New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently signed a bill protecting an Orange County school district’s employee health insurance program.
Democratic state Senator Jen Metzger’s bill authorizes the Enlarged City School District of Middletown to create a health insurance reserve fund. It’s a move she says is estimated to save the district $3.4 million and was recommended following an analysis of the district's budget for the 2017-2018 school year. The Board of Education then voted to leave the Orange-Ulster Health Care Consortium and create a self-funded health care program. Democrat Aileen Gunther sponsored the bill in the Assembly. Middletown is now added to the list of school districts that are authorized to create such a fund, including Scarsdale and Minisink Valley.