Conference committee reviews draft on Vermont comprehensive primary health care and limits for data sharing

Jen Kirby of the Office of Legislative Council presented "House conferees proposal number 1," a merged markup of House and Senate language on a bill to establish a Vermont steering committee for comprehensive primary health care and a unified health data space, and committee members debated limits on data integration and reporting deadlines.

The proposal preserves a Jan. 15, 2028, deadline for the initial statewide health care delivery plan and sets subsequent updates every three years due Dec. 1, expands the advisory committee to 18 members by adding a representative of advanced practice registered nurses, a licensed mental health professional from independent practice, and a small‑business representative, and requires specific reporting and timing on hospital incentive payments and data integration.

Kirby summarized the markup as an integration of the Senate proposals that were "amenable" into the House draft: "So, basically, what I did was integrate all of the proposals from the senate ... and showing changes to those that were modified in some way," she said. She noted minor name changes and cross‑references that still need cleanup in the text.

On data sharing, the draft would require the Agency of Human Services (AHS) to work with the Health Information Exchange (HIE) steering committee on development of a unified health data space, but it would limit integration of clinical, claims and social‑drivers data until Jan. 1, 2027. The draft also specifies that any integration of those data types "shall occur only upon the favorable vote of a majority of all voting members of the HIE steering committee and only for the specific uses approved by a majority of all voting members of the steering committee."

A provision for an initial Jan. 15 report would ask AHS to describe advantages and disadvantages of integrating clinical, claims and social‑needs data, how such integration could improve access and reduce administrative burdens, how it could be implemented to protect proprietary information, and the timeline for implementation. Kirby said the ongoing updates would begin in 2027.

A committee member raised concerns about who would have access to which datasets, citing possible legal and contractual constraints: "Not only am I very concerned about payers having access to clinical data, I'm actually also worried about providers having access to claims data, because I think it gets into some antitrust things and contracts and proprietary," the member said. The member also urged inclusion of occupational therapists and physical therapists on advisory bodies because of care needs such as long COVID.

The markup also adjusts reporting tied to hospital finances: it directs AHS to report how much of the $2,000,000 appropriated for hospital incentive payments had been obligated as of Nov. 15, with a December 1 update to the committee; monthly reporting tied to hospital fiscal year 2026 remains limited to that fiscal year.

Committee members did not record a formal vote on the markup during the discussion. Several members agreed to meet with Kirby and additional colleagues to review the integrated proposal and consider further edits before floor consideration. The committee expected to resume discussion later the same day.

The discussion combined technical drafting details—names, cross‑references and formatting—with substantive policy questions about advisory membership, timing of plans and reports, proprietary protections, and the conditions under which multiple data sources could be linked for policy or operational use.