Green Mountain Care Board asks for staff and funding as AHEAD payment model and OneCare exit reshape regulation

The Green Mountain Care Board told the Senate Appropriations Committee that its FY26 budget request includes new positions and contract funding tied to a potential federal payment‑reform effort known as the AHEAD model, while also seeking statutory changes to its billing formula after OneCare Vermont announced it will leave the market.

At a committee hearing, Owen Foster, chair of the Green Mountain Care Board, summarized the agency's regulatory remit: “We regulate hospital budgets. We regulate the qualified health plans that insurers offer on this market, and we regulate ACOs.” He and staff said changes in the provider landscape — in particular OneCare Vermont’s planned exit — require adjustments in the board’s funding and staffing model.

Jean Stuttering, the board’s administrative services director, told senators the agency “currently have[s] 33 positions” and noted the board met the governor’s recommended budget increase of 5 percent for FY26. She said the board requested five new positions to support work on the AHEAD model, and the governor’s recommendation included three positions plus funding for contracts; the board presented a gross increase of about $750,000 that combines a $300,000 general‑fund increment with bill‑back (special fund)…