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Ohio’s five public retirement systems have collective unfunded health care benefit liabilities of roughly $30.5 billion, according to their latest Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports. Only 33.7 cents exist for every dollar in liabilities. Compared against these numbers, Ohio’s pension systems look relatively strong, with a 67 percent funded ratio.

In all fairness, Ohio is one of the better states at saving for public retiree health benefits. But with over $30 billion in unfunded liabilities, this is still something we should be concerned about.

Discussion over how to mitigate the impending health care crisis is just beginning. Proposed solutions have ranged from decreasing benefit payments, increasing the eligibility age, greater employee contributions and tax increases. A key sticking point going forward will be legal challenges to cuts in current employee benefits. As seen in California, cutting supposedly non-guaranteed benefits can prove challenging in the current legal envirnment. In the end, it may be down to the taxpayer to bail out the system.

The key take away is that the public employee retirement crisis is not a pension issue alone. In Ohio, total pension and health care benefit unfunded liabilities total over $100 billion. The $6,200 weight on the backs of taxpayers grows to over $8,600 when health benefits are included.