§ 32 — Group insurance

§ 32. Group insurance. 1. Notwithstanding any provision of section\nthirty of this article, any town may contract for a single policy of\ninsurance indemnifying (a) all ambulance districts wholly within such\ntown which are liable for the payment of benefits under this chapter,\n(b) all territory within such town outside cities, villages and\nambulance districts which is liable for the payment of benefits under\nthis chapter, and (c) the town in relation to such ambulance districts,\nand outside territory, against liability imposed by this chapter. If a\ntown has any such liability and contracts for such a single policy, then\nand in that event only any such policy, if requested by the board of\ntrustees of any village wholly within the town, or by the board of\nambulance commissioners of any ambulance district wholly within the\ntown, shall also indemnify such village or ambulance district against\nsuch liability. The cost of such insurance shall be a town charge and\nshall be levied and collected in the same manner as other town charges\nonly in the territory of such town which is liable for the payment of\nbenefits under this chapter and which is outside of any village and\nambulance districts not covered by such a policy. Nothing in this\nsection contained shall impose any additional liability on any town for\nany benefit payments in relation to volunteer ambulance workers.\n 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of section thirty of this\narticle, any group of cities, villages, ambulance districts or town\nboards acting for and on behalf of ambulance districts or territories\noutside any such municipal corporations or districts which are liable\nfor the payment of benefits under this chapter, all of which cities,\nvillages, districts and territories are located in whole or in part\nwithin one county, may elect by resolution of the governing board of\neach member of the group to be insured against liability imposed by this\nchapter, as a group under a single policy. Such resolutions shall be\nfiled with the chairman of the board of supervisors. The group shall\nfile with the chairman of the board of supervisors an agreement, signed\nby the officer of the governing body designated by such resolution,\nagreeing to the effective date of such policy and to the population of\neach such city, village, ambulance district and such territory outside\nany such municipal corporation or district, and, if any such ambulance\ndistrict lies wholly or partly within two or more towns, the population\nof the district within each such town. The population shall be that\nwhich is shown by the latest federal census, or, if not shown by such\ncensus, then as estimated. The estimate used for any village, district\nor other area in a town plus the estimated or actual population of all\nother villages, districts and areas in such town shall not exceed the\npopulation of such town as shown by the latest federal census. It shall\nbe the duty of the chairman of the board of supervisors of the county,\nupon the filing of such resolutions and agreement, promptly to contract\nfor insurance indemnifying against the liability imposed by this chapter\nin the manner provided in section thirty of this article. Except by\nmutual consent of the participating members, a member may withdraw from\nsuch a group only upon the anniversary date of the policy, and then only\nupon thirty days' notice of withdrawal by mail to the chairman of the\nboard of supervisors. The cost of such insurance shall be apportioned by\nthe clerk of the board of supervisors of the county to each such city,\nvillage, ambulance district and such territory outside such municipal\ncorporations and districts, in the proportion that the agreed population\nbears to the entire population of the group. Refunds, dividends and\ndiscounts in relation to such insurance shall be distributed or credited\naccording to the same apportionment. Upon notification by the clerk of\nthe board of supervisors, the chief fiscal officer of each such city,\nvillage or ambulance district shall pay to the county treasurer, from\nmoneys available or made available, the amount apportioned to such city,\nvillage or district. Upon like notification, the supervisor of each town\nin which such ambulance district is located in whole or in part, or in\nwhich such outside territory is located, shall pay to the county\ntreasurer the amount apportioned for such district, in whole or in part,\nor territory, as the case may be, using moneys raised or made available\nfor the purposes of ambulance service in such district or outside\nterritory, or if there be no such moneys or insufficient moneys, using\nfunds of the town available or made available, which funds shall be a\ncharge upon such district or territory for which the town shall be\nreimbursed. The county treasurer shall pay the cost of such insurance\nwith such moneys, or if any apportioned share has not been paid, the\ncounty treasurer shall advance the amount necessary from moneys of the\ngeneral fund upon resolution of the board of supervisors. Any such\nadvance shall be repaid as soon as moneys are available therefor. If\nany apportioned share remains unpaid, the county may recover the same by\naction at law. If any member of the group shall fail to pay its\napportioned share within thirty days after notice that such amount has\nbecome due and payable, the chairman of the board of supervisors may\nterminate the participation of such member in the group by notice by\nmail to such member on a date specified in the notice, and a copy of\nsuch notice shall be filed by the chairman of the board of supervisors\nwith the insurance carrier, who shall notify the chairman of the\nworkers' compensation board of the termination of coverage in the same\nmanner as provided for cancellation of policy under subdivision five of\nsection fifty-four of the workers' compensation law. If any village or\nambulance district is located in two or more counties, it may elect to\njoin such a group in one of such counties. If any ambulance district\nincludes territory in more than one county, it shall become a\nparticipant only if all the town boards acting for and on behalf of such\ndistrict shall have elected that such district shall become a\nparticipant in such a group, and in such case such town boards shall\nelect as to which county group it shall join. If any participating\nambulance district includes territory in more than one town, whether or\nnot in more than one county, the amount of cost of insurance, refund,\ndividend or discount apportioned to such district shall be apportioned\nin the proportion that the population of the district within each such\ntown bears to the population of the entire district. The figure used for\npopulation in such case shall be the one stated in the agreement. If\nthe boundaries of any city, village, ambulance district or such outside\nterritory in the group shall be changed during the effective period of\nany such insurance policy, or if there are changes in the membership of\nthe group, the agreement heretofore mentioned concerning population\nshall be appropriately amended by a supplementary agreement to be\nexecuted and filed in the same manner as the original agreement, in\nwhich case the coverage of the policy and the apportionment of the cost\nthereof shall be changed accordingly.\n 3. Each policy issued pursuant to subdivisions one and two of this\nsection shall identify clearly each city, town, village, or ambulance\ndistrict and outside territory covered thereby.\n