Nassau's money-saving move

One small slice of "madness of the past" may be disappearing in Nassau County.

Alone among other governments in the region, Nassau allowed employees married to each other to keep separate county-paid health insurance policies, rather than be covered under a single plan.

In 2007, then-Comptroller Howard Weitzman started eliminating this costly double bill. Now his successor, George Maragos, is smartly taking it a few steps further.

Although private employers eliminated this duplicate benefit much earlier, it was only four years ago that Weitzman initiated a buyback plan for nonunion workers, later expanding it to current union employees.

Maragos is now asking 159 retired couples, identified as having two policies, to drop one of them. In return, that spouse would get a $2,000 payment annually. The county would also agree to pick up any out-of-pocket costs above $2,000. If that sounds costly, think of this: The current rate of $15,000 per policy is expected to rise by 13 percent next year.

Looking further, Maragos should cut the red tape and expand the program to Nassau employees who have a spouse working for a different municipal employer, since most are participating in the same plan.

It's a good deal for retirees and taxpayers and saves the county millions, at time when it needs spare change.