The Green Mountain Care Board is conducting two important regulatory reviews this summer and fall that will significantly impact health care affordability for Vermonters. Now is the time when individuals and businesses can let the GMCB know how you feel about higher health care costs.

First, the GMCB is reviewing proposed health insurance rate increases that will be paid by individual households, businesses, and public agencies (e.g. health insurance for teachers and state employees) starting next January. The rate increases proposed by the health insurance companies range from 6.2% to 23.3%, on top of the already high premiums we pay.

Second, the GMCB will be reviewing hospital budget increases, which reflect hospital costs that already are some of the highest in the nation.

I mention both health insurance rate increases and hospital budget increases together because the two increases are closely related to each other. Hospital budgets are the largest component of health care costs in Vermont. Higher hospital costs are directly related to higher health insurance premiums. There are Vermont hospitals that operate efficiently (I believe Porter Hospital is one of them). However, and without endorsing their specific data and conclusions, some Vermont observers believe that the cost of administrative oversight and prices embedded in the UVM Health Network are much higher than they need to be. These observers believe that cost reductions in health network administrative costs and prices are feasible, and could lead to substantially lower health insurance premium increases. See inyurl.com/Vt-health-ins-costs.

If you wish to do so, public comments on health insurance and hospital budgets can be made to the Green Mountain Care Board online at gmcboard.vermont.gov/board/comment, via email at [email protected], or by calling (802) 828-2177

If you have questions or need help about health insurance, hospital budgets, or access to care, you can contact the Office of the Health Care Advocate’s HelpLine at 1-800-917-7787 or visit www.vtlawhelp.org/health.

As your legislative representative for Bristol, Lincoln, Monkton and Starksboro, please let me know if you have any thoughts about health care costs, or any other legislative matter.

Herb Olson

Starksboro