By Gregory B. Hladky
Hartford Courant
HARTFORD — Cities and towns could decide to enroll their employees in the state health insurance program under legislation that won final approval in the House late Wednesday.
The bill passed, 82-61 on a party line vote, with Democrats overriding Republican objections to the bill.
Democratic supporters of the plan argued that opening up the state health pool to voluntary municipal participation could save local taxpayers millions of dollars compared to what they are now paying for their employees’ health insurance.
State unions strongly supported the proposal. Republicans, however, questioned whether the projected savings for municipalities would actually be achieved, and warned that the plan could end up costing taxpayers a lot of money if lots of local workers with serious health problems were enrolled in the plan.
Another concern voiced by GOP lawmakers is that it might be difficult, if not impossible, for a city or town to withdraw from the state plan once it had joined.
The legislation to allow municipalities to join the state health pool was approved by the Senate last week despite solid Republican opposition. House approval now sends the bill to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for his signature.
The debate over the state health care pool took a sharp detour Wednesday night when Republican legislators offered an amendment to seek $253 million in savings from state labor unions to help solve Connecticut’s budget crisis. GOP legislators said state unions promised to achieve those savings as part of a budget deal with Gov. Dannel Malloy’s administration two years ago.
“Those promised savings were not realized,” said Deputy House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora of North Branford.
Rep. Christopher Davis, R-Ellington, said the message to state employee unions is, “Please live up to the bargain you agreed to.”
Members of the Democratic majority in the House argued that asking state employees for more sacrifices to solve this latest budget crisis was unfair. Democrats defeated the amendment on an 81-61 party-line vote.
Rep. Robert Sampson, R-Wolcott, told the House that he fears the legislation’s provision that would allow a municipality to leave the state pool after three years is not realistic.
“In practice, that may not happen,” Sampson said. He said town officials, if they wanted to leave the state pool, would have to have the unlikely agreement of local unions.
Republicans also pointed out that both the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and the Council of Small Towns are opposed to the bill.
“We are not forcing it down their throats,” said Rep. Peter Tercyak, D-New Britain, co-chairman of the legislature’s labor and public employees committee. He said participation by cities and towns would be voluntary.
Tercyak quoted estimates provided by the state’s largest teachers’ union that Stamford might save as much as $7 million a year in insurance costs by joining the state health pool. East Haven’s savings could top $500,000 a year, and the town of Plymouth could save as much as $326,000 annually.
“Nobody is forced to save,” said Tercyak. “If they decide they want to do it, they can do it.”
Rep. Richard Smith, R-New Fairfield, warned that those union-provided numbers “could be a ruse.”
The bill would require that the coalition of state employee unions that negotiates health insurance issues with the state approve the admission of local workers into the state pool. The approval of the state comptroller would also be required for a municipality to add its employees to the pool.
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