After a day of waiting, the Senate adopted their version of the municipal health reform. They address our concerns of quality healthcare plans, with protections for the sickest and retirees. The plan will now be sent to conference committee with members of the House and Senate for its final version.

With the help of the Mass Retirees Association, which is a member of our Coalition, we have compiled the following summary of the plan passed by the Senate.

Key components passed within the Senate version of the budget include:
•    Plan design provision and expedited 30-day bargaining process with PEC is a local option: City council/mayor; board of selectmen or town council. Must reapprove each time provision is approved.
•    No GIC plan benchmark or mandate.
•    Prohibits the GIC from making mid-year changes to plan design, unless in the case of a fiscal emergency in which governor exercises 9C powers.
•    Municipal managers can only unilaterally increase copayments and deductibles up-to the level of the GIC – cannot exceed – if impasse is reached. Municipal managers cannot unilaterally alter other plan design features, such as insurance carriers, networks or limit providers.
•    Transfer into the GIC by a majority vote of the PEC or unilaterally by municipal managers who demonstrate that at least 10% savings will be generated beyond that achievable through plan design changes within local insurance plans.
•    Allows the creation of health reimbursement accounts (HRA) and other mitigation efforts, including Medicare Part B reimbursement, to limit the impact of higher out-of-pocket costs on retirees and employees with chronic medical conditions.
•    Mandates Medicare eligible retirees to enroll in Medicare Part B, but protects those with a spouse and dependent child on a family plan from mandatory enrollment and requires comparable coverage upon transfer.
•    Creates 3-member review panel to bring closure to impasse. Panel has authority to review and revise municipal savings estimates, then set aside up to 1/3 of savings for mitigation of increased costs on retirees and employees. Savings must be used for health care purposes only.
•    Protects the premium splits of retirees in communities that accept local option by mandating that retiree insurance contribution levels cannot exceed the average paid by active employees.
•    Leaves intact traditional collective bargaining under section 150E or coalition bargaining through Section 19 (with a new simple majority vote) if the municipality chooses.