‘We Are Being Left Behind': Retired Hollywood Actors Protest Changes to SAG-AFTRA Health Plan
David Lander had been a member of SAG-AFTRA long before he got his big break as Squiggy on the classic 1970s sitcom “Laverne & Shirley.” But now, he and thousands of retired members of Hollywood’s actors guild are about to be thrown off of their health plan due to drastic changes being made to cut costs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. And that’s especially bad for Lander considering that he has spent the past 36 years grappling with multiple sclerosis. “People need to know how serious this is,” he told TheWrap. The health plan “has kept me alive, and I never thought it would disappear.” Lander and his wife, Kathy, are two of a dozen retired SAG-AFTRA members who told TheWrap that the sudden changes to the guild health plan — announced last week after the union’s health plan trustees reported a $141 million deficit for the year — have thrown them into a state of deep uncertainty that they may no longer be able to afford necessary treatment. Most asked to remain anonymous to protect sensitive health information. But the retirees interviewed have been diagnosed with a wide range of serious medical conditions, from cancer to debilitating...
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