With Massachusetts’ sweeping healthcare reform now law, the country is closely watching whether the infrastructure built to administer the law will succeed in providing health insurance to the 550,000 uninsured residents, reports The Boston Globe. The Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector—also known as “the connector”—is responsible for approving the new low-cost insurance plans and making them available to individuals and small businesses by April 2007. Initially funded with $25 million, the agency will eventually generate operating revenue from surcharges on the insurance policies it sells. Starting in October, the connector will also make subsidized plans available to the poor. Individuals who earn less than $9,800 will pay no premiums or deductibles for healthcare coverage, and those who earn up to $28,000 will be offered plans with no deductibles and premiums based on a sliding scale. What the agency’s 11-member board has yet to work out is one of the most challenging questions of the new legislation: What is a fair price to require individuals earning more $28,000 to pay for mandatory health insurance? Click here to read the Boston Globe story.
