THE STATE'S low-cost, high deductible insurance program, HealthFirst, is running into some bumps.

It turns out the program Gov. John Lynch launched in October is not so low-cost after all.

The program for small business was meant to be priced at 10 percent of the state median wage, roughly $330 a month per person. The Department of Insurance Web site says the cost is about $311 a month. But when other factors -- such as age, occupation and group size -- started getting added in, the price went up into the mid-$400 range per person.

Now legislation is moving ahead to require a basic wellness plan to be part of HealthFirst. That change and several other modifications could bring the cost down into its target range, according to Leslie Ludtke, health-care policy analyst at Insurance.

The plan's co-pay requirement could be replaced with a co-insurance piece, which means a client pays a percentage of a medical bill, not a pre-set co-payment.

Most importantly, the wellness product has to be priced "comparable to or below the lowest cost major medical health insurance" offered in the state for small employers.

HealthFirst, which right now is offered almost exclusively by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, carries an out-of-pocket cost of $2,500 before coverage kicks in. If a member takes part in a wellness program, the second year's deductible falls to $1,500.

So far the plan covers 450 people, who work for roughly 50 employers, Ludtke told the House Commerce Committee last week.

►And the 'Dome' makes three (1)

Bills adding the basic wellness requirement are pending in both the House and Senate.

With health-care costs expected to continue spiraling upward, lawmakers will be watching what else needs to be done to make the HealthFirst plan more attractive and affordable.

Health-care spending took up 18 percent of state gross domestic product in 2008, at close to $11 billion, and is expected to hit $20 billion, or 25 percent of state GDP in 2018.

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IF THE SENATE follows suit with the House, we'll soon be able to safely dance, play sports and sell soda on Sundays.

The House voted to repeal the state's blue laws last week. Driving through Nashua, Manchester or Salem, some might be surprised to learn blue laws still exist.

Actually they've had so many holes poked in them over the years, you can drive a delivery truck through them.

Early on, they barred secular labor, as well as "any play, game or sport" on Sunday. No retail sales, no dancing, no racing horses or dogs. Acts of "mercy or necessity" were still OK.

Then came a list of exceptions, the biggest being that local ordinances could override the state law that kept Sunday as a true day of rest. That was pretty much the end of the days when almost everybody had Sunday off.

Blue law violations, by the way, carry a $1,000 fine.

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THE HOUSE WILL DEBATE the Elgin marbles issues again this week. These are marble sculptures and reliefs taken from the Parthenon, not little round marbles, thank you.

A resolution calling for England to return the sculptures to Greece was defeated 177-108 after lengthy debate late Wednesday. Rep. Susan Almy, D-Lebanon, asked a day later to have the vote reconsidered. Rep. Tom Katsiontonis, D-Manchester, said Greeks in his city were "very disappointed with last week's vote." He said it wasn't just the vote, but the tone of the debate that had him upset.

He sponsored the measure with Rep. Ben Baroody and Rep. Theodoros Rokas, both from Manchester.

Those who argued against the resolution said the Legislature should not be taking up time with foreign affairs, wading into a dispute between two other countries. In the past, though, the House has voted to bar investments in the Sudan and sided with Pakistan in its foreign affairs.

Katsiantonis said this is about more than a fight over a few statues.

"This is a big symbol for us. When the Old Man of the Mountains fell, we were all upset. It was a valuable symbol to the people of New Hampshire. Well, this is a big symbol for (people of Greek descent)."

He said he was insulted at jokes that were being cracked during debate. "It's not funny to the Greeks of Manchester and New Hampshire," he said. "Those people are getting votes from Greek-Americans. In a way, they were laughing at their Greek constituents."

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IN ANOTHER reconsidered matter, the Transportation Committee voted 10-9 against recommending repeal of a $30 surcharge on motor vehicle registrations. The squeaker committee vote on a reconsideration move followed a 9-6 vote to pass the bill, taken when Republicans outnumbered Democrats in the room.

If the House passes the repeal, which ends the surcharge in 2011 instead of 2012, the hit on state highway finances will be roughly $50 million. That includes $15 million that goes for road upkeep in towns and cities.

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DEMOCRATS rule the House and Senate, yet enough of them broke ranks on Wednesday to pass a bill that will cut $5 million from the state budget and send it to towns. The issue is that no one knows where to find the money.

House Finance Committee chair Rep. Marjorie Smith, D-Durham warned the House of the consequences of making cuts blindly.

"What are you thinking?" she asked. "Are you thinking that somewhere in New Hampshire there is a free lunch? There is no free lunch; you have cut $5 million without thinking about where the money is going to come from."

Her argument was enough to stop passage of another $25 million cut, but there's that $5 million hole on the House side now.

"Mea culpa," Smith said after the House session. In the Democratic caucus Wednesday, party leaders went over a list of complicated bills for which they wanted to line up the vote.

"I thought these were so obvious that there was no reason to waste anyone's time," she said.

The $5 million budget change now heads to the Senate.

Sen. Lou D'Allesandro, D-Manchester, chair of the Finance Committee, was shocked to hear of the House vote. Most expect the cut to die in the Senate.

D'Allesandro said the bill lowers revenue without proposing offsetting cuts. "Is that good public policy?" he asked.

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REMEMBER WHEN the Fish and Game Department was in a fiscal crisis? As part of its rescue plan, it won passage of a bill that allows it to be more aggressive in charging irresponsible hikers for search and rescue costs.

Now the agency has a reserve fund of $5.8 million. That had Fiscal Committee members licking their chops last week, to the point where it looked like another JUA raid might break out.

Not so fast, said Glenn Normandeau, F&G executive director, after boasting that his tight-fisted policies built up the surplus. If the state starts using that money for general expenses, the federal government will cut off its funding, he said. The way the economy is behaving he added, the balance is sure to head downward.

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IT'S UNANIMOUS: The House last week went along with a 15-0 committee recommendation and killed one of two gun-ban bills that were filed this year.

House Bill 1654 went down on a 300-35 vote. It would have made it a class B felony punishable by a prison term to carry a firearm or other deadly weapon into the State House or Legislative Office Building.

Still pending is HB 1635, which puts a similar ban on deadly weapons in all public buildings.

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GOP FORUM: Republican candidates for U.S. Senate will be at Exeter's Old Town Hall next Sunday, Valentines Day, from 3 to 5 p.m. at an event organized by the Tri-Town Republican Committee.

Newly-elected state Rep. Ken Weyler, of Kingston, will be moderator for the forum. Members have drawn up a list of 24 questions.

Candidate answers will be limited to two minutes each.

Health care, earmarks, energy, homeland security and congressional gridlock are among the topics.

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Tom Fahey is State House bureau chief of the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. His e-mail address is tfahey@unionleader.com.