Report from Montpelier
March 15, 2022 | By Rep. Theresa Wood The first half of the legislative session is behind us. What does that mean? All bills must be voted out of committee in the House and the Senate in order for them to be considered by the other body. It also means that unless it affects either the revenue or the expenses of the state, bills are likely “dead” for this biennium.
The House Human Services Committee, of which I am vice-chair, recently voted out of committee several bills impacting Vermonters. Three of them are outlined here.
H.720 There are approximately 16,000 individuals living with a developmental disability in Vermont. Simply stated, a developmental disability is a lifelong disability that impacts the capacity of an individual to be independent in a variety of life areas like decision-making, eating, dressing, safety, etc. There are a wide range of needs of people with developmental disabilities – from those who are independent or need very little assistance to those who need 24/7 help to live in our communities. H.720 is a bill that received unanimous support in my committee.
This bill will increase the options for residential support and provide additional quality improvement oversight of service providers. It also requires the state to receive legislative approval prior to implementing planned major system changes that will impact all people receiving services and all providers.
My committee also approved two bills that will have significant impacts on the opioid crisis in Vermont. Our state experienced the highest ever number of opioid deaths in 2021 – 181 through November. This significantly surpasses the three-year average of 120 per year. Largely overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the substance use crisis is ongoing and requires immediate action to save lives. At the same time, Vermont signed off on a national opioid settlement that will bring approximately $64 million to Vermont over the next 18 years to combat this crisis.
H.711 This bill creates an Opioid Abatement Special Fund that will be administered through the Department of Health with recommendations from a newly created Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. The national settlement is fairly prescriptive, but at the same time broad, in the activities that can be funded with the settlement. Examples of allowable activities range from prevention to treatment and recovery, training of first responders and research. It will still take some time for these funds to reach Vermont, so in the meantime, additional measures to combat this crisis are being taken in the following bill.
Draft bill 22-0621 expands the locations in which organized community-based needle exchange programs can operate; prohibits health insurance plans including Medicaid from requiring prior authorization during the first 60 days of initiating medication-assisted treatment when the prescribed medication is for opioid or opiate withdrawal; establishes an Overdose Prevention Site Working Group; and appropriates funds for three pilot programs specific to mobile medication-assisted treatment, supports for justice-involved individuals, and overdose emergency response.
The opioid crisis impacts people from every corner of Vermont and as such, it will take an ongoing, concerted effort to change the outcome for people with substance use issues, and their families.
State Rep. Theresa Wood, D-Waterbury, along with Rep. Tom Stevens represents the Washington-Chittenden House District covering Waterbury, Bolton, Huntington and Buel’s Gore. Email her at twood@leg.state.vt.us and tstevens@leg.state.vt.us