Politicians, Candidates React To Health Exchange Downtime

Today’s announcement from Governor Peter Shumlin that Vermont Health Connect has been disconnected – although disappointing and indicative of continuing problems – is both appropriate and long overdue. I believe we should use this time to truly assess our options. As I have said many times over the last year, it's my belief we should transition to the much simpler and fully functional federal exchange that 27 other states have successfully used, and that seven more are working with in partnership with the government. New Hampshire is an example of a state that chose to go with the federal exchange, at a total cost of $8 million. Here in Vermont, we’ve spent upwards of $70 million on a system which has created very real problems for thousands of Vermonters. As I said as recently as Friday at the Tunbridge Fair, I want the exchange to work. But I think it’s time to face reality and admit we need to stop trying to “get it right” with Vermont Health Connect and do the right thing for Vermonters.

Vermont has been, and continues to be, a leader in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. I am glad that Governor Shumlin is taking this critical step to fix Vermont Health Connect to ensure that it works as intended to help thousands of Vermonters gain access to quality health insurance. He is absolutely right that technology offers us benefits but also additional challenges when it comes to health care, and making these systems in Vermont and everywhere work as they should, and making them work well, must always be a high priority. I am hopeful that by taking the website offline temporarily, these problems can be addressed quickly, and the site can resume operations. As a Vermonter, I am always proud that our state ranks first or second in the nation in health and well-being, and I want it to stay that way.

It keeps getting worse for Vermonters. The catastrophic failure of Vermont Health Connect is putting Vermonters at risk. I’ve been meeting with some of the top health care leaders in the state throughout my campaign, discussing the right path for Vermont moving forward. I will continue to do what Gov. Shumlin should have been doing: engaging medical professionals, Vermonters looking for affordable care, and insurance providers to develop a solution to healthcare that expands access and provides more options to consumers. "If we keep doing the same thing we're doing, we're going to get the same result,” said Harry Chen, Secretary of Human Services, as quoted in a story posted on vpr.net. I agree with Harry Chen. Voters would do well to remember that on Election Day.

Like most Vermonters, I’ve been disappointed by the poor performance of the Vermont exchange website. People are frustrated and they have the right to be. If shutting down the site for repairs is what it takes to get to a fully functional portal, then so be it. My opponent has used this occasion to reiterate his call to shift to the Federal Exchange. That is an unworkable approach, and no solution. Not only would it mean greater costs for lower income Vermonters, it would eliminate the coverage standards that Vermonters have adopted. For those of us who are more interested in healthcare being delivered than shooting political barbs at a bad website, we are not about to turn our backs on working Vermonters, and we must ensure that Vermont Health Connect offers the full services Vermonters deserve. Finally, let me remind fellow Vermonters that the difficulties with the Exchange website is mostly due to the complexity of the current, insurance company-based hodge-podge, and illustrates again the need for a simple system that provides care to all Vermonters. In the comprehensive ("single payer") health care system, we will eliminate the complexity and inefficiency. Unless and until we accomplish universal coverage we will continue to have a piecemeal system riddled with problems.