With most of the ceremonial and necessary procedural formalities finished, our work is underway. At this early point, most of it is in our respective committees.
Temporary authority for town meeting regarding Australian Ballot voting and other matters: Last week, both the House and Senate passed H.42, which was signed by the governor on Wednesday. The bill basically extends through July 2024 the temporary authority granted during the pandemic to towns to vote on budgets by Australian ballot, and also covers other matters regarding meeting scheduling and attendance. A town’s selectboard must vote to adopt any provisions authorized in the bill.
The House Committee on Environment and Energy has been busy being briefed on issues before us, ranging from energy and regulated utilities, broadband, telecommunications, environmental permitting, forests’ role in climate change mitigation, water quality, solid waste, fish and wildlife, state parks and more. This newly reorganized committee has oversight responsibility on a very wide range of topics, some of which are related to each other and others that are not.
Several bills introduced so far have been referred to our committee, including a few that I have sponsored or co-sponsored.
Retired state employees and Medicare: The issue I’ve heard the most about from constituents by far is the administration’s proposal to change the standard benefit retired state employees receive supplementing their Medicare. Retirees would be shifted to a so-called Medicare Advantage plan controlled by a private insurance corporation, using both Medicare and state funds.
In addition to legal and contractual issues this raises, I have broader issues with this. Medicare was established in the mid-1960s to provide health care to Americans over 65. Supplemental insurance, like what most traditional Medicare recipients carry, offers some coverage beyond Medicare. Medicare has been one of the most successful and popular public programs in our nation’s history.
In my opinion, Medicare Advantage plans, first authorized in the late 1990s, were primarily an attempt to unravel this successful program and turn control and public funding over to the health insurance industry. There are numerous news stories and reports documenting serious problems people encounter with these plans, often involving denial of coverage for necessary services and procedures.
Anyone watching TV or looking at the internet this past fall during the open enrollment period for these plans will remember being inundated with ads featuring over-the-hill celebrities hawking them, usually shouting “call now” as the toll-free number appeared. In summary, I don’t support this proposal. (Note: I would be affected by this proposed change.)
I will touch on a few items in the governor’s budget address delivered on Jan. 20 in my next report.
Contact me at apatt@leg.state.vt.us or leave a message at the Sergeant at Arms office (802-828-2228.) To track any bills, agendas and written testimony for all House and Senate committees, or to view all House and Senate sessions or committee hearings either live or recorded, visit the legislature.vermont.gov.
Avram Patt, a Democrat from Worcester, also represents Morristown, Elmore, Woodbury and Stowe in the Vermont House.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexual language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be proactive. Use the "Report" link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.