Gov. Bill Haslam says his administration had no choice but to release information on lawmakers’ health insurance, including how much the state pays for their plans and who’s on them.
Some legislators and the Tennessee State Employees Association have called the release a privacy violation. But Haslam says administration lawyers, TennCare’s lawyers and the Tennessee attorney general’s office all determined the plans are public information under state law.
“We’re bound to follow the law, OK? We don’t get to decide what we want to follow and not.”
Several news outlets, including WPLN, have requested details about current and former lawmakers’ health insurance.
The requests came after supporters of Insure Tennessee questioned how lawmakers could vote against the governor’s health care proposal and yet accept coverage that is largely subsidized by taxpayers.
Defenders of the practice say there’s no comparison to be made between a benefit lawmakers receive as state employees and health coverage for the poor.
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