People's Guide to the Legislature

2010 Legislative Session
The only legislation that has been introduced into the Vermont State Legislature for the 2009-2010 session that meets our human rights principles for healthcare are H.100 and S.88. (Links are to .pdf files of each bill, check out a summary here: http://www.workerscenter.org/node/168.) A January 12 statehouse hearing on the two bills gave almost a hundred Vermonters the opportunity to testify to our legislators on the importance of making healthcare a human right. While previous attempts at single payer legislation failed to get out of committee, our ability to mobilize thousands of Vermonters in every part of the state will make this an issue that cannot avoided. And Vermont can no longer wait, as the exploding costs of healthcare are at the heart of all of the budget crisis our state is facing.

While the incumbent Republican governor is almost certain to veto the legislation, the Democrats twice overrode a veto in the 2009, making it possible for our members to demand another veto from their elected representatives on the Human Right to Healthcare. It is not going to be easy, but with our ever-broadening base of active members we will be connecting legislators with hundreds of their constituents who believe in this needed shift. We intend to progress as far as possible with HCHR during the upcoming legislative session, while building a movement with the power to continue the fight for the Human Right to Heathcare into the 2010 elections and beyond.

The Bills
Several bills addressing different aspects of healthcare reform have been introduced to the legislature in this session (click here for a brief analysis of the different bills). However, the only two bills which meet our human rights principles are H.100 and S.88. Click here for a summary of the two bills. (See analysis of ammended version of S.88 v2.2 here: http://www.workerscenter.org/newS.88)

On March 9, the Senate Health and Welfare Committee released a version of S.88 that contains our human rights principles as explicit guidelines for establishing a universal system of healhcare. This is a huge step for the campaign, and represents months of hard work by Vermonters. To ensure that S.88 passes through both the Senate and the House, we need to encourage Vermonters to contact their legislators and ask them to support the bill.

The People's Directory
Curious to see how your legislators really feel about healthcare reform? Need to send someone in Montpelier an email? Check out The People's Directory, our up-to-date guide to the Vermont legislature and how to get in touch with our elected officials. Remind the folks at the statehouse who they're working for: us.

The People's Team
The People's Team is the campaign's eyes and ears in Montpelier, keeping track of all political manuevering and legislative developments around healthcare reform. Their up-to-the-minute blog is a window into what's really happening in the Statehouse. Find out who's fighting for Vermonters, and who's twiddling their thumbs. Take a look.