House Speaker Gaye Symington on Peter's Leadership on Health Care Reform

I am very proud of the work of last year's work in the House and Senate to address the need for meaningful health care reform. Our health care legislation would have led the nation in addressing the two major challenges we face: rising costs and assuring universal access.

The House passed a bill that set out a new vision for how Vermont should deliver and pay for health care. As should happen in the legislative process, the Senate improved it. The bill was made stronger by combining the roadmap to universal, comprehensive coverage outlined in the House bill, with immediate steps in the Senate's to fund Green Mountain Health. Had the Governor not vetoed this legislation, every Vermonter would now have access to their own doctor for primary, preventive and prenatal care. The Senate bill also included paying for this innovative program through public financing: by asking those individuals and businesses who do not now contribute anything toward the costs of health care, to pay a fair share.

I worked closely with Peter Welch, our Senate President Pro Tem, as we both sought to fulfill the Democratic commitment we share to improve our system of delivering and paying for health care. Peter was a partner in this fight and an innovator, helping us define the problem and bring people together to help solve it.

Gaye Symington
Speaker of the Vermont House