COMMENTARY: Human Services Secretary comments on health care reform report
October 17, 2024 | By Jenney Samuelson Editor’s Note: On Oct. 15, Vermont Secretary of Human Services Jenney Samuelson released the following statement on the recently released report containing recommendations for reforming Vermont’s health care system. A public process will be conducted to evaluate the recommendations.
I would like to express my gratitude to the Green Mountain Care Board and their consultant, Oliver Wyman, for their important work. This was a large and intensive undertaking over many months.
Understandably, many Vermonters are concerned about what these recommendations mean for them and their community. This is particularly true for the communities whose hospitals would be most affected if the report recommendations were implemented. In the next phase, it is left to all of us to assess both the feasibility and impact of their recommendations.
In the coming weeks, we will be meeting with communities, healthcare partners, and all interested Vermonters. We will work collaboratively with our state partners, including the Green Mountain Care Board and the General Assembly. We will fully assess the impact of our options, in particular on patient access and hospital viability. We must pay particular attention to the foundational work identified in the report such as access to community-based health services as well as a significant boost in housing required in order for health care system transformation to succeed.
I want to reassure Vermonters that any solutions we identify will be thoroughly evaluated. They will be both fiscally sound and operationally feasible. We will make sure our next steps improve patient access, quality, and affordability for Vermonters, and make sure that our local community health systems are strong and viable into the future. After all, we all rely on these systems for our routine care, and in an emergency.
Once again, I want to thank the Green Mountain Care Board for the report and its recommendations. The Agency of Human Services looks forward to fully evaluating our next steps, in collaboration with our partners and Vermonters, in the weeks and months to come.
Jenney Samuelson is Vermont’s secretary of the Agency of Human Services.