On December 8, 2021

Federal review was wasteful

Dear editor,

We recently learned that the federal government has notified the state of Vermont that the enrollment targets for all-payer model (and thus the Accountable Care Organization, One-Care) are both “unattainable” and “unnecessary.”

This is an entirely new way to set standards. Imagine if a professor or teacher tells her students they need to write three papers, then decides it is unattainable after they fail to turn in the work, and then gives everyone an “A” anyway! We could also tell prospective lawyers they have to pass the bar exam, and then decide passing the bar is unattainable and certify them to practice the legal profession despite this. Should we apply this framework as well to pilots, surgeons, accountants, electricians? We could just keep changing the goalposts when people don’t meet them and declare them competent. Why should we stop with the all-payer model and OneCare?

Or maybe instead, we might conclude that this entire all-payer model, hinging on OneCare and an endlessly changing set of evaluative standards, should be disbanded before we waste more time and money. There is no reason that we needed another middleman in our health care system, when we could have pooled our funds on health care for all instead.

Ellen Oxfeld
Middlebury

Do you want to submit feedback to the editor?

Send Us An Email!

Related Posts

Quarter Pounder packs a wallop

November 6, 2024
Dear Editor, There is a problem with our food systems. The recent E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers has led to illness, hospitalization, and even death. The CDC, FDA, and other health agencies are investigating, with fresh slivered onions and quarter-pound beef patties as the suspected sources of contamination. This incident isn’t…

Doctors need more time with patients, not less

November 6, 2024
Dear Editor, Bruce Hamory’s recommendation to the Green Mountain Care Board to reduce doctors’ time with patients is completely off base. The report’s conclusion that the state will have enough primary care providers is based on primary care providers (PCPs) seeing three patients per hour, and many internists, who see more complex patients, currently see a…

Doing away with the Electoral College would make Vt’s votes matter less

November 6, 2024
Dear Editor, (In response to Matthew Cecere’s commentary, “The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact could give Vermont voters more impact”). I’m amazed to see an educator come out in favor of such a ridiculous concept, and to also be in favor of abolishing the Electoral College. No, the Electoral College is not perfect. But, it is…

Burdened by homelessness

November 6, 2024
‘Not in my backyard’ is hitting Rutland hard, solutions must be statewide By Alis Headlam Editor’s note: Alis Headlam, of Rutland, is a former educator and member of Project VISION. The “not in my backyard” syndrome has put the Rutland area in a very difficult situation. Rutland has become the go-to place for people who…