Health insurance premium relief passed in MN Senate, goes to House

Jan. 27--The Minnesota Senate approved health insurance premium relief 47-19 Thursday afternoon, setting the stage for the measure to become law as soon as Thursday evening.

Once it becomes law, the measure would provide 25 percent discounts to the roughly 120,000 people buying insurance on the individual market who don't get federal subsidies to offset soaring premiums. It will cost taxpayers an estimated $310 million to reimburse insurers for the discounts.

It also includes several other provisions affecting health insurance. Some are uncontroversial, such as a $15 million provision helping people with serious medical conditions keep their doctors into 2017 even if their plan's network has changed.

Others are more controversial, such as a clause letting for-profit companies operate as HMOs in Minnesota. For decades Minnesota HMOs have been required to be nonprofits.

Gov. Mark Dayton says he'll sign the bill despite disliking the for-profit HMO clause. Democrats in the Legislature are more divided.

Critics said allowing for-profit HMOs would harm patients by diverting money to shareholders, while Republicans defended it as a way to possibly get more insurance companies offering coverage in Minnesota.

In the Senate Thursday afternoon, 19 DFL senators voted against relief because of the for-profit HMO clause, while 14 DFL senators voted for it. Several of them said they also objected to allowing for-profit HMOs but considered passing relief too important to vote now.

All 33 Republicans present voted yes.

The measure now heads to the House later Thursday afternoon, which is also expected to approve it.

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