SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1624        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 641

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Bruce E. Tarr

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act to strengthen the management of the health care connector.

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PETITION OF:

SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1624        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 641

[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 568 OF 2013-2014.]

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the One Hundred and Eighty-Ninth General Court
(2015-2016)

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An Act to strengthen the management of the health care connector.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1.  Section 2 of chapter 176Q of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking subsection (b) in its entirety and replacing it with the following:-

(b) There shall be a board, with duties and powers established by this chapter, which shall govern the connector. The connector board shall consist of 13 members: the secretary for administration and finance, or a designee, who shall serve as chairperson; the director of Medicaid or a designee; the commissioner of insurance or a designee; the executive director of the group insurance commission; 6 members appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries, 1 of whom shall be a health economist, 1 of whom shall represent the interests of small businesses, 2 of whom shall be from organizations representing employers, and 1 of whom shall be a member of the Massachusetts chapter of the National Association of Health Underwriters; and 3 members appointed by the attorney general, 1 of whom shall be an employee health benefits plan specialist, 1 of whom shall be a representative of a health consumer organization and 1 of whom shall be a representative of organized labor. No appointee shall be an employee of any licensed carrier authorized to do business in the commonwealth. All appointments shall serve a term of 3 years, but a person appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve only for the unexpired term. An appointed member of the board shall be eligible for reappointment. The board shall annually elect 1 of its members to serve as vice-chairperson.

SECTION 2. Said chapter 176Q, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after section 18 the following two new sections:-

176Q:19 Health Connector Transparency

Section 19. The connector shall be subject to the open meeting law as established under G.L.c. 30A, §§18-25 and subject to public records request as established under G.L.c. 66. A public record for purposes of this section shall include but not be limited to board votes, meeting minutes, financial records, contract, and staff salaries. This information shall also be made publicly available on the website of the connector. 

176Q:20 Return on Investment

Section 20. The secretary of administration and finance shall on an annual basis review and evaluate the return on investments made by the connector. Said review and evaluation along with any recommendations shall be filed with the clerks of the house and senate, the house and senate committee on ways, and joint committee on health care financing no later than December 31 annually.