CONCORD – The New Hampshire Senate yesterday gave teachers nearing retirement an extra year to qualify for a medical benefit.

The Senate approved HB 1643, which extends for one year the time by which they must retire if they want to receive a health insurance subsidy payment through the New Hampshire Retirement System.

The bill applies to teachers and some municipal employees who would qualify for the subsidy this July 1, with 20 years of service. It is part of an overall retirement reform package now being worked on in the Senate.

The bill is meant to prevent large numbers of teachers from retiring this year just to qualify for the benefit, which would have expired July 1. The bill pushes their retirement deadline back to July 1, 2009.

Sen. Peter Burling, D-Cornish, said "The alternative to passing HB 1643 is to force the best teachers to quit early to be sure they can receive this retirement benefit," Burling said.

Sen. Michael Downing, R-Salem, who co-sponsored the bill, said the bill will not affect the fiscal health of the medical subsidy account because the deadline change doesn't increase the number of workers who can collect the monthly payment.

Burling said, the bill "represents a very careful analysis of the risks of triggering a so-called rush to retirement' in our schools. This bill has arrived at a balance that will help our children and our classrooms without triggering an unreasonable cost to school districts or the state."

Earlier versions of the bill would have given qualified workers three extra years to retire in order to collect the subsidy.