Mass. House advances $240 million bill for state employee health insurance
The Massachusetts House on Monday advanced a $240 million bill to rescue the budget of the agency that administers health insurance for state employees and retirees.
The bill now goes to the Senate, which Senate President Karen Spilka said will take up the matter on Thursday.
The Group Insurance Commission, which oversees health insurance for 460,000 public employees, retirees, and their dependents, is on track to run out of money to pay claims this week, seven weeks before the end of the fiscal year.
On Friday, the Globe reported that insurers who administer plans for the GIC had begun notifying healthcare providers that they would have to pause payment until the Legislature authorized more funds for the program.
In early April, Governor Maura Healey included $240 million for the GIC in a supplemental budget proposal that aimed to account for spending needs through the end of the fiscal year June 30. But the measure had stalled amid a crush of other spending bills on Beacon Hill.
The matter came as no surprise to policymakers or the healthcare industry. As early as December, the GIC announced that it had been over budget every month of the fiscal year. In February, the GIC then publicly stated it was spending approximately $20 million monthly above budgeted amounts.
The agency has struggled in particular with surging prescriptions for pricey weight loss drugs, while demands for reimbursement increases from providers have also exacerbated spending. Those challenges have pushed premiums higher for GIC members, up between 10.5 percent and 17.1 percent for next year, depending on the plan.
They also mean the GIC has spent through its budget for this fiscal year faster than anticipated.
On Monday, the same day the agency was projected to run out of money, the House Ways and Means Committee advanced a bill that was limited to the GIC funding. It was swiftly approved in informal sessions.
The Senate had already adjourned for the day, but a spokesperson for Spilka said the body will address the measure when it resumes informal sessions on Thursday.
“Providing health insurance for the people who serve our Commonwealth is one of our most important responsibilities,” Spilka spokespersonGray Milkowski said. “We are glad that the House decided to take action on this bill, which was filed five weeks ago on April 2. The Senate looks forward to taking up the legislation in three days, at our next session on Thursday.”
Material from previous Globe coverage was used in this report.
link
