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House Adopts Group Purchasing Amendment by a Near Unanimous Vote, 151-1!

We’re almost there…

Building upon our recent success in the Senate, detailed below, RAM and our allies scored another big victory on Thursday, July 22nd, in the House, as the House voted 151-1 in favor of an amendment to the House health cost containment bill that added in the broader group purchasing language contained in our bill, H.3452. All RAM members are encouraged to contact your Representative today and thank them for their support of this important issue!

But we can’t stop there, as the differences in the House and Senate bills now must be reconciled by a Joint Committee of Conference, which was recently appointed. Conferees in the House are:

Rep. Ronald Mariano (D-Quincy) – Rep.RonaldMariano@Hou.State.MA.US - (617) 722-2300
Rep. Steven Walsh (D-Lynn) - Rep.StevenWalsh@Hou.State.MA.US – (617) 722-2140
Rep. F. Jay Barrows (R-Mansfield) - Rep.FJayBarrows@Hou.State.MA.US – (617) 722-2488

And Senate conferees are:

Sen. Mark Montigny (D-New Bedford) - Mark.Montigny@state.ma.us – (617)722-1440
Sen. Harriette Chandler (D-Worcester) - Harriette.Chandler@state.ma.us – (617)722-1544
Sen. Michael Knapik (R-Westfield) - Michael.Knapik@state.ma.us – (617) 722-1415

Contact the members of the Conference Committee today and ask them to make sure that the final bill includes language to allow for small employer group purchasing!

And once again, THANK YOU to our lead sponsor in the House, Rep. Steven Walsh of Lynn, and the over forty other House amendment sponsors:

Representative Steven M. Walsh of Lynn, Representative Murphy of Weymouth, Representative Peake of Provincetown, Representative Pignatelli of Lenox, Representative Provost of Somerville, Representative DiNatle of Fitchburg, Representative Linsky of Natick, Representative Rice of Gardner, Representative Ashe of Longmeadow, Representative Atsalis of Barnstable, Representative Galvin of Canton, Representative Madden of Nantucket, Representative Gobi of Spencer, Representative Dwyer of Woburn, Representative McMurtry of Dedham, Representative Benson of Lunenburg, Representative Lewis of Winchester, Representative Conroy of Wayland, Representative Kaufman of Lexington, Representative Torrisi of North Andover, Representative Canavan of Brockton, Representative Richardson of Framingham, Representative Fernandes of Milford, Representative Straus of Mattapoisett, Representative Fennell of Lynn, Representative Atkins of Concord, Representative Kafka of Sharon, Representative Donato of Medford, Representative Brady of Brockton, Representative Cantwell of Marshfield, Representative McCarthy of East Bridgewater, Representative Kocot of North Hampton, Representative Walz of Boston, Representative Clarke of Melrose, Representative Rogers of Norwood, Rep. Peisch of Wellesley, Rep. Martin Walsh of Boston, Rep. Micehlwitz of Boston, Rep. Donelan of Orange, Rep. Ayers of Quincy, Rep. Khan of Newton, Rep. Falzone of Saugus and Rep. Stanley of Waltham.

THANK YOU ALL!

House votes in support of small business health insurance reform -- group buying

Great Big THANK YOU to the Members of the MA State Senate!!
Small Biz Health Insurance Group Buying Unanimously Adopted

On May 18th, after years of fighting against the big health insurance companies and on behalf of our small business members, RAM and small employers statewide scored a significant legislative victory with the unanimous passage of small business group buying provisions in the state Senate’s health care cost control legislation.

As you know, RAM has long led the effort in support of legislation to allow small employers of 50 and fewer employees the opportunity to group together to purchase health insurance - a practice strictly prohibited under current law. The Senate provisions call for the creation of 4 group purchasing cooperatives, established via existing qualified associations (like RAM), to offer health insurance coverage to up to 60,000 lives. The cooperatives will operate under the supervision of the Division of Insurance and will facilitate small employers’ access to important health maintenance tools and wellness programs.

And while the unanimous victory in the Senate is significant, our work is far from done, as the debate now moves to the House of Representatives, where RAM members’ voices in support will again need to be heard loud and clear. But before we move on to the House, we must again offer our sincerest appreciation and thanks to all of the members of the Senate, with special thanks to our amendment sponsors and co-sponsors:

Steven Baddour
Stephen Buoniconti
Gale Candaras
Benjamin Downing
Jennifer Flanagan
Jack Hart
Brian Joyce
Thomas Kennedy
Michael Morrissey
Robert O'Leary
Anthony Petruccelli
Bruce Tarr
James Timilty
Susan Tucker

THANK YOU ALL!

Our group buying legislation has been redrafted and renumbered.
The new bill numbers are S.2354 and H.4605.

April 13, 2010 UPDATE

Small Business Health Insurance Group Purchasing Reform Bills
Moved Favorably Out of Committee

March 22, 2010

We continue to make real progress in our efforts to pass legislation (H.3452/S.446) relative to small business health insurance reform, as more legislators sign on in support of the cause each day.

We are very pleased to report that just last week, H.3452 and S.446 (as amended) were moved FAVORABLY out of the Joint Committee on Financial Services!

Our lobbying team has been walking the halls of the State House, meeting with state senators and state representatives, telling your stories and advocating on your behalf. Most legislators continue to be very receptive to the concept of allowing small businesses to group together to purchase health insurance, and we must keep the effort going. We have not met with all 200 legislators yet, but that is our goal…and we need your voice!

The senators and representatives listed below have signed on in support of our effort, many as cosponsors of the legislation, and they deserve your support and appreciation.

If your legislators are listed below, contact them today and thank them. If they are not listed, contact them today and urge them to support H.3452 / S.446, Relative to Small Business Health Insurance!

Click here to email your legislators today!

In support of H.3452/S.446:

State Senators:
Baddour, Steven A.
Brewer, Stephen M.
Buoniconti, Stephen J.
Donnelly, Kenneth J.
Downing, Benjamin B.
Eldridge, James B.
Fargo, Susan C.
Flanagan, Jennifer L.
Hart, Jack
Joyce, Brian A.
Kennedy, Thomas P.
McGee, Thomas M.
Moore, Michael O.
Morrissey, Michael W.
O'Leary, Robert A.
Petruccelli, Anthony
Tarr, Bruce E.
Timilty, James E.
Tucker, Susan C.

State Representatives:
Arciero, James
Atkins, Cory
Atsalis, Demetrius J.
Bradley, Garrett J.
Clark, Katherine
DiNatale, Stephen
Donato, Paul J.
Dwyer, James
Dykema, Carolyn
Fennell, Robert F.
Garballey, Sean
Gobi, Anne M.
Hargraves, Robert S.
Hogan, Kate
Kane, Michael F.
Kaufman, Jay R.
Kulik, Stephen
Linsky, David P.
L'Italien, Barbara A.
Murphy, James M.
Peake, Sarah K.
Peisch, Alice H.
Provost, Denise
Rice, Robert L, Jr.
Richardson, Pam
Rodrigues, Michael J.
Rush, Michael F.
Sandlin, Rosemary
Smith, Stephen Stat
Smizik, Frank I.
Speliotis, Theodore C.
Story, Ellen
Straus, William M.
Torrisi, David M.
Turner, Cleon H.
Walsh, Steven M.
Welch, James T.

RAM Shines Light on Small Biz Health Insurance Costs

Governor Patrick Agrees Something Must Be Done

Contact your legislators today and ask them to support H.3452.

Health insurance and health care costs today remain the number one concern for Massachusetts employers and, for years now, RAM has been the lead voice of the small business community on this issue.

RAM members, small businesses and their employees had looked to the MA health care reform experiment not to limit but to increase their options both on choice and affordability of product. Unfortunately, the opposite has occurred, and the cost of health insurance and health care remains a major barrier to economic growth in the Commonwealth as RAM member employers struggle on a daily basis to continue to afford to provide coverage to their employees.

While most have focused recently on the overall health care system cost increases, RAM has consistently stated that more attention should be paid to the equally important issue of premium disparities across purchaser size and type. Small employers are looking at prices of a family HMO plan this year in excess of $24,000. Large employers, both big business and big government, have not seen the years of double digit premium increases that small employers have. As a result, small companies are faced with an unfair and unlevel playing field when compared with their large competitors.

For these reasons, RAM has continued to push to the forefront the issue of small business health insurance reform, focusing on the short term solutions needed to address small businesses immediate need for premium cost relief. RAM has this year called on Governor Deval Patrick and his administration to reject small group rate filings and to allow for small business group purchasing alternatives, an issue long pushed for legislatively via H.3452, An Act Relative to Small Business Health Insurance.

Recently, we have been successful in pushing the issue directly in front of the Governor. On a conference call in late July, RAM staff and four RAM members spent an hour on the phone with Governor Patrick and key Administration officials, discussing health insurance premiums for small businesses and their employees. Responding directly to concerns raised on the call, the Governor directed members of his cabinet to investigate potential solutions to escalating premiums. In October, the Governor joined us at RAM member P.V. Sullivan Supply Company in Quincy to announce a plan to address these issues, including immediate hearings to examine small business premium increases and informational sessions around group buying.

“Skyrocketing premium increases put a stranglehold on small business growth and place a heavy burden on employers and employees alike,” said Governor Patrick. “With this series of recommendations, we are tackling these challenges head on and implementing reforms that will curb costs, maintain affordable care and strengthen the business climate in the Commonwealth.”

The Administration also intends to file legislation amending small-group rating rules and giving the Division of Insurance (DOI) expanded authority to review rate filings. The hearing process is ongoing and RAM is an active participant.

However, we remain focused on legislation (H.3452) to return to Massachusetts small businesses the ability to group buy and negotiate with the insurers in order to get better rates and we need all members help in this effort.

Contact your legislators today and ask them to support H.3452.

Additional Information & Links to News Articles

H. 3452 Fact Sheet

New Law Provides Help for Massachusetts Retailers (the Independent Retailer, 8-10-10)

New law means relief for small business (WBUR Blog, by Jon Hurst, 8-9-2010)

Small businesses applaud new health care measure (Boston Globe, 8-3-2010)

Help small businesses Health insurance costs are killing Cape businesses (Cape Cod Times, 7-28-10)

House moves to contain Mass health-care costs (Lowell Sun, 7-23-10)

The biggest issue for small business, op-ed by Scott Lehigh (Globe, 6-23-10)

Small Business owners lament premium hikes (MetroWest Daily News, 5-16-2010)

Our view: Health insurance: Group buys could benefit small businesses (Salem News, 5-6-2010)

Allow small businesses to buy insurance in bulk (Lowell Sun, 4-10-2010)

Miscast as victims (Berkshire Eagle, 4-7-2007)

Mass. rejects proposed health care premiums hikes (Globe, 4-1-2010)