By Geena Monahan—For the North Star Reporter
A recent change in health insurance providers for municipal retirees 65 and older was announced by Town Manager Michael Borg, citing an unexpected increase from current provider Blue Cross Blue Shield, along with overall medical inflation.
The switch to Aetna Insurance will go into effect on April 1, and does not affect active town employees or retirees who are under the age of 65.
“Healthcare is eating everybody’s lunch,” Borg said. “This is not just North Attleborough — this is every municipality that’s seeing double-digit increases.”
Blue Cross Blue Shield recently announced that as of July 1, 2025, it will increase the cost of North Attleborough’s supplemental Medicare coverage from $458 to $495 per month, due to a 28% increase in retiree usage.
After months of researching plans and negotiating with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Borg made the decision to switch over to Aetna insurance, a move that the Town of Plainville also made last year and has reported success with.
Aetna will provide the same coverage as Blue Cross Blue shield, but at a lesser cost of only $419 per retiree, per month, saving the town about $290,000 a year. This will also bring retirees’ portion of healthcare costs down from $123.75 a month to $102.71 a month.
“This is something I take very seriously; it wasn’t a snap decision,” said Borg. “If it were just numbers, it’s an easy decision. $419 versus $495. But there’s peoples lives that are connected to this, and the one thing I know to be very true for a lot of people is that sometimes change is hard.”
Currently, North Attleborough is in a 75/25 split with retirees over the age of 65, meaning the town pays 75% of insurance costs to supplement Medicare plans, leaving 25% to be paid by retirees. While other towns have decreased this split to a 60/40 or even 50/50, Borg said he was adamant in keeping the agreed-upon split after many municipal employees told him it was a retirement benefit they wanted to keep.
Along with decreasing the cost of coverage, the new Aetna plan comes with a “concierge” service called RetireeFirst included in its monthly cost. According to Aetna’s website, RetireeFirst members receive personalized support with Retiree Advocacy Services, guidance to lower-cost drug or benefit alternatives and reduced premiums and out-of-pocket costs.
Borg also mentioned that municipal retirees will get a dedicated case manager they can follow up with and ask questions. RetireeFirst can also coordinate delivery of meals after a procedure and help set up transportation to and from appointments.
Borg noted some concerns brought to him by retirees in this 65 and over subgroup, such as not being able to keep their doctor or a certain specialist they see. In conjunction with RetireeFirst, Borg said he was able to set up one-on-one phone calls with town retirees to ensure that they will still be fully covered.
“If your doctor accepts Medicare, who you’re seeing today, this Aetna plan will do the same,” said Borg. “It’s still Medicare, just billed for through Aetna now.”
Borg is confident that this change will lower healthcare costs for both the town and the retirees while not compromising on the quality of healthcare provided. While some retirees questioned why they couldn’t keep Blue Cross Blue Shield and pay for their share of the increase out-of-pocket, Borg noted that it would be very difficult for the town to afford the increase on its 75% share with a budget that’s already stretched thin.
“My number one issue in town right now is health care,” said Borg. “It occupies so much space in the budget, and I’m looking for ways to put money back in our employee’s pockets.”
