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The event, held by North Country Hospital, was in response to a state-commissioned report that recommended it reconfigure all inpatient beds, convert the emergency department to urgent care and shift birthing to other places except in emergencies.

“There is no hospital in Vermont that is not in jeopardy,� stressed the consultant who led work on the report. Recommendations include closing inpatient beds and converting emergency departments into urgent care centers at Gifford Medical Center, Grace Cottage, North Country, and Springfield hospitals.

Double-digit increases are hitting Vermonters who purchase insurance directly, and small businesses. Vermont's rates are going up at one of the highest rates in the country.

This year Vermont lawmakers asked health care regulators to study options for regulating prescription drug costs for Vermonters.

Copley Hospital, Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and Northwestern Medical Center have formed the New England Collaborative Health Network.

UVMMC currently leases the facilities, and says the purchase would create $6.1 million in savings over 15 years.

Green Mountain Care Board Chair Owen Foster said the financial situation for the Lamoille County hospital was dire enough to warrant a rare mid-year price increase.

Health insurance premiums for Blue Cross Blue Shield and MVP Health Care will spike next year, and Vermont's hospitals are asking for significant budget increases in 2024.

Vermont's 14 hospitals were supposed to keep their two-year growth to 8.6%, but the most recent budget proposals far exceed that target.

The Green Mountain Care Board rejected a request by UVM Health Network to raise its rates by 10 percent, and will only allow a reduced increase.