Seekonk Looking to Reduce Health Care Costs to Town

The will be voting next week to adopt new legislation that would give the town the ability to change its healthcare plans to lower the cost to the town.

Massachusetts General Law Chapter 32B, Sections 21-23 allows municipalities in the Commonwealth to re-evaluate its health care plans and policies. It also allows towns to keep 75 percent of savings on health care, while the remaining 25 percent would go back to the employee unions.

Prior to the new legislation, the only way to make any changes to an employee’s health insurance would have been through the collective bargaining process

“We’ve been trying to absorb all the information possible on this change,” said Town Administrator Pamela Nolan.

“The unions understand that this isn’t something that we wanted to do,” Nolan added, stating that throughout collective bargaining she has maintained that something had to be done to save health insurance costs.

Nolan said the unions did not want to go to the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) and would prefer the town choose a different plan.

“We expect to be able to implement July 1," Nolan siad. "It will reduce the costs of our health insurance dramatically."

The Selectmen voted 4-0 Wednesday, with Chairman Dave Parker abstaining, to postpone the vote until next week as the firefighters’ union felt that it was not properly notified on the vote ahead of time.

The next meeting of the Board of Selectmen will be at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 15.

Other Selectmen Meeting Notes:

• Approved 5-0 for Diparma Italian Tables change of manager from Del Marshall to Nadine Snow.
• Unanimously approved Class II Motor Vehicle License for H and D, Inc., located at 1075 Newman Avenue. No more than six vehicles on the sales lot.
• Unanimously approved the donation of gifts, both monetary and tangible by Save A Pet Society, Inc., to the Seekonk Animal Shelter.
• Unanimously approved a New Mutual Cooperative Agreement through Greater Attleboro HOME Consortium. Continued effort to work with neighboring communities to receive HUD funds from the National Affordable Housing Act.
• Unanimously approved the towing contract renewal for the town’s police and fire using four towing companies, two in the north end of town, and two in the south end of town.
• Voted 4-1, Bob McClintock opposed, to approve Central Avenue traffic control agreement.
• Consider the approval of an increase of budget for construction engineering on the Central Avenue project. The extra costs were due to the redesign of pavement this past year, were not a planned cost and amounted to $4,100. Additionally slope work on properties was more significant than originally planned amounting to an additional $850. Voted 4-1, Bill Rice opposed to table discussion until at least next week.
• Unanimously approved Pat Paola as snow plow vendor for the town.
• Unanimously voted to hold the annual Town Meeting on June 25, 2012.
• Voted unanimously to send exit interviews for former call firefighters to find out why they left.
• A rabies clinic will be held March 10 at the Department of Public Works.