Approximately 270,000 civil servants work in the Washington area, and their pay and benefit packages help underpin the region's economy. Clinton's budget would boost the pay of the government's civilian and military personnel by 4.4 percent in 2000. But pressure already has started building to put more money into federal salaries, suggesting that the size of the pay raise federal employees receive next January will not be known until after a series of White House, congressional and union negotiations later this year. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, both Maryland Democrats, have introduced legislation similar to the administration's long-term care proposal. Employees would pay all their premiums, which the budget projected to be 10 percent to 15 percent lower than individual rates.
Premiums depend on the employee's age.
At the moment, officials said, coverage would be offered to employees, retirees, their spouses, parents and in-laws. The proposed benefit would cover expenses for nursing home, elder care and in-home assistance, the officials said. Enrollees would be eligible when they could not perform two of six daily activities, such as bathing and dressing, stipulated in existing health care laws.