Wednesday, February 20, 2019
Thousands of current and former members of the Vermont National
Guard may have been exposed to toxic smoke from burn pits during overseas deployments in the past 30 years, but only a small percentage appear to be aware of the health risks posed by such exposure.
Vermont legislators want to change that by increasing awareness
among service members and health care professionals about what Senate President Pro Tempore Tim Ashe (D/P-Chittenden) called a “ticking time bomb in public health.”
Of the estimated 10,000 Vermont guardsmen who have served in overseas theaters where burn pits were used by U.S. forces, just 366 have signed up for a registry aimed at sharing information with service members who may have been exposed.
That tells Ashe that “something hasn’t quite clicked yet in a pervasive way among returning service members” about the need to sign up for what is known as the federal Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry.
“A lot of people aren’t even aware of the registry and, certainly, I don’t think the general public is informed about this issue,” Sen. Jeanette White (D-Windham) said Wednesday.
Tags: Vermont National Guard , Tim Ashe , Jeanette White , Michael Heston , Military , health , environment , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Friday, February 15, 2019
The bill, H.57, had previously been approved by the House Human Services Committee. Judiciary made a number of changes in an effort to clarify its intent.
Supporters say the bill is necessary in case the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, the decision that established a legal right to abortion.
Opponents have claimed that H.57 would open the door to unlimited abortion rights — even for late-term abortions. Not so, said legislative counsel Brynn Hare. "Any procedure prohibited under federal law would continue to be prohibited under H.57," she told the committee.
Tags: Tom Burditt , Selene Colburn , Brynn Hare , abortion , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
The legislation, which will move to the Senate Finance and Appropriations committees before consideration by the full Senate, would establish a statewide Cannabis Control Board tasked with setting up regulations and a permitting system for Vermont.
Senate Judiciary Committee chair Dick Sears (D-Bennington) said that the legislation may get a full Senate vote before Town Meeting Day, which falls on March 5.
Tags: Cannabeat , marijuana , tax and regulate , cannabis , Dick Sears , S.54 , Vermont , Senate , bill , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Thursday, February 14, 2019
The proposed legislation would force insurance companies to automatically cover drugs used in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) without requiring doctors to get prior authorization from the insurer.
Advocates and physicians supporting the legislation say patients can struggle while awaiting that approval.
“It can be two days before that would be authorized,” said Dr. Kathleen McGraw, the chief medical officer at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. “When somebody’s coming in and saying, ‘I’m ready for help,’ in two days they will be going through dramatic withdrawals.”
Tags: opiates , methadone , buprenorphine , naltrexone , heroin , recovery , health insurance , medication assisted treatment , medication assisted therapy , narcotics , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency indicated in a letter Monday that a proposal put forth by Gov. Phil Scott’s administration passes muster. The determination is based on the assumption that the legislature will approve the funding plan.
Scott’s proposed state budget includes new funding for clean water from the estate tax, which is expected to provide $9 million or more each year.
The February 11 letter, signed by acting regional EPA administrator Deborah A. Szaro, is part of an ongoing effort to bring Lake Champlain and other Vermont waterways into compliance with the Clean Water Act. The state is under a federal order to reduce the amount of phosphorus that flows into the lake, which fuels smelly and potentially toxic algae blooms.
The federal stamp of approval marks a significant milestone for the Scott administration, which was warned last year that the state’s continued failure to come up with a long-term funding plan could jeopardize its "provisional" passing grade on water cleanup. Under the Vermont Clean Water Act of 2015, Scott's administration was required to release a long-term funding proposal by the end of 2017. The administration didn't come up with a proposal, frustrating last year's efforts to set up a funding source.
Tags: Julie Moore , Phil Scott , Environmental Protection Agency , Agency of Natural Resources , Lake Champlain , TMDL , EPA , lake cleanup , Deborah Szaro , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Friday, February 8, 2019
Young’s legislation to establish a regulated retail cannabis market is similar in many ways to a Senate bill, S.54, introduced last month. But the House measure, H.196, would allow existing medical marijuana dispensaries to pay a $75,000 fee so that they could sell to the general public at the beginning of next year. The state would then continue to iron out details about the regulatory structure of the recreational market before other dispensaries could open in April 2021.
In addition to giving Vermont’s would-be cannabis customers an earlier start, Young said the licensing fees would “get some funds in order to create the board and the regulated market.”
Tags: Cannabeat , H.196 , Sam Young , cannabis , marijuana , retail , regulate , tax and regulate , Tom Stevens , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Thursday, February 7, 2019
The legislation is a scaled-back version of a proposal that would have provided a one-year extension for all of the districts that were required to merge by July 1, 2019. That measure, which had support from a tripartisan coalition of House lawmakers, failed Wednesday.
Tags: House , Education , Act 46 , school consolidation , school merger , school district , merger , Board of Education , Heidi Scheuermann , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
The Thursday morning vote on H.57 was 8-3, with all three Republican members voting no. The yes votes came from the panel's six Democrats plus Reps. Sandy Haas (P-Rochester) and Kelly Pajala (I-Londonderry).
The bill was amended in an effort to clarify its intent. Opponents had claimed that H.57 would open the door to unlimited abortion rights. Supporters argued that the bill would not supersede federal laws, and that state law has contained no limits on abortion access since 1972 without any nightmare scenarios coming to pass.
The new version of H.57 eliminates a provision declaring that fetuses have no rights. It also adds language specifying that the bill would not supersede the federal ban on late-term dilation and extraction procedures, which abortion opponents refer to as "partial-birth abortions."
Fetuses currently have no rights in Vermont law due to the 1989 Vermont Supreme Court decision in State v. Oliver. The case involved a traffic crash resulting in the death of a fetus. The court ruled that there was no legal basis to charge the offending driver with negligent operation of a vehicle resulting in death.
The House Judiciary Committee will take up the bill next week.
Tags: Kelly Pajala , Sandy Haas , Vermont , abortion , bill , House , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Anti-abortion groups and the Vermont Republican Party had urged members to attend the hearing and speak out against H.57, a bill that would establish reproductive rights in state law. “This is a watershed moment,” VTGOP chair Deb Billado said. “We wanted to urge people to be there and express their opinions.”
Opponents say the bill would go beyond current legal protections and create an absolute right to abortion — including late-term abortion. “The bill implies that at eight months and 30 days, you can abort a baby,” Billado said. “I find this to be a horrific thing.”
Supporters say that federal law supersedes state law and would prevent any expansion of abortion rights beyond current practice.
Tags: Ann Pugh , Rebecca Kelley , Deb Billado , Corey Parent , Greg Darling , Dotty Kyle , Vermont , abortion , H.57 , Statehouse , Montpelier , House , pro-choice , Roe v. Wade , anti-abortion , VTGOP , Phil Scott , governor , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
The 69-74 vote in the Vermont House was a setback for communities asking for more time to set up new, merged districts — but it did not signify the end of the road.
Dozens of districts are also looking to the courts for help. They’ve sued the state Board of Education, which ordered the mergers under Act 46, arguing that the mandate is unconstitutional. Those hoping for delay said the extra time would allow for the court cases to be resolved before the districts are forced to change their governance.
Despite Wednesday's defeat, a more limited delay may still be in the offing.
Tags: Act 46 , education , school merger , school district consolidation , Heidi Scheuermann , Kate Webb , Statehouse , Image , Web Only