by David Cohen, retired UE Union organizer, Mass-Care Board member representing Franklin County Continuing the Political Revolution
Mass-Care, the coalition for single payer in Massachusetts has several tools that are easy to use.
One way to build support for Medicare for All is to show people how much money can be saved by eliminating insurance companies and having one single payer of health bills.
The municipal calculator can be used to show how much money a city or town would save if Medicare for All legislation were in force right now.
There is just some basic information you need to get from your city or town (which they have to provide. You may have to file a freedom of information request to get it.)
1) How much money did the municipality spend the previous fiscal year on health insurance. Be sure to include anything they spend on retirees.
2) What is the total payroll of the municipality?
3) How many employees does the municipality have?
The basic source for funding comes from a payroll tax for employers and employees. How much it will cost municipalities is laid out in “Section 19 -Funding Sources” of the legislation, S.744 and H.1239.
Plug the figures into the calculator and you now have how much the municipality would spend to provide full complete medical coverage to all their employees and their families. Compare this to the actual spending and you have how much the municipality would save.
For example: In 2021 the City of Greenfield spent $7,327,551.00 on health insurance. Their total payroll was $33,613,578.00. Under the Medicare for All formula, Greenfield would have spent $2,687,486.00 on health insurance, for a savings of $4,640,065.00. Imagine what a city of 17,000 people could do with an extra 4.6 million dollars per year!
Here’s a big one. The City of Boston, using fiscal 2024 figures would save $255.626.000.00, yes that’s 255 million dollars! The City of Quincy would save $36, 202,075 million per year!
You now have how much the municipality would spend to provide full complete medical coverage to all their employee and their families. Compare this to the actual spending and you have how much the municipality would save.
We have come across a few very small municipalities that have very few employees and that provide the minimum in health insurance. They might actually have to pay more.
If you want to figure out costs for employees, the formula is 2.5% payroll tax, with a $20,000 dollar exemption. Compare this to what employees now pay for premium costs. You have to remember that employees will have greater savings because there will be no co-pays or deductibles with Medicare for All.
As with any tool, what we do with it is the key.
In some cities and towns activists have publicized the savings to the municipality and used this to have resolutions in favor of Medicare for All passed at annual town meetings or by City Councils. Here is is sample resolution to use. (note please check the bill numbers on the resolution, they might need to be updated)
Vote for Medicare for All
This year, Mass-Care will be running non-binding ballot questions in 11 State Rep. districts. The ballot question says,
“Shall the Representative from this District be instructed to vote for legislation to create a single-payer system of universal health care, that would provide all Massachusetts residents with comprehensive health care coverage including the freedom to choose doctors and other health care professionals, facilities, and services and that would eliminate the role of insurance companies in healthcare by creating a publicly administered insurance trust fund? “
We will be collecting signatures starting May 1 in 3 districts in Western Ma, one in South Eastern Ma. and 7 in Eastern Ma. We need to collect 200 valid signatures per district by July 8.
The municipal savings calculations are a very useful piece of information to distribute while campaigning for passage of the ballot question. People begin to think about why something as basic as health care should not be left in the hands of insurance companies, and what that extra money could be used for.
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