Manager leaves health trust

June 26--Citing what he called a "distraction," Town Manager Reginald "Buzz" Stapczynski has resigned as trustee of an organization that has been providing health insurance to municipal employees and their families for the last five years.

Stapczynski informed members of the Board of Selectmen earlier this month that he would step down from the Health Benefits Trust of the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association, or MIIA, which has offered Blue Cross/Blue Shield health coverage to the town's 1,400 employees and retirees since 2010.

"Effective today, I'm resigning as a trustee of the MIIA Health Benefits Trust," he wrote in a June 13 letter to selectmen, which wasn't made public until late last week after the Townsman learned of its existence.

The resignation comes after months of discussion and controversy over how Stapczynski handled health insurance negotiations with the town's unions. The town put the health insurance contract out to bid last year, getting two bids -- one from Tufts and the other from MIIA.

The Tufts bid came in at a price well below the MIIA bid, but the town's unions chose MIIA anyway, saying they were more comfortable with the Blue Cross/Blue Shield coverage town workers have had for years. Prior to its involvement with MIIA, the town had a direct contract with Blue Cross/Blue Shield.

But questions were raised about whether Stapczynski's close relationship with MIIA represented a conflict of interest that could have affected his presentation of the competing plans to the unions.

Stapczynski said he resigned even though there was no conflict of interest.

"The basic issue is that we are going out to bid again in the fall," he said. "I don't want it to be a distraction. This is an important item for the town. The distraction may take precedence on what we are really trying to do, which is to control our health care costs. The town takes precedence over MIIA.

"If anything, it (the resignation) reduces some of the noise or music people were creating around the whole issue of our employees' health insurance -- what people thought was a conflict which was not."

In his statement, he said: "As you recall last June in accordance with the state ethics law, I made a disclosure to you that I was a trustee, and that also my family was on the town's health insurance plan. You voted 5-0 to acknowledge that my position as trustee was not so substantial as to be deemed likely to affect the integrity of the services to the town.

"Nonetheless, I have resigned as trustee to put the matter behind us, so we can move forward and focus on what is important -- providing an employee health insurance plan next year without any unwarranted distractions."

While Stapczynski called it a distraction, others see it as a little more than that.

Selectmen Chairman Dan Kowalski said he thinks Stapczynski did the right thing by resigning.

"He took the right approach moving forward," Kowalski said. "I wasn't surprised. It was the appropriate thing to do, speaking as one selectman."

Kowalski contends that while Stapczynski may not have benefited financially from his association with MIIA, there could still be an appearance of conflict of interest because of that relationship.

"There are other conflicts than financial," he said. "In my personal opinion."

Bob Landry, a local resident who spearheaded an unsuccessful effort at Town Meeting to cut the town's health insurance budget, went further, saying that Stapczynski is being disingenuous.

"This is too little, too late," he said. "What is the reason for resigning now? It's curious he waited until after Town Meeting to resign."

He noted that while Stapczynski resigned from the Health Trust, he remains on the MIIA governing board and also remains on the MIIA Reinsurance Company, which handles large municipal claims.

"This seems to be kind of a drip-drip-drip," Landry said. "He discloses these issues only when he's confronted with the idea that people are asking about it. That conflict has existed for some time. Why did he feel compelled to release that information last year?"

Selectman Alex Vispoli said Stapczynski has always been up front about his relationship with MIIA.

"I thought it was a good decision for him to resign, although he's always been up front with the board with his membership and involvement with MIIA," he said. "But this removes an appearance of conflict of interest."

He and other selectmen said this should improve negotiations with the unions over the next year or so.

"We plan on putting the insurance contract out to bid earlier," Vispoli said. "That process is going to go forward sooner so we get the most competitive pricing for the town's health insurance."

Selectman Paul Salafia said Stapczynski is above reproach on this matter and any other.

"I know him well enough," he said. "I know it (membership in the Health Trust) didn't for one moment affect his thinking. He's a man of great integrity. He really is. He felt other people were questioning it, so why have the distraction. I fully support him. We all thought, at the time, and still do, that it didn't affect his integrity and the services of the town or any of his decisions. He just doesn't want to have the distraction. And why should he?"

Selectman Mary O'Donoghue said she also wasn't surprised by the move.

"After all of the controversy about it during Town Meeting and after, I think he made the right decision," she said. "I think there certainly was a perception of conflict of interest, and in today's world, perception is very important. I think it can only help with negotiations. You now have somebody going into the room (with the unions) who will go to bat for the town, and that perceived conflict of interest will no longer be there."

Selectman Brian Major did not return a phone call.

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