THE Office of Personnel Management does not support the current version of a measure that seeks to transfer the Group Health and Life Insurance program from the Retirement Fund to the Office of the Governor.
In a June 3 letter to Rep. Benjamin B. Seman, R-Saipan and chairman of the House Committee on Health and Welfare, OPM Director Juan I. Tenorio said H.B. 13-99, introduced by Rep. William S. Torres, R-Saipan, has “conflicting statements.”
“It implies that the motive might be due either to a power play on the part of the insurance program to gain autonomy or an attempt on the part of the Fund to rid itself of a problem section rather than to correct the problem. The number of ‘mays’ (in the bill) and other indefinite statements suggests that a more professional analysis of the situation should be conducted before passing a law such as this,” said Tenorio.
Tenorio is specifically referring to section 2 of the bill which discusses moving the insurance program from the Fund due to lapsed payments to government and private health care vendors, the inability to make timely payments to private health care providers for medical referrals from the Commonwealth Health Center, and the difficulties in balancing cumulative accounts.
H.B. 13-99 said these problems may be due to the lack of autonomy in decision-making. These problems have occurred since GHLI’s transfer to the Fund, the bill states.
Tenorio likewise questioned the appropriateness of relocating GHLI to the Office of the Governor.
He said the governor has “many demands on his time and will” and may be “personally unable to devote the time and attention needed” to the insurance program and “its present and future problems.”
