Sanders, Welch, and Balint hear from Vermonters on health care costs

Vermont's three representatives in Congress heard from constituents Wednesday, most of whom were concerned about what's going to happen to their health insurance following Democrats losing the shutdown fight over health care tax credits.

"I don't have to tell anybody that these are enormously challenging times for this country," said independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who led the online town-hall style event alongside U.S. Sen. Peter Welch and Congresswoman Becca Balint, both Democrats. "In my view, and I speak only for myself, we are now dealing with a President who has very little respect for our Constitution, for the rule of law, and, frankly, he lies all of the time."

Sanders said the most immediate crisis for the delegation has been the expiration of the Affordable Care Act tax credits that was part of the spending deal reached in Congress following the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history. The loss of the credits is expected to cause around 30,000 Vermonters to see their premium costs double.

"In some cases, people will see their premiums triple or even quadruple at a time when, right now, we pay the highest prices in the world for health care and many Vermonters today can not afford health care," said Sanders.

Welch and Balint agreed, saying their top issue right now is the cost of health care.

"It reflects a kind of Trump-orientation, the way you cut down on health care expenditures is by taking people's health care away," said Welch. "We've got to continue this fight even after the longest shutdown in the history of the country."

Balint said she's heard from small business owners who say they fear losing employees and will now have to look elsewhere for health care coverage.

"This impacts the entire economy as well as our health and well-being," she said.

The three were asked about possible workarounds or solutions to the tax credits expiring. Sanders said it's not a done deal, and that he would not want to be a Republican lawmaker having to explain to his constituents why he voted to make health insurance more expensive.

"My hope is, if we can get an extension we can go forward to work out a better system for America. But right now it would simply be unconscionable to simply double premiums, triple premiums, quadruple premiums, for people in Vermont and all over the country," Sanders said.

They were asked about prescription drug costs. Welch said Americans pay far too much for prescriptions compared to other countries and that he's been working to change this.

"The bottom line here is that there is profiteering in the industry and it's coming at the expense of you, it's coming at the expense of taxpayers," he said. "We should be paying the same price others pay, and we're getting a lot of resistance."

Balint said many parts of the health care system are broken, including the current U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom she said spreads bad information on health.

"I hear from Vermonters all the time: Can I trust information coming from the federal government about health care? And unfortunately a lot of the time we have to answer, 'no.' I can't imagine this is where we are right now in this country," she said.

Other constituents said they were worried about Vermonters no longer having access to Medicare Advantage plans.

Sanders said that he and Welch are both on the Senate Committee on Finance, and earlier that day a Republican was testifying about wanting to end "traditional Medicare."

"Which, to my mind, would be an absolute disaster," Sanders said. "We are cognizant of the fact that Medicare Advantage programs are disappearing in Vermont. One of the things that these advantage programs offer are dental, vision and hearing coverage. I know that in Vermont and throughout this country you've got millions of people, elderly people, who have no teeth in their mouth, can't afford to go to a dentist, can't afford a hearing aid, can't afford a decent pair of glasses."

Sanders said that Medicare should cover hearing, dental and eyeglasses, but overall the United States needs to do what other major countries have done and switch to a universal health care system.

Welch agreed, saying the United States pays more for health care than others and gets worse results.

Balint said individuals should call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) for help finding a plan, though she acknowledged that will be difficult for Vermonters right now.

One caller asked why they should still vote for Democrats after the party made the concessions to Republicans to end the shutdown. The caller said they had dozens of friends who were hurt by the shutdown, but supported it over the health care issue who now feel betrayed by the party. The caller said they wanted a reason to support Democrats beyond bad things would happen if Republicans won.

"First off, that's a good reason," said Sanders. "But politics ain't easy. I am an independent … and I have real concerns about where the Democratic Party is and has been."

He said giving up is not an option and that right-wing Republicans being left with all the power would be a disaster.

"What we are trying to do is stop the assault of the Republican Party on the working classes, on this country, on the environment, on our kids, on democracy. You can't withdraw from that fight," said Sanders.

He said Democrats, like Republicans, have become too heavily swayed by folks with lots of money.

"There's no reason why the Democrats should not be supporting health care for all as a human right," he said.

Sanders noted that Democrats, especially young ones, have been winning elections, namely Zohran Mamdani, who recently was elected mayor of New York City.

Welch said participation is important, while Balint also noted that there is wide support for Democratic positions and a strong dislike among people for what the Trump administration is doing.

keith.whitcomb

@rutlandherald.com