Dirigo head: Going broke a real risk
The head of the Dirigo Health Agency says the agency can pay back the money it took from the general fund after running up a $20 million deficit, but Dirigo runs the real danger of running out of money if a proper funding mechanism can't be found for the state subsidized health insurance program.
Currently, the agency charges health insurance carriers and self-insured businesses an annual assessment, called the savings offset payment, to pay for DirigoChoice, but it takes up to two years to collect, leaving the agency short of money, Karynlee Harrington, head of the agency, told Victoria Wallack, a state house news reporter. Earlier this year, the Legislature passed a set of taxes on beer, wine, soda to replace the current assessment. This tax would reap between $55 million to $75 million annually, compared with the roughly $33 million being collected from the savings offset plan. But those taxes are being challenged by a people's veto on the November ballot. If the veto is approved, Harrington said she would approach the Legislature to try to make the assessments come in more quickly, Wallack reported.
Meanwhile, the Dirigo Health Agency's board of directors on Monday approved changes to have enrollees pay more out-of-pocket expenses for some procedures and increase premium rates by 10.8% for individuals and six percent for small groups.
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