Carver Select Board Puts $4 Million Health Insurance Rescue Package Before Voters

CARVER -- March 17, 2026, Carver Select Board votes to exit troubled Gateway Health Group and places $4 million health insurance rescue on the April 7 town meeting warrant. The board voted unanimously Tuesday to direct Town Administrator David Cannon to send written withdrawal notice to the Gateway Health Group before an April 1 deadline, with the pool, shared by Carver, the Old Rochester Regional School District, and the town of Lakeville, facing a projected $7 million FY26 deficit and planning to dissolve June 30. Finance Director Elaine Preval said Carver's share of the shortfall is approximately $4 million, or 55 percent of the pool's total exposure, and warned "employees' health care is being affected right now," with some providers already refusing service. The board recommended three motions on a supplemental health insurance article four to one, with member Jim Carter dissenting each time: a $1,510,295 raise-and-appropriate for FY27, a $1,465,785 free cash transfer, and a $1,023,920 draw from the stabilization fund, the last requiring a two-thirds supermajority at town meeting. The board also voted unanimously to appoint Detective Sergeant Brian Berrio as the town's next deputy police chief, subject to contract, and approved a $54,517,039 FY27 town budget three to two after the Old Colony Regional assessment came in higher than projected.