Senate
Bills 1293 and 1294,
the package of bills to turn Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan into a
nonprofit mutual insurance company, passed the House of Representatives
Thursday. The Senate concurred in the House’s changes shortly thereafter, sending
the measures on the Governor’s desk for signature.
Both bills passed the House on 61-49 votes,
with Republican Representatives Joel Johnson (Clare), Tom McMillin (Rochester)
and Chuck Moss (Birmingham) joining Democrats in opposition. The Senate
concurrence votes saw Democratic Senators John Gleason (Flushing) and Virgil
Smith (Detroit) join their GOP colleagues in voting “yes.”
The legislation proposes to change the Blues
into a nonprofit mutual company and treat it largely like any other insurer in
the market. The company would lose its tax exempt status, repeal PA 350, and no
longer have involvement from the Attorney General in rate increase requests.
Further, the proposal calls for the Blues to pay $1.5 billion over 18 years
into an independent nonprofit working towards the overall improvement of the
state’s health.
The House changes included sending more
money, $120 million, to cover Medigap coverage as well as a complete ban on “most
favored nation” clauses beginning in 2014.