Gov. Peter Shumlin is calling in reinforcements on Vermont Health Connect, the troubled website that has been the crucible of his most recent months in office.
That was the news out of the Statehouse Tuesday morning, where Shumlin made the unusual move of testifying before a joint meeting of the Senate Health and Welfare and House Health Care committees.
He pledged more hands on deck for the day-to-day management of the troubled health care exchange, in response to a request from Commissioner Mark Larson. The governor announced that Commerce Secretary Lawrence Miller — who Shumlin singled out for his private-sector business savvy — will assist with improvements to the exchange over the next three months.
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Vermonters who work know we are a state that is too small to manage such a grand endeavor. We can’t afford anymore taxes on anything. This is the craziest scheme I have heard of yet. Maybe a big state with lots of employment opportunities could handle it, but not VT. Take your grand ideas to another state, Mr. Shumlin.
We’ll assume you’re all set with insurance, Patty. Don’t speak for the people who have no insurance or are under-insured, because, for us, it’s a huge problem.
Paul, the exchange was created for folks like you previously without coverage. Sign up! What are you waiting for? If you previously couldn’t afford coverage the federal subsidies are supposed to get you there, according to the Governor, although it’s not free. If you don’t sign up I think there’s a penalty as the system is mandatory and you can’t purchase coverage elsewhere if you are an individual purchaser.
What Patty is addressing however, is the single payer system slated to begin in 2017. That will involve a payroll tax on your wages and most likely an income tax to pay for it, so that won’t be free either. I agree with Patty that we are too small a state to try this. My prediction is that system will cost a great deal more than the current system as more people will be covered, and the taxes are likely to be higher than people are expecting now and this may harm the state financially. On the upside, at least people who chose not to purchase today will have to contribute.
I am against single payer, but for Pete’s sake this current 3 year waste of money experiment is as bad as it gets. If there is going to be a single payer then just do it and don’t make people screw around on the exchange for 3 years only to change it all again. I realize that’s due to a federal mandate, which only illustrates the point of how assnine our government is at all levels.
As for the cost, well before we talk dollars and cents to pay for it we should talk about what costs what. Last trip to the ER for 5 stitches costs several thousand dollars…
In what business can you hide the cost of your services and then bill whatever you feel like after the service has been completed without explanation. Ever call to ask what a charge was for? How they came up with that number? Good luck getting a rational explanation…
Single payer will work only if the state says this is what said procedure will cost and not allow the hospital to bill insane amounts for minor issues.
JCarter 1 I have been concerned for some time about the use of PAs by Doctors, Emergency Rooms, Clinics, etc. I would like to know what the State of Vermont currently requires of these folks for education. I was a High School Guidance Office Registrar for many years, retired in 2006, and at that time, there were few colleges offering degrees in this area. Years ago a person could achieve that position by on the job training and I suspect there are probably Community Colleges and Two year Colleges that may offer and Associates Degree but I have not been able to find out exactly what or how much training they are required to have. This concerns me for a few reasons. They are able to diagnose; they are able to write prescriptions and it is my understanding that insurance companies are charged the same amount whether a patient is seen by a doctor, a nurse or a PA. If I am paying for insurance that qualifies me to see an MD, I sure as heck want to be diagnosed by an MD. Comments? Info re: training? Following this to its logical conclusion (due to lack of MDs and expected influx of new patients) I see this becoming the norm in medical care.
I supported Obamacare as it made its way through congress. I can now say i was wrong. It’s a disaster. Here in VT it’s even worse. Pull the plug.
My sister is a PA in Mass. and it was graduate level. There is licensing and professional development requirements that must be continually met. Insurance companies pay by codes submitted, so a 95.00 charge for an office visit is paid regardless of who saw you, MD, PA or NP.