Now that the city can bargain in good faith with its employees to maintain their city paid health insurance and to save money on premiums that are coming close to bankrupting the city, watch what City Manager Jay Ash will be able to do for the next budget period.
Chelsea may be able to save as much as $4 million designing its own health insurance program or by joining the state run GIC.
All this, because the governor has mandated that municipal unions in Massachusetts must now have expedited discussions immediately about health insurance premium or it will be left up to mayors and town and city managers to create new health insurance programs that are designed for maximum savings while not changing very dramatically benefits provided by the cities and towns to its public employees.
What the governor has done is not going to change the world but it is definitely going to stave off the inevitable bankruptcy or many cities and towns that have reached that point where paying rising health insurance premiums for public employees is reaching being not sustainable.
With the unions and the city manager working together, it will be a win win for everyone involved.