Rep. Wood: A look at two key bills moving along in session’s second half

March 18, 2023  |  By Rep. Theresa Wood 

We are at the midpoint of the 2023 legislative session. It was a pleasure to be with you in person at Town Meeting this year.  Here’s what we’ve been up to in the House Human Services Committee.

Protecting vulnerable adults

The law investigating alleged abuse, neglect, and exploitation of vulnerable adults has not been 

updated in nearly 50 years. The Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living has been working with an advisory committee for several years to propose comprehensive changes to this law.

H.171 protects vulnerable adults whose health and welfare may be adversely affected by abuse, 

neglect, or exploitation. This legislation modernizes our current 50-year-old law to strengthen 

protections for vulnerable adults, focus on victims' rights, and provide a path for restitution for 

families and victims. The bill also improves the range and scope of behavior covered as financial exploitation. The legislation creates two tracks for alleged abuse, neglect, or exploitation reports, one for an "assessment" and one for a full investigation, leading to greater flexibility in redressing harm through protective measures and restorative justice.

Reducing overdoses

Over the past several years, Vermont has experienced record-breaking rates of fatal overdoses due to disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and the increased prevalence of fentanyl.

H.222 is an omnibus overdose response bill with bipartisan support that seeks to reverse the trend of fatal overdoses, and it is only one step in our ongoing work to strengthen access to life-saving services in Vermont's communities.

Vermont has a considerable need for recovery housing. H.222 will allow a recovery house with 8 or fewer beds to be permitted as a single family home, which will remove current zoning barriers and increase the number of recovery houses across the state. This change aligns recovery house zoning with what is currently permitted for group homes serving people with disabilities. The bill also removes barriers to treatment for Vermonters who are Medicaid beneficiaries by streamlining the process for getting prescriptions. Statewide access to syringe disposal and legal protections for Vermont’s syringe service providers are also increased in this legislation. H.222 also modernizes Vermont’s laws on naloxone (Narcan) to support innovative ways for people to access this life-saving medication. Finally, this legislation makes permanent

State Rep. Theresa Wood, D-Waterbury

Act 46 of 2021, which removes the criminal penalties for possession of a personal use amount of buprenorphine used in the treatment of pain and opioid addiction.

​With the passage of these two bills out of the House Human Services Committee, we will begin the second half of the session focusing on child care, toxic substances, and flavored tobacco bills that are coming over from the Senate. 

You can find information about these bills and all of the other legislation being considered on the Legislature’s website, legislature.vermont.gov.

Chair of the House Human Services Committee, Rep. Theresa Wood, D-Waterbury, represents the Washington-Chittenden legislative district that covers Waterbury, Bolton, Huntington and Buel’s Gore. Email: twood@leg.state.vt.us.