How Vermont Became One Of The Best States For Health Care

Healthcare is a significant issue that is altered and addressed not just in the United States of America, but also around the world. In regard to the US, healthcare varies drastically in the fifty states. The state of Vermont, which has a population of 623,960, is ranked number six in the country for Best States for Health Care. Vermont has a state-run health insurance exchange. They also adopted the federal exchange, Obamacare. There are reasons for Vermont’s success, and it brings up the question of why all of the states cannot do the same and ensure that their residents receive quality healthcare, just like “Vermonters.”

Not surprisingly, politics plays a huge role in the states' composition and in the way a state functions as a whole. From 1854 to 1962, the state voted solidly for the Republican Party. From 1963, the governor's office bounced back and forth between the Democratic and Republican parties with each election. Since 1992, the Democratic Party has carried the state in every election. Even in the 2016 Presidential Election, the state shined blue. The Green Mountain Care Board was created by the Vermont Legislature in 2011, under the Democrats.

Vermont’s health care programs are called Green Mountain Care. The Green Mountain Care insurance programs include MCA, MABD and MWD, and Long-Term Care Medicaid. Medicaid for Children and Adults includes Dr. Dynasaur coverage for children and teens under age 19 and for pregnant women. Eligibility for this program is based on household income size. Applying for MCA can be done at any time of the year. Applicants can apply online, on paper, or by directly by phone. Copays vary from anywhere between $1.00-$8.25. Medicaid for the Aged, Blind and Disabled & Medicaid for the Working Disabled are for low income Vermont residents who are blind, disabled, or are sixty-five and older, as well as low income Vermonters who are disabled and able to work. To qualify for MABD, applicants must be a resident of Vermont, must obviously be either sixty-five or older, blind, or disabled. Their incomes must meet the federal poverty level (FPL). For example, adults who are blind or disabled, or are over the age of sixty-five, must have a monthly income of $1,025 or less. The eligibility for this program is reviewed at least once a year.

Vermont’s Long-Term Care Medicaid program is rightfully called, Choices for Care. Choices for Care helps to pay for long-term care services in the setting of the Vermont residents’ choice. This can be someone’s house, a nursing home, an approved residential care home or an assisted-living facility. To qualify for this program, Vermont residents must be at sixty-five years old, at least eighteen years old with a physical disability, or must be eligible for Medicaid under the Medicaid for Children and Adults guidelines. Needless to be said, they must also meet the financial criteria. If the chosen setting is a home, the program provides case management, personal care services, adult day centers, respite for unpaid caregivers, companionship, emergency response, assistive devices, and home modifications. If the chosen setting happens to be an adult family care home, the program provides case management, twenty-four hour care, personal care services, adult day centers, companionship, and respite for unpaid caregivers. Similar care is provided in assisted living facilities and even more are arranged in nursing homes. There are many aspects to healthcare and it is broader than most Americans realize. Vermont seems to know what its residents’ necessities are. They not only provide great overall healthcare coverage, they also provide assistance for what is necessary to maintain the health and wellness they worked so hard to establish for Vermonters in the first place: prescriptions.

Currently, there are two prescription assistance programs in Vermont. Healthy Vermonters provides a discount on prescription medicines with no monthly premiums and VPharm helps pay for prescription medicines with affordable monthly premiums. Individuals who “meet the income guidelines AND have no prescription coverage or have reached their maximum benefit amount on their current prescription coverage” are eligible for Healthy Vermonters. Individuals who “meet the income guidelines AND are enrolled in Medicare Part D coverage” are eligible for VPharm. Vermont makes sure that its residents can afford their medications, which is something other states should take note of. Obamacare is also present in Vermont. There are five things that determine how much Obamacare will cost for an individual: level of coverage they choose, whether they qualify for a subsidy, where they live in Vermont, their age, and whether they smoke. There are four levels of coverage to choose from: platinum, gold, silver, and bronze. The costs of Obamacare may be reduced depending on the household size and income. Premiums vary depending on where in the state Vermonters reside. The costs of plans most likely depend on how old a resident is. Vermont law prevents insurance companies from charging higher premiums for tobacco users. Even within Obamacare, Vermont found a way to make it even better and more desirable.

Vermont’s healthcare system should be analyzed by the states who still are unable to provide their residents with affordable, quality healthcare. The establishment of Vermont’s Green Mountain Care programs led to the success of building a healthcare system that works for almost everyone. The rate of uninsured residents in Vermont is amongst the lowest in the nation. Only about 3.7% of Vermonters are uninsured. With such a low uninsured rate and various plans to fit almost all residents, the public does not seem like they are complaining. Of course, all of these accomplishments came with a price, and in 2012, that price was about $5.9 billion. That is how much Vermont spent on healthcare in that year alone. In 2015, Vermont spent about $9,112 per person on healthcare, which was less than the national average of $9,504 per person. Although it is certainly expensive, it looks like it was, and still is, worth it. After analyzing the way healthcare works in the state of Vermont, it is obvious that a lot of thought and effort was put into building a system that is ranked number six in the nation in “Best States for Health Care.”