| State
Senate Republican Leader Louis C. DeLuca (R-Woodbury) congratulated
the House of Representatives for granting final approval on
his bill to allow Medical Savings Accounts (MSA’s) in
the state of Connecticut. MSA’s are a federally sanctioned
means for small businesses to offer health care coverage to
their employees when traditional insurance plan costs are
prohibitive. MSA plans allow employers to offer a high deductible
health insurance policy for catastrophic health care costs
while maintaining a pool of tax-free funds, generated by pre-determined
contributions from the employer and the employees, to cover
routine medical expenses.
As lead Republican
member of the General Assembly’s Insurance Committee,
Senator DeLuca has sponsored similar MSA legislation for
the past several years. With today’s House passage,
Connecticut joins the 48 other states in the country that
already allow MSA’s as a health insurance option.
“It’s
been a long road, but I am proud to say that we have finally
given the people of Connecticut an important new option
in managing their own health care,” said Senator DeLuca.
“It has always struck me as ironic that here in Hartford,
the insurance capital of the world, the legislature has
been reluctant to give people the choice to participate
in an MSA. Although it took awhile, I am pleased that the
General Assembly has finally come around to understanding
that allowing more options for health care coverage is a
public policy that can only help the residents of Connecticut.”
According
to Senator DeLuca, the MSA bill now heads to Governor Rowland’s
desk where he is expected to sign it into law. |
