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NEED TO KNOW
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Take Action! Primary Care Budget Decisions this Week
After last week, when Committees of jurisdiction faced their "crossover" deadline, now budget and tax Committees face their deadline to advance bills out of their committees by the end of the week. The House Appropriations has begun to finalize their FY27 Budget priorities and asked Committee members to rank their top three priorities.
Please Take Action This Week! Currently, NO funding to backfill cuts to primary care funding or primary care workforce is on their preliminary list.
Please email the House Appropriations Committee NOW to urge them to at least fund these critical primary care initiatives:
- Restore $1.27 million for AHEC programming, loan repayment and physician placement services;
- Restore $2.01 million Medicaid alternative payments to primary care;
These cuts are on top of the loss of other primary care payments and programs including:
- No inflationary increases to the Medicaid fee schedule (would require $3.31 m);
- $7.7 m loss for the end of OneCare Vermont primary care programs (Jan.-June '27)
- No funding for the DULCE program (would require $1 million)
Please email the House Appropriations Committee ASAP: rscheu@leg.state.vt.us; tbluemle@leg.state.vt.us; edickinson@leg.state.vt.us; jkascenska@leg.state.vt.us; wlaroche@leg.state.vt.us; mmrowicki@leg.state.vt.us; mnigro@leg.state.vt.us; tsquirrell@leg.state.vt.us; tstevens@leg.state.vt.us; dyacovone@leg.state.vt.us; mfeltus@leg.state.vt.us; autumn.crabtree@vtleg.gov |
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Mid-Session Legislative Update
As the “crossover” deadline has now passed, the House and the Senate are busy voting on bills on the floor and beginning to take up bills that have passed out of the other body. Seen above, VMS Executive Director Jessa Barnard participated in a press conference this morning with members of the Senate, thanking the Senate Health and Welfare Committee for passing S. 197, the bill addressing primary care payment reform. VMS has a prepared a comprehensive summary of legislation now pending at the Statehouse available here. Topics cover primary care, the budget, public health, regulation of insurance and costs of care, health care facility regulation, and professional regulation/licensure.
In addition to the work of the budget committees (see article above), on the agenda for this week, the Senate Health & Welfare Committee is beginning to take up H. 84, the bill to allow recording of telehealth visits, and the House Health Care Committee is taking up S. 163, a bill adding APRNs to the hospital bill of rights and hospital licensing statute addressing admitting patients for hospital care. S. 198, related to cannabis regulation, is still under consideration in the Senate.
S.64, the bill expanding optometry scope of practice to allow laser and surgical procedures, passed out of the Senate Health & Welfare committee last Friday by a vote of 3-2. The bill is now in the Senate Finance Committee and is on the schedule for discussion on Thursday. Senator Lyons and Senator Cummings did not support the bill and expressed concerns. Please reach out to them to thank them for their support of patient safety - vlyons@leg.state.vt.us and acummings@leg.state.vt.us. Please reach out to your own Senators to urge them to oppose the bill on the Senate floor. Find your Senators’ contact information here. |
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VT Rural Health Transformation Program Begins Releasing Funding Opportunities
Vermont’s Agency of Human Services (AHS) has begun releasing Request for Proposals (RFPs) and Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) associated with the State’s Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program. Active NOFOs and RFPs can be found on this webpage: RHT Program RFPs/NOFOs. Funding opportunities will be added to this page as they are posted.
Below are the RFPs/NOFOs that were posted the week of 3/13: |
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If you have questions about any of the above funding opportunities, please direct those to the point of contact indicated on the specific RFP/NOFO to receive a timely and relevant response. Please do not direct questions about specific RFPs/NOFOs to the AHS general RHT email inbox. If you are interested in joining the AHS’s RHT Program distribution list to receive program updates and email notice of funding opportunities, please click here. |
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VMS Congratulates Physician Leadership Course Graduates
VMS extends its congratulations to the 24 physicians to be the first to complete our newly reimagined leadership course held in conjunction with the University of Vermont and Larner College of Medicine! Course participants have been attending lectures since September and at their final session last week presented capstone leadership projects on topics ranging from AI Chart Review for Pre-Visit Planning to Improving Perinatal Primary Care Access through Care Coordination to Improving Access for Pediatric Sleep Patients. The presentations were inspiring and should give Vermont hope for the future of health care delivery in our State. VMS also thanks course leaders Sarah Davis, MD, and Trey Dobson, MD. Congratulations to:
Allison Adams
Maria Burnett
Ben Clements
Josh Cole
Sarah Decker
Lisa Duel
Georgia Farrell
Patricia Fintak
Andrew Geeslin
Paige Georgiadis
Michael Hehir
Rachel Inker
Alice Kaufman
Carolyn Koulouris
Callie Linehan
Bryan Monier
Mark Peluso
Reija Rawle
Kimberley Sampson
Sarah Schlein
Tracy Tyson
Aaron Wallace
Ashley Weisman
Diana Wilson
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MISC.
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Registration Open for Remaining 2026 Legislative Breakfasts
Meet your lawmakers and advocate for health care policies over coffee and a light breakfast at our 2026 Legislative Breakfasts! These breakfasts, which will all be held in the cafeteria from 8-9am at the Vermont Statehouse in Montpelier, are an informal opportunity to educate lawmakers on ways to improve Vermont's practice environment.
The Vermont Medical Society (VMS) will be trading off hosting the remaining breakfasts with the Vermont Academy of Family Physicians and the American Academy of Pediatrics Vermont Chapter.
Registration is now available! Register here.
Vermont Medical Society - All MD, DO, PA and Medical Students Encouraged to Join
Vermont Academy of Family Physicians
American Academy of Pediatrics Vermont Chapter
- March 18, 2026
- April 15, 2026
Learn more and RSVP for any of the dates here. Please reach out to Jill Sudhoff-Guerin at jsudhoffguerin@vtmd.org if you have any questions. |
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The Vermont Medical Society welcomed the Vermont AHEC LGBTQ+ elective to the State House on March 11th, as seen above. The group is pictured with the portrait of Madeline Kunin, Vermont's first and to date, only female governor. |
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Clinician Recruitment: University of Vermont Perinatal Substance Use Care Research Study
Vermont clinicians are invited to participate in an IRB-approved research study to better understand current care practices, challenges, and workflows for perinatal patients with substance use disorder. Insights from participating providers will be analyzed alongside a de-identified chart review (2021-2023) to identify trends in MAT discontinuation and gaps in care. Providers involved in the care of perinatal patients with substance use disorder in the specialties of OBGYN, Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Addiction Medicine, and Psychiatry are invited to participate.
Choose the option most convenient for you:
- One-on-one interview (Zoom or Teams) (30 – 60 Minutes)
- Virtual focus group (Zoom or Teams) (30-60 Minutes)
- Anonymous REDCap Survey (no scheduling needed)
Use the link below to sign up: https://calendly.com/bazinetphillipsj If you would like more information before signing up or prefer to participate via an anonymous REDCap survey, please feel free to contact us by email at Jasmine.Bazinet-Phillips@med.uvm.edu or phone at (802)-847-7986. See more information on the survey flyer and information sheet. |
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EVENTS
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Massachusetts Medical Society Presents Future Health: Best Practices for Advancing Care
March 21st - Waltham, MA
The focus of the conference will be “Preparing Health Care Teams: Meeting the Present and Preparing for the Future,” and will feature Dr. Ashish Jha as the keynote speaker.
The MMS would like to invite members of VMS and your staff team to join us for a day of in-person learning and professional networking. The attached flyer includes some basic information about the program and a dedicated discount code (FHB26NE) your members may use to register at the MMS member rate.
For more information or to register for the conference, please visit: futurehealthbest.org
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Leveraging AI Technologies for Financial Sustainability in Rural Health
March 30th, Zoom
Join the NERHA for an upcoming webinar exploring how artificial intelligence can support long-term financial sustainability for rural healthcare organizations.
Rural healthcare organizations face growing pressure from workforce shortages, administrative burden, and limited financial resources. In this session, participants will explore how AI-driven tools and agents can help organizations strengthen operational efficiency and support sustainable transformation efforts; particularly those aligned with Rural Hospital Transformation Program (RHT) initiatives.
In this webinar, you will learn how AI can:
- Expand workforce and practice capacity without adding headcount
- Improve revenue cycle performance and capture missed revenue
- Reduce operational costs while maintaining quality care
- Support sustainable rural health transformation through technology
Register here.
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2026 Vascular and Cardiac Forum
April 7, 2026
DoubleTree by Hilton, South Burlington, VT
The Vascular and Cardiac Forum this year will provide
primary care, internal medicine, urgent care, and physical therapy providers
with education about a variety of vascular and cardiac conditions. The
objectives are to improve accuracy and timeliness of the diagnosis and
treatment of these conditions and efficiently use expert consultation in a
value-based environment. Please visit the conference website and registration
link here. |
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AI in Medicine Conference
April 10, 2026
Delta Hotel by Marriott, South Burlington, VT
Join the University of Vermont for this inaugural conference exploring the applications of AI in medicine. This event is appropriate for physicians, physician assistants, nursing, advanced practitioners, researchers, and other interested professionals.
Please visit the conference website and registration link here. |
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AlpTerra Wilderness Medicine Course
October 1–5, October 8–12, 2026
Franconia, New Hampshire
Join Alpterra for an immersive, hands-on wilderness medicine course designed to prepare you for real-life scenarios in the outdoors. Treat mock injuries, problem-solve in the elements, and walk away with practical skills that stick.
- Max 4:1 participant-to-instructor ratio for highly personalized, discussion-driven learning.
- Accredited for up to 16 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ — an excellent use of your CME allowance.
- Stay on-site in a luxury home-style setting. Enjoy locally sourced, family-style meals tailored to dietary needs.
- Add-on trips let you ski, climb, or explore the White Mountains with expert guides before or after your course.
Learn more about the agenda and registration here. |
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2026 Collaborative Meeting November 13 - 14, 2026 Stowe, VT
The 2026 Collaborative Meeting is taking place November 13th and 14th at Topnotch Resort in Stowe, Vermont. Please save the date and join us this Fall! Stay up to date on additional details by visiting here. |
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For more information about offerings from UVM
CMIE, visit here. |
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Vermont Medical Society PO Box 153 Williamstown, VT 05679 -- Unsubscribe -- |
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