Taunton moves retirees off Medex and Blue Medicare Rx to a new group health plan Jan. 1
The mayor's office says the new plan lowers the monthly premium with similar benefits. Retirees can ask questions at City Hall or by Zoom on Nov. 17, Nov. 19 and Dec. 9, and the City Council hears a presentation Tuesday night.
TAUNTON Taunton city retirees who carry Medex Medical and Blue Medicare Rx coverage will move to a new group retiree health plan Jan. 1, a change Mayor Shaunna O'Connell's office says lowers their monthly premium.
The mayor's office announced the New Group Retiree Healthcare Program on Friday, Nov. 13, in a notice inviting retirees to three information sessions at City Hall. The notice says the new plan provides "similar benefits" to the coverage it replaces. It does not name the insurer, the type of plan or the premium amounts.
During the City Council's Nov. 10 budget debate, Councilor Debra Botellio said there were "cuts coming up to retirees' insurance" that were "going to save us, allegedly," almost $1 million. A city official at the meeting answered that "there's no cuts to retirees' insurance." Botellio had opened by addressing her questions to Chief Financial Officer Patrick D. Dello Russo Jr., and when she asked where the money would go, the answer was that it "will fall into free cash" and would help "reduce a fixed cost for the fiscal 2028 budget."
What the current coverage is
Medex is a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Medicare supplement plan. It pays toward Medicare Part A and Part B deductibles and coinsurance and does not cover prescription drugs, according to a Blue Cross summary of benefits the City of Boston posted for its retirees. Blue Medicare Rx is a Blue Cross employer group Medicare prescription drug plan, and Taunton's retirees carry the two together today.
Taunton's notice tells retirees the city "will replace your current Medex Medical and Blue Medicare Rx coverage with a plan that lowers your monthly premium while providing similar benefits." It invites them "to learn what is changing and to have your questions answered."
Where retirees can get answers
Every session begins at 9:30 a.m. at Taunton City Hall, 15 Summer St. The first is Tuesday, Nov. 17, the second is Thursday, Nov. 19, and the last is Wednesday, Dec. 9, about three weeks before the new plan starts.
Retirees who would rather stay home can join by Zoom, using the link and QR code each date has on the city's notice, and the mayor's office can be reached at City Hall at 508-821-1000.
The council takes it up Tuesday night
The City Council meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17, in the Chester R. Martin Municipal Council Chambers at City Hall, the same day as the first session. Under communications from the mayor, the council's agenda lists a "Presentation of New Retiree Insurance Benefits by the CFO, Human Resource Director."
Two councilors have filed motions on the subject for that night, and Botellio's asks the chief financial officer and the human resources director to present to the council "regarding the changes in the retirees Medex and drug coverage." Councilor Deborah Carr's asks to meet in one week with the same two officials "to discuss the change in health insurance for senior retirees."
Carr has also moved to meet in two weeks with the city's assessors about their letter to the council "regarding senior households 70 years of age or older and the ability of council to reduce their tax burden."
The meeting opens with public input, where speakers give their name and address and are asked to keep their remarks to three minutes or less, and supplemental written comments may also be provided, according to the agenda.
Also on Tuesday's agenda
- A public hearing on a request from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for a new flammable storage license at 60 Hodges Ave. to keep 4,000 gallons of propane in four 1,000-gallon aboveground tanks.
- Public Works Commissioner Michael P. Patneaude's request to let contractors keep working in city roadways during the winter moratorium, which runs Nov. 1 to April 1, "until the weather changes and it is necessary for the D.P.W. to terminate any further work."
- At the council's 5:30 p.m. committee session, two requests to name bridges for service members: the Ingell Street Bridge in memory of Lance Cpl. Lawrence T. Andrews, and the Scadding Street Bridge for Spc. 5 Dennis Proulx.
The evening also brings the swearing-in of Eric P. Nichols as police chief, whose contract the council approved 8-0 on Nov. 10, and the city has invited the public to the ceremony.
What happens next
Carr's request for a meeting with the two officials, if the council approves it Tuesday, would put the retiree coverage change back in front of councilors about a week later.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
Notes
Every fact about the new plan and the information sessions comes from the Taunton mayor's office notice and flyer posted Nov. 13. The council business comes from the Nov. 17 council and committee agendas the city clerk posted Nov. 13, which we read in full. Botellio's words and the replies to her come from the Taunton Municipal Network video of the Nov. 10 meeting, transcribed twice, with her seat and nameplate checked on the video. What Medex and Blue Medicare Rx cover comes from a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts summary of benefits, and we read every one of these records on Nov. 13, 2026, and checked each date and weekday against a calendar. Not heard: we did not ask the mayor's office or the human resources office about the plan's insurer or premiums for this story; the chief financial officer and the human resources director present to the council Nov. 17.
Corrections
No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.
Sources (4)
- City of Taunton News Flash: City of Taunton Retiree Healthcare Information Sessions, with the Office of the Mayor's flyer, New Group Retiree Healthcare Program, Effective January 1, 2027Posted 8:59 a.m. Nov. 13, 2026. Read Nov. 13, 2026.
- City of Taunton: Municipal Council agenda, Nov. 17, 2026, 7 p.m., with the 5:30 p.m. committees agenda and the Public Works commissioner's Nov. 4 letterClerk's posting stamp 10:11 a.m. Nov. 13, 2026. Read in full Nov. 13, 2026.
- Taunton Municipal Network: Taunton City Council 2026 11 10, meeting videoPosted Nov. 11, 2026. The retiree insurance exchange heard Nov. 13, 2026, transcribed twice.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts: Medex 2 (Medicare Supplement Plan) with Blue MedicareRx (PDP) summary of benefits, City of BostonFor what Medex and Blue MedicareRx cover in general. Read Nov. 13, 2026.