A string of health and human-services witnesses urged the Appropriations Committee to use the FY2026 Budget Adjustment Act to protect provider capacity and vulnerable populations.

Bridges to Health: Grace O’Dell (NOFA-Vermont) requested $167,000 (one-time) to continue Bridges to Health, a care coordination program for migrant and immigrant workers that employs eight regional community health workers and serves more than 1,000 farmworkers. Mike Fisher, the state’s chief health care advocate, supported that request and asked for a one-time transition appropriation as the program moves fiscal sponsorship from the University of Vermont to free and referral clinics; Fisher’s spoken dollar figure in the transcript is inconsistent (appears as a much larger number in one place), and testimony contains a probable transcription error — committee staff should confirm the precise amount sought in written submissions.

Medicaid reimbursement and provider rates: Mary Kate Mollman of the Bi-State Primary Care Association asked the committee to include an inflation adjustment (Medicare Economic Index/NEI) to Medicaid FQHC rates in the BAA, saying NEI updates are standard and critical to maintain access. Marybeth Pinard (Vermont Catholic Charities and Long Term Care Crisis Coalition) said that a legislative appropriation intended to raise enhanced residential care rates instead resulted in a 35% reduction to Tier 1 payments and requested a technical correction in the Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living budget to restore Tier 1 rates.

Other supports: Meg Burmeister (area agencies on aging) requested that BAA funding cover an intended 2% Medicaid increase for AAA case management that she said was not included in implemented funding, and Sarah Londerville (Vermont Center for Independent Living) requested $30,000 to fully fund a Meals on Wheels program serving people with disabilities under age 60.

What’s next: The committee heard sector testimony but did not vote; amounts and technical fixes cited in testimony should be validated against agency budget documents and written submissions.