I like the direction of things! So, Blue Cross Blue Shield is not included in the state's employee health care plan, the Group Insurance Commission. Too expensive, and GIC chief Dolores Mitchell says tough luck, no Blue.
Well well well, now that the state is actively encouraging more municipal unions to get their health care through the GIC — saving big bucks in the process — guess who's singing Baby Come Back?
At least eight municipal health plans have signed on to the state plan, known as the Group Insurance Commission, or GIC, ahead of a Monday deadline for 2008 enrollment. Blue Cross is fighting back with a publicity offensive that asserts its plans for municipalities can save them as much money as the GIC.
The stakes are high because rising health insurance costs for public employees at the local level are stretching already-tight budgets, and municipal officials are considering all options for controlling spending. The GIC, which covers about 280,000 state employees and dependents, usually keeps its annual premium increases beneath the double-digit range that has been the norm for Massachusetts health insurers over the past seven years.
See, competition works! And why not have the government compete?
Now, let's keep that in mind in 2009, when a Democratic president proposes buy-in to Medicare as a public alternative to private insurance. Fetishizing the “private sector” and keeping the government out of certain functions actually diminishes competition. I don't care where I get my health care, as long as I get it, and it's decent. If it's the government that provides, pays for, or negotiates for it, fine.
Now I have that song in my head. Thanks a lot! ;P
One problem here is the fact that the GIC, at least as it’s been explained to me, typically has higher deductibles than other insurances. So, yes, the GIC may on face value be cheaper – for towns and teachers – but only if they remain healthy, which is sadly impossible given the human condition (mortality). The only way I see it feasible to expect unions to come along on this – or to force them to do it, as I’d like – is to create a low or no deductible system. It’s not fair to ask teachers to pay thousands of dollars extra if they get sick, when they can probably least afford it. That’s why the Swamspcott teachers avoided joining the GIC, btw. And, despite the fact that we’re seeing economic troubles just south of the magnitude of Saugus (and I say that knowing we just closed one elementary school this year – and know that the School Committee will almost certainly try to close a 2nd next year), I think it’s important that all teachers have really good health care.
And the co-pays are absurdly low. Two pregnancies, 10 or 12 checkups along the way, C-section surgery for the latter, normal labor plus hospital stay for the former. Total co-pay: $10.
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Granted that was the Caddilac plan, and was expensive, but setting co-pays at that level probably costs more money than having no co-pay at all.
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GIC probably has the right idea. The Swampscott teachers at some point are going to have to swallow a pay raise that doesn’t cover the increase in premium, making their paychecks lighter on payday.
…I have not examined their various offerings (they have several) in detail so I have no idea what typically has higher deductibles than other insurances refers to. We have a “fee for service” service with GIC, and GIC has had virtually no deductibles and minimal co-payments, generally US$10 (no typo–not million or billion) per visit. Moreover, our GIC policy does very well with paying for pharmaceuticals.
You live in Germany. I think things could be a teeny, tiny bit different.
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The fact of the matter is I trust my source, who’s done lots of research on this, and it just isn’t the complete no brainer that it’s been made out to be. It would be nice to ask all the teachers across Massachusetts to sacrifice yet again, but to be honest they do it on a day-to-day basis. I’m not prepared to do that.
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What’s an even more important fact is that the GIC isn’t a cure, it’s a very weak bandaid approach. It’s still worth persuing that approach, but I think too many people (including me, at most points), have just assumed that the GIC is a no brainer for teachers and towns when it isn’t. If there are hidden costs to GICs that put sick people at risk, it’s not an acceptable switch. Address those points – let’s make sure that teachers are taken care of – before we throw them under the bus thinking we’re doing them some kind of favor. Or, better yet, let’s switch to a national health care system – which could pay some real dividends and be a real solution for cities and towns not only across the Commonwealth, but the entire country.
…we have a 2d home in Germany, and that our primary residence is in Wellesley MA.
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I am not exactly sure what the point is that you are trying to make, but if you believe that you have nothing to learn from the experiences of people who have dealt with other countries’ health care systems, you are sadly mistaken.
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As I have described here elsewhere just yesterday, Americans are getting screwed merely on the costs of tests that are performed (5 to 1 on my spouse’s INR tests, conducted in Germany just a few weeks ago vs. Lahey a few months ago). Moreover, in 2000, my spouse spent a week in the hospital in Muenchen-Pasing for a DVT–they ran dozens of tests and the entire bill came to something on the order of US$5k, and GIC was happy to pay the full amount. And, since we were “private pay,” the hospital could have charged whatever it wanted.
I think there are lots of lessons to learn from that country in health care – and, perhaps, they have a system that would be most readily brought to America. Clinton’s proposal actually reminded me a little of Germany’s, with both public and private options.
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Finally, I’m not saying GIC is bad. I’m glad you’ve had such great experiences with it. However, I’m just saying that I’ve heard reputable people say there’s more to consider than meets the eye. If we want teachers across the state to join the GIC program, we’re going to need to make sure that it’s a fair deal for them, too. Right now, I’m hearing questions about that which deserve to be answered.
option that Hillary Clinton proposed (Edwards also did) but also how she framed it as you do, allow for “competition” between the private and the public.
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I’d like to know why I, as a small business owner, can’t buy into this public plan. Why wasn’t this an option with the Connector?
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Don’t know for sure. Talk to Jon Hurst.
so it’s the only practical option for western Mass. municipalities. Also for out-of-state-retirees.
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(And we can’t even get all types of BC/BS plans, as our local hospitals won’t accept some types of coverage, last time I checked.)
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Berkshire County has a higher average age than other parts of Massachusetts (I think the demographers call it “aging in place,” although I would prefer to think of it as “aging gracefully in place). Our population is also too sparse to be profitable for some plans.
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If GIC can’t offer equal services across the state, this points out another flaw in this stop-gap attempt to use private insurance companies to cover health care needs for the population at large.
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Western Mass. is tired of having companies come and sign up employees only to abandon subscribers within a year or two. Everyone scrambles, some are stigmatized as having “pre-existing conditions,” it’s another source of anxiety for people who depend on continuous coverage.
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Fuggedaboutit.
I work for the state in western MA and am covered by a GIC plan. There are a number of options, depending on what you need and/or want for coverage, including an indemnity option that costs more but allows you to access health care anywhere you want or happen to be, including in places that have real hospitals were you might actually want to be treated. Over time the choices for western MA have increased.
including an indemnity option that costs more but allows you to access health care anywhere you want or happen to be
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…even in foreign countries. In 2000, GIC paid every cent of the bills we submitted for reimbursement for my spouse’s week-long stay at a hospital in Munich.
As someone has stated—for a few dollars more your GIC is good in Denmark or S. Africa.
What does sparse have to do with it?
toward health insurance as a scam is complete! Required government subsidy of a RICO corrupt organization!
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http://www.zwire.com…
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As the Apocalypse approaches your access to health care will diminish. Right now every claim, line item by line item will be 50% denied based upon God knows what. The minimum half hour phone calls to an obscenely offensive health care “associate” might eventually get some of your medical claims paid.
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In a dying empire everything dies. Why should health care be the exception.
This is no surprise but it’s good to see at least someone in the press is trying to call attention to it.
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BMG readers might be interested in the Massachusetts “non for profit” Harvard Pilgram Health Care (HPHC) HMO’s press release about its 2004 merger with UnitedHealth HMO.
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The press release gives the very clear impression that the taxpayer-subsidized “not for profit charitable institution” status of HPHC is not appropriate. If anyone understands this business relationship of HPHC and UnitedHealth (I’m a nurse not a lawyer) and if it calls into question HPHC’s not for profit status, could you please speak to it here?
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“Newsroom: Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and UnitedHealth Group form strategic business and marketing alliance:
Minneapolis, Minnesota (August 6, 2004) – UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care (Harvard Pilgrim) announced today that they have agreed to form a strategic business and marketing alliance…”
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On a related note: Why isn’t our local media doing more to dig into some of these serious concerns about MA “not for profit” health insurance corporations? Concerns include their legal status as 501c3 charitable institutions and their inappropriate direct role in creating state health policy that includes a “landmark” legal mandate to purchase their insurance products sold at a profit!! Much of the media, instead of doing investigative journalism and shining some light on these realities, are playing a leading role in “controlling the message of health reform” (btw, “controlling the message of health reform” was the theme of last year’s Blue Cross Blue Shield forum at the JFK Library that I attended…) Where’s the outrage???
Some folks just aren’t signing up for state mandated/sunsidzed healthcare.
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Some folks want it free—-now that is a shocker.
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Illegal aliens are suspicious of the government. Illegal aliens are not entitled to anything. Well perhaps their Miranda warning.
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http://www.boston.co…