Monday, January 05, 2009 State
Watch
Enrollment Increases by 73% in Massachusetts
Premium-Assistance Program for Laid-Off Workers
Enrollment in a Massachusetts program
designed to help unemployed state residents pay health insurance premiums
has increased by 73% in the past year, the Boston Globe reports. The state Medical Security Program, which is funded by a tax on
employers, pays 80% of a laid-off worker's monthly insurance premium for
up to 46 weeks. For people who cannot afford to retain their coverage,
even with the assistance money, the program offers full basic coverage and
charges a copayment of about $15 per doctor visit. To be eligible for the
program, an individual's family income for the six months prior to being
unemployed plus projected income for the next six months must not exceed
400% of the federal poverty level.
About 13,000 unemployed state
residents were enrolled in the program at the end of November 2008 -- up
from 7,710 in 2007 -- and officials say the number continues to rise
rapidly. MSP Director Wendy Hamlett said, "The calls are increasing even
as we speak," adding, "We are receiving 200 daily applications, on
average. Five months ago, we were getting about 75 to 100 applications a
day." According to the Globe, "That has raised concerns about
the program's solvency, especially after Gov. Deval Patrick (D)" allocated
$35 million from the MSP reserves earlier this year to fill funding gaps
in the state coverage system established by Massachusetts' health
insurance law. However, the $71.8 million remaining in the MSP reserves at
the end of November 2008 should be enough to allow the program to continue
another year, Hamlett said.
The program is unique to
Massachusetts. Health benefits under the program end when unemployment
benefits are exhausted, but the federal government twice this year has
extended the time limits for collecting unemployment. The
Globe reports that other state-sponsored health insurance
programs, such as Commonwealth Care, have not experienced such large
increases in applications (Lazar, Boston Globe, 12/28/08).