DOL Assistant Secretary Addresses Benefits Professionals

U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor Ann L. Combs addressed members of the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries in Grand Rapids, MI to highlight the Bush Administration's priorities to encourage retirement security and make healthcare more affordable for American workers, retirees and their families.

“Retirement security and the rising cost of health care are on everyone's minds these days,” Combs said. “President Bush's agenda includes proposals to strengthen the private pension system and improve access to affordable, quality healthcare for Americans.”

Combs reviewed the Administration's plans to reform the "single-employer, defined benefit pension system" that currently covers approximately 34 million Americans. The proposed changes will "strengthen the funding rules, improving disclosure to workers, and shoring up the federal insurance system." Combs also said that the President will not sign legislation that is weaker than the current law.

The full proposal can be found at the Labor Department's Web www.dol.gov/ebsa.