CONCERNS from the Attorney General’s Office that Bill 513-31 may lead to legal action was cited as one of the reasons why the measure was vetoed by acting Gov. Ray Tenorio.

In a statement, Tenorio called the legislation introduced by Sen. Ben Pangelinan another empty promise to the people, especially those who are “wrought with severe legal, factual, financial, and actuarial deficiencies in its assumptions and analysis.”

The bill would pattern the government of Guam’s health insurance plan after the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Although the bill should’ve been reviewed and acted on by Gov. Eddie Calvo, the governor allowed Tenorio to take over to avoid conflict of interest since SelectCare is owned by the governor’s family.

The governor was in Saipan to see how Guam can help with the hospital crisis happening there.

In his transmittal letter to Speaker Judi Won Pat, the acting governor wrote it was “alarming that the Legislature would rush to pass legislation that upends decades of a legally established methodology that allows for the competitive solicitation, expert review, and painstaking negotiations of health insurance proposals for GovGuam employees.”

‘Irresponsible’

“Bill 513 is fiscally irresponsible, and this administration will not enact legislation that increases the cost of necessities on our manamko and on our hardworking employees,” Tenorio stated, referring to an analysis conducted by independent actuarial consultant, the Hay Group.

The consultant cautioned that Bill No. 513 could lead to an increase in insurance costs for retirees, especially those more than 65 years old.

“We have no idea what the contribution rates required on page 9 [of Bill No. 513] are derived from nor can one tell what relationship they have to employee contributions. Depending on the full rates quoted, the employees may be paying more or less than they do currently for basically the same coverage,” Maria Dufresne of the Hay Group wrote in a letter to Benita Manglona, Department of Administration director.

She also said the group was taken aback to learn there was a need to quickly pass the bill.

“We were very surprised with this rush to pass a one year RFP process bill that we very much believe will not save premium dollars. In fact, we feel that few if any insurers would be comfortable even providing a quote given the very serious constraints in the Bill. If this happens, you would have a very uncompetitive result,” she said.