The claim: Congressional benefits include ‘free health care, outrageous retirement packages, 67 paid holidays, three weeks paid vacation, unlimited paid sick days’
As inflation spikes amid the invasion of Ukraine and the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic, families across the nation are struggling to make ends meet. But some social media users are sharing a claim that members of Congress are more well-off.
“Take a look at the Congressional benefits – free health care, outrageous retirement packages, 67 paid holidays, three weeks paid vacation, unlimited paid sick days; now THAT’S welfare,” reads text in a Facebook post shared over two years ago.
The post has generated over 700 shares since it was published Aug. 15, 2020, and it has recently regained traction on Facebook. Similar posts have spread widely on Facebook and Twitter.
But the claim is off the mark.
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Experts told USA TODAY members of Congress do not receive free health care or 67 paid holidays. Their retirement plans are similar to what other federal employees receive. And members determine when to take vacation or sick days.
USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the claim for comment.
No free health care
Members of Congress do not receive free health care, as the post claims.
Instead, they are eligible to receive employer-sponsored health insurance coverage through DC Health Link, according to Damien Brady, director of research at the National Taxpayers Union, a conservative taxpayer advocacy group. The program was established in Washington under the Affordable Care Act.
Premium plan rates vary depending on an individual’s age, tobacco usage, dependents and where they live, according to a 2017 Congressional Research Service report. The federal government contributes up to “72% of the weighted average” of all premium plans, “not to exceed 75% of any given plan’s premium,” according to the report.
The member is responsible for paying the difference through payroll deductions.
As of 2014, members of Congress were excluded from health coverage under the Federal Employee Health Benefit Program, according to the report. But they can “purchase a FEHB plan upon retirement from the federal government” if they obtain coverage from DC Health Link.
Retirement similar to other federal employees
It is unclear what the post means by “outrageous retirement packages.” However, members of Congress do not get any special retirement benefits.
Members of Congress, like other federal employees, can be covered with a retirement plan of their choice under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees’ Retirement System, according to a 2019 Congressional Research Service report.
Eligibility for both programs is based on “age, the number of years served and other special requirements,” according to benefits.gov.
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Members with at least five years of service, like other federal employees, can also receive pensions financed through “a combination of employee and employer contributions,” the report states. The pension “may not exceed 80% of his or her final salary.”
“The value of the benefit is determined by a formula based on the initial date of election to office, the length of service and the average of the three years of highest salary,” Brady said.
Under the CSRS and FERS retirement systems, members that are 62 years old with five years of service can receive a pension, according to the report. Members who are 50 with 20 years of service or members who have served for 25 years are also eligible for the pension.
Members get 10 paid holidays
Members of Congress do not get 67 paid holidays, as the post claims. They are subject to 10 paid federal holidays, according to the 2022 legislative calendar – the same amount other federal employees…
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