About 2,000 nurses could incur large tax penalties due to their health insurance plans, the Massachusetts Nurses Association said.
Some nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital could face tax penalties after the hospital “belatedly” told nurses that two of the offered insurance plans did not comply with state law, the Massachusetts Nurses Association said in a news release last Thursday.
About 2,000 nurses potentially face penalties for using the non-compliant plans, the release said. The plans were designed by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care (HPHC) and Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS). According to the union, they were notified two weeks ago that both plans violate new statewide Minimum Creditable Coverage (MCC) requirements due to containing out-of-pocket expenses for preventative care.
“Our phones, email inboxes and social media are flooded with Brigham nurses angry with the hospital about what seems like either deceit or incompetence,” Kelly Morgan, a Brigham labor and delivery nurse and union chair, said. Morgan accused the hospital of creating “utter chaos and confusion.”