The next Connector Board meeting is tomorrow (Friday) from 2:00 – 4:00 pm in the 21st floor conference room of One Ashburton Place, Boston. Although an agenda has not been released, we expect the Board to vote on revised Minimum Creditable Coverage (MCC) regulations and discuss Commonwealth Care. When materials are posted, they can be found here.

(UPDATE: agenda items include MCC vote, and updates on the Commonwealth Choice plans for small business and Commonwealth Care)

Heading up to the meeting, people on both sides of the MCC issue are weighing in. Jon Hurst from the Retailers Association of America argues on the Commonhealth blog today that the changes being considered will raise costs for small employers and businesses. (It’s important to note that one of the “changes” that Hurst mentions, required prescription drug coverage, is not a change to the regulations, but instead the phasing in of a requirement that has been in the regulations since May of 2007). On the other side of the issue, a Globe op-ed by John Seffrin and Donald Gudaitis from the American Cancer Society argues that allowing lifesaving treatments such as radiation and chemotherapy to be subject to unrestrained limitations undermines the standards.

The MCC standards are a delicate equilibrium and we’re hopeful that the Board will strike the right balance on Friday. We share concerns about affordability of coverage. It’s important to remember, however, that affordability extends beyond the premium cost. Cost-sharing and benefit caps can easily make getting health care (the ultimate goal of increasing coverage) unaffordable. Adequate MCC standards ensure that insured individuals have access to needed medical care and that the increase in coverage in Massachusetts is not accompanied by an increase in underinsurance. Furthermore, adequate MCC standards ensure that Massachusetts residents are not mandated to purchase insurance that does not meet basic quality standards.
Lisa Kaplan Howe