It’s official – the poorest Massachusetts consumers will pick up the slack for cost increases under the state’s mandatory health insurance program. The state approved a 10% increase in health insurance premiums for citizens earning 150% to 300% of the poverty level – those people making little enough that they qualify for state subsidies to obtain health insurance. Co-pays will also increase — doubling for those at the bottom end of the income scale (150-200% of the poverty level). A slight improvement over the proposal made last month (a 14% increase) but hardly enough to justify increasing the burden on those who can least afford it.
