Healthbridge, the controversial New Jersey company, is to sell almost all of its nursing homes in Connecticut to a Florida partnership. Healthbridge was in and out of the headlines for years for poor labor relations as it locked workers out of one of its homes, sparking a strike at all of its unionized locations.
The dispute centered on the elimination of workers' pension rights. Healthbridge filed for bankruptcy, exiting after a restructuring of its finances last summer. Some aspects of the case are still in dispute. Now the nonprofit Eagle Lake Foundation will buy seven of Healthbridge’s eight locations in Connecticut, and will put a new management company in place.
Car Tax Plan
Senate President Martin Looney says he wants to see a statewide standard for the motor vehicle tax. Looney has proposed legislation which would establish one mil rate for the car tax across all municipalities. Under his plan, the tax would be collected by the state and then distributed to town and cities. The idea has stirred concern at the local level, from towns that don’t believe all the money would make it back to them. The language on the car tax is part of a larger bill that would also change the way the state reimburses towns for tax exempt property, and would also put some local taxes on a regional basis.
AIDS Drugs Cost Lowered
Health insurer Aetna says it will reduce the cost to patients of HIV and AIDS drugs, after complaints from advocacy groups. Previously the Hartford-based company required its members to pay as much as half of the cost of the medicines out of pocket, something that patients say had them paying $1,000 a month. Now Aetna will reclassify the drugs into a lower cost-sharing category.
