BAY MILLS - The Bay Mills Executive Council met on Monday, May 8 for a regularly scheduled board meeting. All members were present.
Bay Mills Health Center Coordinator Walt Parish informed the council that he had sent every tribal elder a letter informing them that they had coverage for prescription drugs. Parish said that if the tribe were to pay for all 48 seniors living in the area, it would cost $25,872 for the year. However, several seniors are dual-eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, Parish added, so the actual cost would be slightly less than that.
Parish said the Medicare Part D program, for prescriptions only, currently costs $44 per month. Other plans are cheaper than $44 per month, but because they have higher co-pays and deductibles, actually equal out to be more money in the long run, he noted. Once a person reaches $2,300, they are on their own until they reach the $5,500 limit. After the $5,500 limit is reached, their prescriptions will be covered again. Anyone with insurance would already be covered, he added.
In other business, the council reviewed a request by a tribal member who wished to put in a dock in the canal area at the Bay Mills Resort and Casino boat launch. Vice Chairman Terry Carrick said there is currently no place for people to tie their boats up to, or to get in and out of their boats. Carrick said he heard that casino management was going to put posts up around the launch for people to tie their boats onto, but nothing ever happened. Secretary Richard LeBlanc said that the council should definitely look into putting up posts, or even docks, but said he thinks it could become a problem where people think they "own" a particular spot, or other people began putting up their own docks. Carrick said he did not think there would be enough room to put up a bunch of docks, but recommended putting up posts every 16 to 18 feet around the launch site. Carrick added that he would speak with Bay Mills Construction to figure out the cost of putting up these posts, and added that he would also speak with the tribal member requesting the dock and explain to them the concerns the council had with it.
