Current News
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by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org
Lawmakers narrowly defeated amendments on Tuesday that would have publicly funded college classes for private and religious school students. The split vote, 76-65, was an uncommon event in the House, where two-thirds of the lawmakers are Democrats.
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by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org
Kate Webb, D-Shelburne, was unanimously nominated by the House Democratic caucus to become the next majority whip for the House of Representatives. She first joined the Legislature in 2008 and she has served on the House Fish and Wildlife committee.
Webb replaces Tess Taylor, D-Barre, who suddenly left office on Friday to take a job lobbying for the pro-single payer 501c4 group VTCURE, or the Vermont Coalition for Universal Reform.
Sarah Copeland Hanzas, D-Bradford, was elected to deputy majority whip.
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by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org
In the annual dance to balance the state budget, zero is the magic number. This year, the budget and revenue committees in the House got as close to nada as possible.
They reduced spending without cutting programs, and managed to fill a $14 million hole with less than $1 million in new taxes on tobacco products.
Both the budget and the miscellaneous tax bill passed out of committees on Monday afternoon, preparing the way for debate on the House floor later this week. (The property tax rate bill, meanwhile, will be finalized on Tuesday.)
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The Tax Foundation has released its 2014 report on state sales taxes. While Vermont agonizes over New Hampshire's zero sales tax rate (one of only four in the nation), Vermont's overall rate is similar to many other states for its base rate (6 percent and ranked 16th) and relatively low when state and local rates are combined (34th).
Retail sales taxes are one of the more transparent ways to collect tax revenue. While graduated income tax rates and brackets are complex and confusing to many taxpayers, the sales tax is easier to understand: people can reach into their pocket and see the rate printed on a receipt.
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Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) on Tuesday responded to President Obama’s announcement that he will work with Congress to pass legislation to end the bulk surveillance of Americans’ phone records. Leahy is the lead Democratic coauthor of the bipartisan USA FREEDOM Act and has presided over five public hearings since last year on the government’s surveillance programs.
“I welcome the President’s statement that he plans to end the bulk collection of American’s phone records. That is a key element of what I and others have outlined in the USA FREEDOM Act, and that is what the American people have been demanding.
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In the state of New York, a family of four can make up to $95,400 annually and still qualify its children for comprehensive health coverage, while families in Arizona must make less than $33,400 to qualify their children, according to a PointCare analysis of 2014 Medicaid data.
For uninsured low-income families with children ages 0-18, it's important to know the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) limit under which Medicaid and some state's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) will cover their children. When a state has a higher FPL limit, more working families are afforded a greater opportunity to have their children covered. Other states may not be as "generous," having lower FPL limits for these programs. PointCare, a screening and enrollment software company that assists the uninsured in hospitals and health centers, has identified the top 10 most and least generous states as it relates to a family's annual income.
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by Morgan True vtdigger.org
Senator Kevin Mullin is floating the idea of a statewide symposium to help hospitals and health systems refine their recruitment pitch to clinicians regarding Vermont’s planned universal health care program.
The Rutland Republican said last week that universal health care would greatly expand access to health coverage and result in increased demand for services.
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Related Company: University of VermontKathy Giusti, founder and CEO of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) and a 1980 graduate of the University of Vermont, has been named one of the ‘World’s 50 Greatest Leaders’ by Fortune Magazine.
Giusti takes her place on the list in the company of such luminaries as Pope Francis, the Dalai Lama, Warren Buffett, Angela Merkel, Bill Clinton, Aung San Suu Kya, Jeff Bezos, Christine Lagarde, Michael Bloomberg, Gabrielle Giffords, and other leaders the magazine’s editors identify as “men and women who will inspire you—some famous, others little known, all of them energizing their followers and making the world better… On six continents—in business, government, the military, philanthropy, religion—we identified men and women, young and old, who are leading the way people want to be led."
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by Laura Krantz vtdigger.org
Brattleboro’s opiate treatment center is the latest acquisition in a nationwide methadone clinic empire being assembled by a holding of private equity giant Bain Capital.
CRC Health Group, owned by the Boston-based firm founded by 2012 GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, has purchased Habit OPCO, the East Coast company that runs the Brattleboro methadone clinic and another in West Lebanon, N.H.
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Related Company: Norwich UniversitySovernet CommunicationsNorwich University and Sovernet Communications announced an agreement for Sovernet to provide multiple gigabit speed (1Gbps or 1000Mbps) Internet connections to the Northfield campus.
Norwich has 2,300 undergraduates in attendance—including cadets, civilian residents and commuters—along with 1,200 online graduate students, 160 full-time and 60 part-time faculty members, and 600 staff. Because of its robust infrastructure, Norwich, which also supports renowned cybersecurity programs, demands the most sophisticated network capabilities. Sovernet’s construction of a fiber-optic network path through Northfield enabled the company to connect the institution.
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Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell appointed Assistant Attorney General John Treadwell as Chief of the Criminal Division of the Vermont Attorney General’s Office. Treadwell has 18 years of experience as a criminal prosecutor serving for four years as a Chittenden County Deputy State’s Attorney and 14 years as a prosecutor in the AGO.
“We need John’s experience and leadership skills. I am pleased that he agreed to take on the additional responsibilities as a division head. The Criminal Division has its plate full with several homicide, sexual assault and child protection and drug trafficking cases pending in courts around the State. I have the greatest confidence that John will provide solid leadership on these cases as well as on important criminal justice policy issues facing the State,” said Attorney General Sorrell.
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The American College of Healthcare Architects (ACHA) has named Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center one of two recipients of ACHA’s inaugural Legacy Project Awards. The awards were presented in Orlando, FL, on March 18 at the American Society of Healthcare Engineers (ASHE) Planning, Design, and Construction Summit.
Dartmouth-Hitchcock represents a paradigm shift in hospital design, incorporating and foretelling some of the most significant healthcare delivery and design issues of the past 25 years. This includes:
· A patient- and family centered campus
· A focus on managing first costs and ongoing operational costs with a series of connected, yet discrete buildings
· A mall as the organizing concept and circulation backbone
· The use of daylight and views of nature as a wayfinding strategy and a partner to medical treatment