed to provide legends with access

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<v Speaker 1>to top rated hospitals and club cities by leveraging the

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<v Speaker 1>partnerships NFL clubs have with their premier healthcare networks. The

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<v Speaker 1>service is free to the legend. So who's eligible, Well,

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<v Speaker 1>the legend must be a vested player typically that's three

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<v Speaker 1>plus credited seasons or four if they played prior to

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<v Speaker 1>They cannot currently be on an NFL insurance plan, and

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<v Speaker 1>they need to be under the age of six. The

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<v Speaker 1>launch state is September one one, and the way it's

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<v Speaker 1>planning on working is that it's going to be administered

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<v Speaker 1>by SIGNA, So eligible players will receive a card showing

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<v Speaker 1>they are registered for the program. There'll be a dedicated

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<v Speaker 1>call in center for the legends to all into. The

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<v Speaker 1>players call will receive an intake process through one of

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<v Speaker 1>the SIGNA representatives who will pick up that fall. Then

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<v Speaker 1>it's the job of the SIGNA representative to coordinate appointments

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<v Speaker 1>with the with end services at the hospital which the

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<v Speaker 1>players assigned to, and then the player will go to

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<v Speaker 1>the hospital at the appointed time, meet with someone at

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<v Speaker 1>the hospital will be aware of their visits and they'll

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<v Speaker 1>coordinate all further services if necessary, even after the player leaves.

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<v Speaker 1>After the player leaves his appointments in the hospital, again

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<v Speaker 1>it is free of charge to those eligible players. And

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<v Speaker 1>what does it include. These are incredible services. Services will

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<v Speaker 1>include free preventative care which includes annual physicals and screenings.

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<v Speaker 1>Depending upon your age, you may be able to get

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<v Speaker 1>a free prostate exam or colonoscopy. Then you're also entitled

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<v Speaker 1>to for free limited orthopedic procedures including author scopies, so

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<v Speaker 1>maybe a meniscus repair or an a c L repair.

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<v Speaker 1>Those who are going to be provided on a limited

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<v Speaker 1>s s and up to a dollar value again free,

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<v Speaker 1>but the value would be placed in no more than

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<v Speaker 1>You can also get chiropractic and physical therapy and mental

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<v Speaker 1>health care. So we're excited about this and the whole

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<v Speaker 1>idea behind this really and is trying to create access.

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<v Speaker 1>We want our players to be able to take care

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<v Speaker 1>of themselves and provide them with the right resources so

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<v Speaker 1>they can connect with medical facilities that can help them

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<v Speaker 1>do that. In Belinda, maybe you mentioned this already. For

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<v Speaker 1>players that are not in hospitals in league cities, will

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<v Speaker 1>they be required or responsible to pay to get to

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<v Speaker 1>those hospitals if they're not living there. No, the original

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<v Speaker 1>design is to align ourselves with the hospitals that are

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<v Speaker 1>sponsored by NFL clubs, But any player can have access,

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<v Speaker 1>So if you live outside of a club city, you

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<v Speaker 1>can still have free access. The other interesting point is

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<v Speaker 1>that you're not assigned to a specific hospital. So even

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<v Speaker 1>if let's say you live in Miami but you prefer

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<v Speaker 1>to go to a hospital in Tampa Bay, then you

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<v Speaker 1>can do that. You're not assigned to a specific hospital.

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<v Speaker 1>You can have access to any one of those hospitals.

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<v Speaker 1>And what about education and finance, Yeah, so I'll talk

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<v Speaker 1>about the Tutition Assistance Benefit, which has been greatly enhanced

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<v Speaker 1>as part of the new c v A. The Tutition

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<v Speaker 1>Assistance Benefit will support legends who are interested in continuing

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<v Speaker 1>their education. So for those of your listening, perhaps you're

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<v Speaker 1>thinking about finishing your undergraduate degree, obtaining a graduate school degree,

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<v Speaker 1>or perhaps it's a trade school certification, it is very

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<v Speaker 1>important to know there is money available to you, and

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<v Speaker 1>the dollars have been increased as part of the new

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<v Speaker 1>cb A. You do not need to be vested in

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<v Speaker 1>order to take advantage of the tutition assistance benefit. So

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<v Speaker 1>if you're not vested, meaning you have at least two

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<v Speaker 1>credited seasons, you are eligible to receive up to thirty

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<v Speaker 1>thousand dollars in tuition assistance to go back to school

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<v Speaker 1>to get that undergraduate degree, graduate school degree, or trade

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<v Speaker 1>school certification. For those of you or vested, if you

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<v Speaker 1>have five or more credited seasons, you can be reimbursed

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<v Speaker 1>up to one d five thousand dollars by One of

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<v Speaker 1>the questions that I oftentimes received when I talk about

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<v Speaker 1>the tutition assistance benefit is can I receive this benefit

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<v Speaker 1>and take advantage of let's say, the Trust's scholarship. And

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<v Speaker 1>the answer is yes, you can take advantage of the

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<v Speaker 1>tutition assistance benefit under the c b A, and you

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<v Speaker 1>could take advantage of the scholarship that's provided by the Trust.

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<v Speaker 1>So for those of you who are not vested, if

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<v Speaker 1>you take advantage of that thirty thou dollars and the

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<v Speaker 1>Trust scholarship, which is twenty dollars, you can have upwards

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<v Speaker 1>of fifty dollars available to you to go back to

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<v Speaker 1>school over the course of over the course of your lifetime. Jacob,

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<v Speaker 1>And I ask you a question, Jacob. The NFL tuition

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<v Speaker 1>assistance is a reimbursement and the trust is a scholarship.

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<v Speaker 1>Correct correct Jacob, From the information that you have, are

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<v Speaker 1>you aware of if players were taken advantage of tuition

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<v Speaker 1>assistance in the last collective Bargain Agreement? Yeah, we've We've

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<v Speaker 1>had a significant significant number of players that take advantage

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<v Speaker 1>of the tutition Assistance benefit. What we did see though,

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<v Speaker 1>is that players really wanted to get a trade school

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<v Speaker 1>certification and that was not an eligible criteria under the

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<v Speaker 1>previous c b A, and so under the new cb A,

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<v Speaker 1>we expanded that criteria. So, as I mentioned, you can

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<v Speaker 1>get that undergraduate degree if you can apply the money

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<v Speaker 1>towards the graduate school degree and a trade school certification.

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<v Speaker 1>We have more than one thousand universities across the country

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<v Speaker 1>that are eligible under the Tutition Assistance Plan, and you

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<v Speaker 1>will be eligible to utilize that money for trade school certification.

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<v Speaker 1>So we're hoping to see more and more legends utilize

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<v Speaker 1>this benefit as we go forward. And what did it

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<v Speaker 1>changes in areas of disability? And yes, would you mind

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<v Speaker 1>if I just went back and talked a little bit

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<v Speaker 1>more about some of the other health and wellness programs

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<v Speaker 1>that are available on the new GM, and then I'll

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<v Speaker 1>head on back to that. In addition to the NFL

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<v Speaker 1>Dedicated Hospital Network, there's also an expanded benefit in the

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<v Speaker 1>Health Reimbursement Account what we call the h r A,

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<v Speaker 1>so new to the Collective Baring Agreement is a one

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<v Speaker 1>time fifty thousand dollar contribution to an h RA account

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<v Speaker 1>for eligible legends and their dependence. Now, these h RA

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<v Speaker 1>accounts existed prior, and they were existed under the eleven agreement,

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<v Speaker 1>but it was limited to players who were vested and

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<v Speaker 1>typically had a season in two thousand and seven or later,

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<v Speaker 1>and they would have money put into a n h

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<v Speaker 1>RA account. In again, we're looking back and trying to help,

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<v Speaker 1>as Tracy said earlier, the icons of the game. So

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<v Speaker 1>in looking back, we have identified players with three plus

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<v Speaker 1>credited seasons, so you don't need to be vested for

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<v Speaker 1>those guys three plus credited seasons. Players A Legends who

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<v Speaker 1>are under the age of sixty five on April one,

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<v Speaker 1>and legends who had never previously participated in the NFL

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<v Speaker 1>h ra A plan. As I said, again, players typically

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<v Speaker 1>with seasons prior to two thousand and seven, they will

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<v Speaker 1>get this one time fifty thousand dollar contribution. Again, the

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<v Speaker 1>benefit is emphasizing to improve access to healthcare, very similar

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<v Speaker 1>to the thought process behind the NFL Dedicated Hospital Network.

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<v Speaker 1>What kind of expenses are covered under this h r A.

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<v Speaker 1>So with this fifty dollars, you can use it to

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<v Speaker 1>get reimbursed for medical, dental, and vision, and insurance premiums.

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<v Speaker 1>You can get your insurance deductibles and co paste covered

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<v Speaker 1>through reimbursement, prescription drugs, chiropractic visits, mental health visits, and

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<v Speaker 1>these are some of the expenses that are enumerated and

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<v Speaker 1>covered under the new h r A. Significantly, this package

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<v Speaker 1>has already gone out to the players who are eligible,

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<v Speaker 1>so they will have received the package, and we're proud

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<v Speaker 1>to say, um they will be able to look back

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<v Speaker 1>to April one when it came to effect, and any

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<v Speaker 1>medical expense covered by the h r A from that

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<v Speaker 1>point on going forward they could have reimbursed. Thank you.

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<v Speaker 1>I think so too. We're proud of it. One other

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<v Speaker 1>I wanted to mention is our Medicare Supplement plan again

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<v Speaker 1>with the idea of trying to help more of our

0:12:07.240 --> 0:12:11.920
<v Speaker 1>older players UM. This benefit existed in the twenty eleven

0:12:11.960 --> 0:12:15.080
<v Speaker 1>c b A, but it's been much expanded UH. It's

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<v Speaker 1>the benefit designed to assist legends with medical expenses who

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<v Speaker 1>are sixty five years or older and who are on

0:12:21.080 --> 0:12:25.960
<v Speaker 1>Medicare UM. In twenty eleven, vested legends would receive a

0:12:26.040 --> 0:12:30.560
<v Speaker 1>hundred sixty dollars per month to purchase Medicare Supplement insurance,

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<v Speaker 1>which is typically called metic gap, and that would be

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<v Speaker 1>provided only by one it was United Healthcare, and our

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<v Speaker 1>participation was less than fifty approximately forty two percent of

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<v Speaker 1>eligible legends, so we wanted to think of ways that

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<v Speaker 1>we can encourage more players to participate. So under the

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<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty agreement and effective September one, in order to

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<v Speaker 1>encourage more users, we've expanded UM. We've expanded the the

0:12:56.000 --> 0:12:59.599
<v Speaker 1>options available, so the vested legends would still receive the

0:12:59.679 --> 0:13:02.520
<v Speaker 1>hundred sixty per month, but now the options have been

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<v Speaker 1>expanded beyond United Healthcare. There's going to be a retiree

0:13:06.200 --> 0:13:09.440
<v Speaker 1>exchange that would be available and that will offer both

0:13:09.520 --> 0:13:13.360
<v Speaker 1>meta gap and advantage plans. From all carriers in the

0:13:13.400 --> 0:13:18.720
<v Speaker 1>players geographic area. There are about nine hundred eligible legends.

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<v Speaker 1>So again it's our hope that with more choices will

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<v Speaker 1>have more legends that will participate. And then in September

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<v Speaker 1>one six, the one sixty will go up to two

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<v Speaker 1>hundred dollars per month. So that's so, I just wanted

0:13:30.320 --> 0:13:31.920
<v Speaker 1>to make sure we we got in all of the

0:13:32.000 --> 0:13:35.360
<v Speaker 1>wonderful health and wellness benefits available to the players. I'll

0:13:35.400 --> 0:13:40.520
<v Speaker 1>stand when of these benefits going to effect well, April some.

0:13:40.640 --> 0:13:44.000
<v Speaker 1>As I mentioned on the Medicare supplement, it'll start effect

0:13:44.000 --> 0:13:47.960
<v Speaker 1>of September one. UM, the h r A accounts again

0:13:48.080 --> 0:13:52.040
<v Speaker 1>April one and so, and the NFL Hospital Network is

0:13:52.080 --> 0:13:56.240
<v Speaker 1>scheduled to launch September one one. And when legends expect

0:13:56.280 --> 0:13:58.800
<v Speaker 1>to see money is reflective in their accounts, well, the

0:13:58.880 --> 0:14:01.400
<v Speaker 1>in the h ra A account, they should the money

0:14:01.520 --> 0:14:05.400
<v Speaker 1>is there, and that I understand that the reimbursement forms

0:14:05.440 --> 0:14:08.000
<v Speaker 1>and all of the necessary materials in order to enroll

0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:10.520
<v Speaker 1>have been have been mailed out, so they should be

0:14:10.520 --> 0:14:12.920
<v Speaker 1>in the hands of the players of the legends as

0:14:12.960 --> 0:14:16.360
<v Speaker 1>we speak. UM again, the dedicated Hospital Network, we're now

0:14:16.400 --> 0:14:19.479
<v Speaker 1>coordinating and working with both the clubs and the hospitals

0:14:19.480 --> 0:14:22.320
<v Speaker 1>in the various cities to try to put the program together,

0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:26.280
<v Speaker 1>and we're optimistic, even though UM, needless to say, hospitals

0:14:26.280 --> 0:14:28.920
<v Speaker 1>are very much focused on the COVID nineteen issues. We

0:14:28.960 --> 0:14:31.040
<v Speaker 1>still think we can meet our deadline of September one,

0:14:31.880 --> 0:14:35.040
<v Speaker 1>and we'll be providing information to players shortly before that

0:14:35.120 --> 0:14:37.920
<v Speaker 1>so they know exactly what to do. So here's a

0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:40.960
<v Speaker 1>big question for legends. What steps do legends need to

0:14:41.000 --> 0:14:45.000
<v Speaker 1>take to activate these benefits? Well, depending upon the benefit

0:14:45.200 --> 0:14:47.800
<v Speaker 1>UM typically you would get, and I'll let Alec Jacob

0:14:47.840 --> 0:14:50.320
<v Speaker 1>also talk to this. There'll be information being sent from

0:14:50.320 --> 0:14:53.960
<v Speaker 1>the Plan Benefit Office advising players of exactly what steps

0:14:54.000 --> 0:14:57.000
<v Speaker 1>they need to take in order to activate them. Jacob,

0:14:57.000 --> 0:14:58.840
<v Speaker 1>I know you might have more information on that, so

0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:01.880
<v Speaker 1>what you can speak to them? That's exactly right. Um.

0:15:02.040 --> 0:15:05.800
<v Speaker 1>The one point that I would heavily emphasize to legends

0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:09.360
<v Speaker 1>listening is that it's crucial to visit the NFL Player

0:15:09.440 --> 0:15:15.480
<v Speaker 1>portal and your personal profile on NFL player Benefits dot Com.

0:15:15.760 --> 0:15:19.280
<v Speaker 1>NFL player Benefits dot Com is your one stop shop

0:15:19.320 --> 0:15:22.520
<v Speaker 1>for all of your collectively bargained player benefits. It has

0:15:22.560 --> 0:15:27.480
<v Speaker 1>been completely revamped and updated with all the cb A

0:15:27.560 --> 0:15:34.040
<v Speaker 1>benefits information. Your accounts for your various benefit plans, including

0:15:34.040 --> 0:15:37.600
<v Speaker 1>your retirement plans, pension for owe K annuity are being

0:15:37.720 --> 0:15:40.560
<v Speaker 1>updated on a weekly basis so you can see what

0:15:40.640 --> 0:15:44.400
<v Speaker 1>your account balances are. It's also imperative that you have

0:15:44.600 --> 0:15:49.040
<v Speaker 1>a current address and email address on file with the

0:15:49.160 --> 0:15:52.960
<v Speaker 1>NFL Player Benefits Office. You can update your email address

0:15:53.040 --> 0:15:56.920
<v Speaker 1>as well as your mailing address on NFL Player Benefits

0:15:57.240 --> 0:16:00.400
<v Speaker 1>dot Com. But as Belinda mentioned, your LGE ability for

0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:04.400
<v Speaker 1>the benefits is automatically triggered, so you'll receive that communication

0:16:04.560 --> 0:16:07.200
<v Speaker 1>via email and mail. But we do want to make

0:16:07.200 --> 0:16:10.680
<v Speaker 1>sure you have the appropriate address on file to ensure

0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:13.920
<v Speaker 1>that you are receiving that information and interview all can

0:16:13.920 --> 0:16:17.560
<v Speaker 1>answer this question and Tracy what players have in these

0:16:17.600 --> 0:16:21.560
<v Speaker 1>new benefits these great opportunities. A lot of times the

0:16:21.720 --> 0:16:26.120
<v Speaker 1>wives significant others are the ones that end up reaching

0:16:26.200 --> 0:16:30.160
<v Speaker 1>out to get the information. Who are where would you

0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:35.760
<v Speaker 1>recommend a significant others are the spouses reach out to

0:16:35.760 --> 0:16:39.240
<v Speaker 1>to get assistance to take advantage of these benefits. First

0:16:39.240 --> 0:16:45.080
<v Speaker 1>of all, the player legend can actually um give access

0:16:45.280 --> 0:16:49.160
<v Speaker 1>to the portal to their significant other so they can

0:16:49.200 --> 0:16:53.200
<v Speaker 1>assign another user so that they can utilize the portal

0:16:53.320 --> 0:16:58.440
<v Speaker 1>as well, but again same exact people. They should call

0:16:58.640 --> 0:17:01.760
<v Speaker 1>anybody and the Legends can unity. They can call or

0:17:01.880 --> 0:17:05.840
<v Speaker 1>email our office directly. So we know that the wives

0:17:05.880 --> 0:17:08.520
<v Speaker 1>are really the ones who are taking the initiatives on

0:17:08.560 --> 0:17:11.040
<v Speaker 1>some of these things, so we make sure that the

0:17:11.040 --> 0:17:13.959
<v Speaker 1>wives are also invited to all of the events. So

0:17:14.119 --> 0:17:17.199
<v Speaker 1>I would suggest to Legends once we are able to

0:17:17.280 --> 0:17:22.040
<v Speaker 1>host our lunch and learns and our Legends lounges again

0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:25.679
<v Speaker 1>that bring your wife and make sure that she is

0:17:25.840 --> 0:17:28.800
<v Speaker 1>listening in on all of the things that are available,

0:17:28.920 --> 0:17:31.760
<v Speaker 1>because I think in order to activate, it's a lot

0:17:31.800 --> 0:17:36.240
<v Speaker 1>easier to understand when you're talking to someone directly versus

0:17:36.280 --> 0:17:39.080
<v Speaker 1>just looking at it on a piece of paper. Um.

0:17:39.119 --> 0:17:41.480
<v Speaker 1>The clubs are also doing everything they can to be

0:17:41.560 --> 0:17:45.440
<v Speaker 1>inclusive of the significant other in the conversations and talk

0:17:45.520 --> 0:17:48.880
<v Speaker 1>to other wives and give other wives directions because I

0:17:48.960 --> 0:17:53.199
<v Speaker 1>do believe the wives are also our biggest advocates. And

0:17:53.280 --> 0:17:55.920
<v Speaker 1>to Jacob's point, I think the wives are the one

0:17:55.920 --> 0:17:58.679
<v Speaker 1>who will make sure that the information is updated because

0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:01.000
<v Speaker 1>that is the biggest man us I think on the

0:18:01.040 --> 0:18:04.520
<v Speaker 1>part of the Legend is you need to be proactive.

0:18:04.920 --> 0:18:07.560
<v Speaker 1>You need to check your balances. You need to go

0:18:07.760 --> 0:18:12.360
<v Speaker 1>into both the Player Benefits UH portal and the Legends

0:18:12.400 --> 0:18:16.320
<v Speaker 1>portal and make sure your information is updated because it's

0:18:16.440 --> 0:18:19.760
<v Speaker 1>very hard for us to know how and where to

0:18:19.800 --> 0:18:23.640
<v Speaker 1>find you if your information keeps changing. So I would

0:18:23.680 --> 0:18:26.960
<v Speaker 1>suggest number one that you make your wife a significant

0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:32.080
<v Speaker 1>other user on your accounts. You ensure that you bring

0:18:32.240 --> 0:18:36.440
<v Speaker 1>your significant other to the events where we allow partners

0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:40.520
<v Speaker 1>to be there, and that you keep everything updated proactively.

0:18:40.960 --> 0:18:43.920
<v Speaker 1>Here's a good question, will any type of legal advice

0:18:44.040 --> 0:18:47.040
<v Speaker 1>or a lawyer be needed by any legend in order

0:18:47.080 --> 0:18:50.080
<v Speaker 1>to take advantage of all of these benefits? Yeah? That

0:18:50.240 --> 0:18:53.439
<v Speaker 1>that's a great question, one that we received quite often.

0:18:53.760 --> 0:18:57.720
<v Speaker 1>Um the decision, as we say, remains with the legends.

0:18:57.760 --> 0:19:00.200
<v Speaker 1>So if you are more comfortable with a law are

0:19:00.359 --> 0:19:02.520
<v Speaker 1>than great. If you are not, then great. But what

0:19:02.600 --> 0:19:04.879
<v Speaker 1>I would say is that the NFL as well as

0:19:04.920 --> 0:19:09.359
<v Speaker 1>the NFL p A have made significant significant strides in

0:19:09.720 --> 0:19:14.200
<v Speaker 1>simplifying the benefits application process as well as NFL Player

0:19:14.200 --> 0:19:17.520
<v Speaker 1>Benefits dot com. So it's quick and easy to understand

0:19:17.720 --> 0:19:21.320
<v Speaker 1>how to apply for say, disability benefits or how do

0:19:21.400 --> 0:19:23.680
<v Speaker 1>I withdraw my money from the four oh one K

0:19:24.520 --> 0:19:29.119
<v Speaker 1>or annuity program. There are multitude, as Tracy mentioned, resources

0:19:29.160 --> 0:19:32.879
<v Speaker 1>available to help you the Legend navigate this is this

0:19:33.000 --> 0:19:36.920
<v Speaker 1>oftentimes complex landscape. The other thing that I would add

0:19:37.000 --> 0:19:39.800
<v Speaker 1>is you may encounter a time where you have a

0:19:39.920 --> 0:19:43.160
<v Speaker 1>very personal question. Um You may have recently gone through

0:19:43.160 --> 0:19:45.720
<v Speaker 1>a divorce, You may are thinking thinking about going through

0:19:45.760 --> 0:19:50.600
<v Speaker 1>a divorce, which oftentimes does have benefit implications. So don't

0:19:50.640 --> 0:19:53.359
<v Speaker 1>be afraid to to please reach out to myself for

0:19:53.440 --> 0:19:56.680
<v Speaker 1>blenda representative from the Management Council, or the n f

0:19:56.800 --> 0:19:59.600
<v Speaker 1>l p A or even the NFL Player Benefits Office.

0:19:59.640 --> 0:20:03.280
<v Speaker 1>They have more than fifteen case managers on staff. They

0:20:03.359 --> 0:20:06.439
<v Speaker 1>can help you navigate benefits landscape and make sure you

0:20:06.480 --> 0:20:09.280
<v Speaker 1>are taken care of as well as your family and

0:20:09.359 --> 0:20:12.920
<v Speaker 1>well into the future. Guys, this has been so great

0:20:13.600 --> 0:20:16.560
<v Speaker 1>we will make it a two parter. Stay tuned for

0:20:16.640 --> 0:20:28.520
<v Speaker 1>the discussion about Legends benefits. This has been the NFL

0:20:28.640 --> 0:20:33.000
<v Speaker 1>Legends podcast. To provide feedback or request a topic for discussion,

0:20:33.200 --> 0:20:43.520
<v Speaker 1>email us at NFL Legends at NFL dot com. Ye