Under the direction of Lt. Governor Kerry Healey, the Administration is working closely with the Mass. Municipal Association (MMA) to devise changes to Chapter 32B that would shift a larger degree of insurance costs onto retirees and active employees. Through increased local pressure, they hope to gain the support of Legislative Leaders as well.

Rising health care costs, combined with lean budgets, have resulted in increased scrutiny of local insurance plans. After several years of cuts in state aid, most communities will see little to no increase in aid for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Central among the changes being pushed by the MMA, is a proposal to remove negotiations regarding health insurance from the collective bargaining process for active employees. A second option is to allow each individual bargaining unit to negotiate insurance benefits separately from the other units.

Under current law, all active employees must be offered the same set of benefits at the same contribution rate. Retirees, while not a collective bargaining unit, must also be treated equally and offered the same benefits at the same prices as other retirees within the group.

"What the governor is proposing is outrageous. It goes against everything we have done for the past twenty-five years," said Michael Donoghue, chairman of the Worcester Regional Retirement System. "Our retirees are already paying a lot for their insurance. All this proposal does is shift costs over to people who can ill afford to pay."

While a similar draft proposal had earlier been submitted in the Senate, Legislative Leaders in both branches have yet to endorse any reform initiative. Additionally, at press time, no proposal had been filed by the Romney Administration.

"So far, we have not seen much more than a lot of talk. But this is something that we have to keep a watchful eye on," says Association Legislative Liaison Shawn Duhamel.

"The MMA is under a lot of pressure to help their members save money at the local level. As a result, health insurance is an easy target."