Senate committee considers two-year pilot to expand community nurses for Vermont seniors

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee on Wednesday discussed S.33, a bill sponsored by Senator White to establish a two‑year pilot program intended to expand existing community nurse programs that provide home visits and other preventive services to aging Vermonters. Committee members heard bill language, asked for fiscal and coordination analysis, and did not take a vote; the measure was held in reserve for further consideration.

The bill, as explained by Katie McLennan of the Office of Legislative Council, would appropriate $450,000 to the Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living (DAIL) to establish a pilot that would enhance services provided by one or more existing community nurse programs serving older Vermonters in their region. McLennan said the bill requires selected programs to submit an application describing how they would expand nursing visits, add a community health worker position, fill coverage gaps, integrate administrative support and collect data on outcomes. She said participating programs would be required to submit a report to DAIL by Dec. 15, 2027, documenting the number of older Vermonters served, gaps identified and recommended improvements.

Senator White, the bill sponsor, said the idea is not new to the committee and described how community nurses in Windsor County and small towns such as Sharon, Norwich and Hartford conduct home visits, check medication access and identify environmental risks like fall hazards and mold. “My view is many small towns don’t have the financial resources to pay for a community nurse out of the municipal budget,” White said, arguing a pilot could jump‑start local programs that towns later choose to fund themselves.

Committee members pressed on several recurring issues: whether the pilot duplicates existing state programs such as the Blueprint for Health, how the pilot would coordinate with home health agencies, area agencies on aging (AAA), SASH (Support and Services at Home) and local visiting‑nurse organizations, and whether the service would be limited to Medicaid‑eligible residents. One committee member summarized the tension: many communities value the no‑cost local nurse service, but it is unclear why some residents do not receive services already available through home health or Medicaid-funded programs.

McLennan said the bill’s application criteria aim to identify programs that can expand coverage, add an administrative data system and demonstrate how many older Vermonters they would serve. She also noted the bill is written to allow existing community nurse programs to expand their coverage into neighboring towns or to be selected as part of a regional approach. The language staff read to the committee specifies that DAIL would seek and consider applications and select one or more programs as funding permits.

Committee members asked staff to prepare a fiscal analysis and to clarify definitions—who counts as a “community health professional,” who can authorize visits, and how eligibility would be determined—before the committee votes on the bill. The chair said the committee would invite Dr. Saroyan to testify about coordination with the Blueprint for Health and other statewide efforts and suggested the pilot could be folded into an upcoming committee bill if appropriate. Senator White and other members also discussed the option of a regional grant model in which several towns jointly fund a shared nurse.

No formal motion or vote was recorded during the discussion. The committee chair indicated the panel may not be able to take up S.33 prior to crossover and said members would “hold this one in reserve” while other bills proceed through markup. Staff and sponsors were invited to bring additional witnesses and information for a future hearing.

The discussion combined policy detail and anecdotal support: committee members recalled unsolicited emails from constituents praising existing community nurse services and emphasized the need for clearer data on where nurses already operate and what gaps remain. The committee directed staff to return with clarifications on program definitions, fiscal impacts and how the pilot would interact with existing state and local services before scheduling formal testimony or a markup.

Next steps: the committee will seek fiscal analysis, invite additional testimony (including Dr. Saroyan), and may include S.33 or its elements in the committee’s larger bill work. No final action on S.33 was taken at the hearing.