HELENA – Gov. Steve Bullock has issued his first veto of the legislative session.
The Democratic governor rejected a bill Friday to loosen regulations on Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements.
Those MEWAs (MEE’-wahs) allow smaller employers to form groups to offer their employees health insurance.
The bill would have allowed more of those groups to form by adopting changes made last year to federal MEWA regulations.
The bill would have eliminated a requirement that an employer group must exist for at least five years before sponsoring an arrangement.
It also would have eliminated the requirement that an employer group must have engaged in substantial activities related to the employers’ common interests.
Bullock says the federal changes have led to scams, and the Montana bill would allow people with pre-existing conditions to be denied coverage and plans to be sold across state lines.