UPDATE: Former Mayor Health Insurance Coverage

by Cindy Goldstein -

Following up on our prior reporting about former Mayor Tom Murphy’s health care costs, the Mamaroneck Observer submitted a FOIL request for additional information about the facts surrounding the hasty addition of Murphy to the Village’s health insurance plan immediately after he lost the November, 2023 election.  Here’s what we found but questions remain.  See prior reporting HERE.

By refusing taxpayer fully subsidized Village health insurance during his tenure as Mayor, Murphy received almost $40,000 in lieu for those seven years.  See HERE. (This amount is significantly less than it would have cost the Village taxpayer had he accepted health insurance coverage and is designed to be an incentive to provide taxpayer savings.)

Upon losing the 2023 election Murphy signed up for taxpayer-subsidized health insurance coverage presumably to access lifetime health insurance coverage paid for by the Village.  In a flurry of emails to Village officials on November 20^th and 21^st, Murphy petitioned both the head of Human Resources and the Village Clerk/Treasurer to find support for his expectation of health benefits after leaving office.  See HERE.  Murphy points to two former elected officials whom he believes receive health benefits after 10 years of Village service.  Human Resources Head Danielle Gilliard stated her understanding that those individuals had been covered under the Village’s medical plan for 10 years while they were serving as elected officials.  See HERE. It is unknown whether these former officials are receiving a New York State pension which would make them eligible for health insurance regardless.

In the subject line of Murphy’s November 20^th email to the Clerk/Treasurer he writes “Hey Buddy” and goes on to ask, “where is it written that I get health insurance after 10 years of service.”  The reply on November 21^st outlines that past practice has awarded health insurance coverage to elected officials who retire with more than 10 years of service.  In other words, it’s been done in the past but there is no definitive policy on the matter.

Additional requested documents are not available from the Village because, as this FOIL response indicates, Murphy’s personnel file cannot be located.  See HERE. It is apparently not in the Village offices.