I agree with Senators Hardy and White that Vermont legislators deserve a better financial deal, including access to health care.
But I can’t help noticing that their reasoning for supporting a better health care deal for legislators applies just as strongly to ordinary Vermonters.
Take their core statement that “We want any Vermonter who is called to serve, of all ages, backgrounds, and family configurations, to be able to run for office and serve in the Legislature if elected. Our state will be better for everyone having a chance for a seat at the table.”
Don’t we also want “any Vermonter who needs health care, regardless of age, background and family configuration, to be able to see a doctor?”
Yet the Legislature has avoided even discussing a bill to provide universal primary care in Vermont, despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of Vermonters are “underinsured” — an abstract way of saying they often avoid getting needed health care despite having insurance because they can’t afford the deductible and co-pays.
Personally, I want all Vermonters, not just legislators, to be healthy enough to be able to sit at a table.
Lodiza LePore
Bennington
