Massachusetts Health Insurance Stick To Get Bigger
Some proponents of Massachusetts’ efforts to ensure all residents have health insurance have long complained that some people will ignore the state’s requests to get covered because the “stick” is too small. In 2007, those who could afford insurance, but opted to forgo it payed a $219 fine. Some may have decided that this penalty was less burdensome than the annual cost of health insurance, which could reach $4,600 for a 60-year-old Boston resident.
Now public officials are tweaking the plan to make the stick much bigger. According to the Boston Globe: “Penalties for Massachusetts residents who can afford health insurance but do not purchase it in 2008 could quadruple compared with the maximum penalty in 2007, according to draft regulations released by the Department of Revenue yesterday.
The maximum penalty for those who flout the law and do not buy health insurance would be $912 a year, compared to $219 in 2007.”
Massachusetts’ efforts are being closely watched as presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and John Edwards are proposed similar national plans that would require all citizens to sign up for insurance.
What’s most clear from this effort is that individuals are being asked to manage their health dollars in ways that were unimaginable to many in the early 1990s. As more residents become insured and must pay for their care, look for efforts to provide them with information about healthcare cost and quality to accelerate.
