The Vermont Senate introduced a bill that the Burlington Free Press said would place undue regulatory burdens on Colchester, Vt.-based Green Mountain Surgery Center.
Here's what you should know:
1. Sen. Claire Ayer, D-Addison, introduced a bill in the Vermont State Senate which would place additional regulation and cost on ASCs. Vermont has two ASCs, with Green Mountain Surgery Center gaining certificate of need approval in July 2017.
2. Lead Green Mountain Surgery Center investor Amy Cooper fears the bill will add $650,000 annually to the center's operating budget, while deterring future investors.
3. Green Mountain Surgery Center struggled to gain CON approval from Vermont regulators for almost two years.
4. Ms. Ayer introduced the bill, arguing "competition doesn't lower the price. What it does is induce demand." She believes the addition of a surgery center wouldn't help to contain spending in healthcare, but would instead create new demand for surgical services.
5. Several legislators and the state's regulatory agency, the Green Mountain Care Board, have come out against the bill, referring to it as excessive.
6. The paper argues, "The senator can do better by dropping a bill that would punish a business that played by the rules with new regulations and fees that even the regulators never asked for."