Devon Green, VP of Government Relations
Despite weather warm enough to keep the Capitol doors open earlier last week, the return to cold weather reminded us that the session is far from over. We’re hunkering down as bills pass out of committees and the House starts working on the FY 2024 budget in earnest.
Mental Health: Senate Appropriations removed $9.25 million dedicated to an adolescent inpatient psychiatric unit out of the FY 2023 Budget Adjustment Act (BAA). The proposal will be discussed for the FY 2024 budget after feasibility study results are released. The full Senate will likely pass the BAA out early next week.
The House Health Care Committee provided greater details on two bills they are considering for suicide prevention:
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H.230: requires safe storage of firearms around children, information about suicide prevention services at dealer locations, and a 72-hour waiting period for firearms transfer
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H.283: addresses suicide prevention services, such as dedicated funding for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, a suicide fatality review team, and suicide prevention in schools
Long Term Care: A rate study of the Medicaid reimbursement rates paid for adult day, adult day rehabilitation, personal care, and homemaker services submitted by the Department of Vermont Health Access and the Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living estimated $30.9 million is needed to adequately staff and fund services.
Blueprint Mental Health and Expansion: The Executive Director of Blueprint for Health presented the House Health Care Committee with greater details on the Administration’s proposed pilot to further integrate mental health services into primary care, expand substance use disorder services at hubs, and expand support to families through the DULCE Program for 2 years with a $4.6 million per year investment from the state for a total of $10.5 million per year. Despite Blueprint services benefiting all patients regardless of payer, commercial insurers are not expected to contribute to the pilot.
Dental: The House Health Care Committee heard from the Vermont Dental Society and the Health Care Advocate in support of the Administration’s proposal to increase Medicaid reimbursement to 75 percent of the commercial rate for dental care. Currently, the rate is 35 percent of usual and customary fees. The Vermont Dental Society presented evidence that increased reimbursement resulted in greater access to dental care.
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Should Vermont have standalone birthing centers? |
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WCAX
Should Vermont have birthing centers not affiliated with a hospital? Vermont is just one of eight states that don’t have them. But advocates for changing that gathered at the Statehouse Tuesday to make their voices heard.
“I felt so grateful and so emotional that I was able to have that experience, but knowing that not every woman has access to that -- I felt ready to try to advocate and fight for more birth centers in the U.S.,” said Carolyn Barnwell. The Woodstock woman says she had to travel an hour to New Hampshire to have her baby at a freestanding birthing center.
Advocates say the centers encourage natural births for mothers with low-risk pregnancies. They typically have a few rooms equipped with things like a birthing tub. “You know that you can’t get an epidural, you don’t have a surgeon there. This is you signing up to fully trust your body and allowing it to do what it was made to do,” Barnwell said.
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Gifford to Vt. Legislature: Workforce, Safety Key Concerns |
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The Herald
Last week, Gifford Health Care’s Ashley Lincoln, the vice president of development and public relations, sent out a missive to legislators summarizing some of the organization’s concerns and highlighting key pieces of legislation after a meeting with legislators in January was called off due to inclement weather. This year Gifford’s list of concerns includes problems with workforce availability, threats of violence to health care workers, and efforts toward health-care reform.
On the workforce front, the hospital’s fact sheet underscores the dearth of qualified nurses to fill roles needed at Gifford and across the state.
That lack of personnel has caused a dramatic hike in the use of so-called traveler nurses, who are intended to fill in short stints as temporary nurses.
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UVM Medical Center submits plan to GMCB for new outpatient surgery center |
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VBM
The University of Vermont Medical Center today submitted a certificate of need (CON) to the Green Mountain Care Board for a multispecialty outpatient surgery center (OSC) to be located at its current Tilley Drive campus in South Burlington. The new facility will help meet the need for surgical services for an aging and growing population in the hospital’s service area.
“Population forecasts show that by 2030, the total population in our service area will grow by 4 to 8 percent, and the 65-plus population will grow by 30 to 60 percent. We already see that our patients face access challenges, and a growing and aging population only exacerbates those challenges,” said Stephen Leffler, MD, UVM Medical Center President and Chief Operating Officer. “We will need more capacity to meet the health care needs of the people we serve.”
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Vermont organizations celebrate Recovery Day as residents discuss substance abuse disorder |
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NBC5
The state of Vermont recognized Recovery Day on Wednesday, celebrating all of the hard work that goes into recovery from substance use disorder.
Celebrations took place both online and at various in-person events across the state.
"I never thought that I would get clean and sober," said Krista Chesebro. "I just celebrated 19 months."
Chesebro said she's in recovery from about twenty years of addiction.
"I've learned that I am a good person and that I was sick, and I was trying to get better, and that I can get through anything," Chesebro said.
She uses her own experience to help others in recovery at Jenna's Promise, which focuses on building support networks for people in recovery and providing numerous aid resources.
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Red Cross: Three reasons to give blood this month |
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VBM
One in 7 patients entering a hospital will need a blood transfusion. At the same time, only about 3% of Americans give blood. The American Red Cross needs more people to make and keep appointments to give blood or platelets in February and has three great reasons to do so:
- Help prevent a blood shortage: Winter brings seasonal illness and dangerous weather, which can hurt the blood supply. When donors give now, they can help ensure blood is on hospital shelves when it’s needed.
- It’s Heart Month: During a blood donation appointment, the Red Cross checks donors’ blood pressure and pulse(link is external), which are important indicators of heart health.
- Treat yourself: All who come to give in February will get a $10 Amazon.com Gift Card by email, thanks to Amazon. Those who come to donate this month will also automatically be entered to win a trip for two to Clearwater Beach, Florida.
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Congress discussing ways to address nationwide healthcare worker shortage |
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Yahoo News
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are examining ways to address the growing shortage of healthcare workers nationwide.
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) estimates this shortfall will be upwards of 124,000 physicians by 2034.
And by that time, doctors say many active physicians will be aging as well and hitting over the age of 65.
The leaders from medical schools nationwide met with members of Congress Thursday.
They say the issue isn’t just retaining current healthcare workers. Doctors say they’re also struggling to find staff to teach the next generation of medical students, especially for the nursing profession.
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Onecare Vermont rolls out six new waivers to cut red tape, free up hospital beds and improve Vermonters’ healthcare |
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VTDigger
OneCare Vermont announced today that they will be granting six new waivers to their health care provider partners to alleviate Vermont’s strained hospital system and improve healthcare for Vermonters in 2023.
As an Accountable Care Organization, under the All-Payer Model, OneCare has the unique ability to petition the Federal Government to waive certain rules and regulations that stand in the way of improved health care for Vermonters. These waivers give OneCare’s provider partners flexibility and freedom from federal rules within the highly regulated health care system to work together and get people the care they need at the right time and the right place.
The waivers create more freedom for providers by allowing them to bypass Federal regulations and more quickly discharge patients from hospitals to better access to skilled nursing facilities, hospice and the Brattleboro Retreat and provide in home support for patients.
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Health regulators to decide how UVMHN will spend $18M on mental health |
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WCAX
Vermont health care regulators are expected to decide soon how the UVM Health Network will spend $18 million on mental health resources.
The Green Mountain Care Board in 2018 ordered the network to set aside $21 million in surplus funds dedicated to increasing inpatient mental health capacity. The network and GMCB agreed to build a $158 million adult inpatient facility at Central Vermont Medical Center to expand the current unit’s 15-bed capacity to 40. Three million of that funding was spent on planning and designs. But the project was shelved last April following pandemic budget shortfalls, leaving the remaining $18 million in limbo.
UVM Health Network CEO Sunny Eappen says leaders need to determine what other investment options could have the greatest impact. “How do we tie it into our ambulatory care, how do we tie it into our already existing ob practices and primary care practices, how does that integrate into inpatient care, whether it’s for adolescents, pediatrics, or for adults.
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Zach Wigham: Homelessness and older adults: Special challenges |
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Often unseen and hardly considered, older adult Vermonters make up a significant portion of those using emergency shelters for the unhoused across our state. My work with the Brattleboro Retreat as a clinician embedded in the community with Groundworks Collaborative allows me a rare vantage point into the challenges many of these older Vermonters face. Many have learned to carry onward after the loss of their family and social supports and with chronic substance use disorders, all while waiting within shelters for the right solutions. The loss of social support and the severity of chronic substance use exacerbate the natural biological, psychological, and social difficulties of aging. This reality forces Vermont’s shelters to think like nursing homes despite having none of their capabilities, working within systems of healthcare and housing that are both riddled with gaps.
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