Just another dying canary in the coal mine?
by Don Keelan
I will assume that most Vermonters have no idea what role the following companies have in Vermont: Cross Country Staffing, Inc., Ettain Group Inc., Freedom Health Care Staffing, and TLC Homecare and Nursing.
In 2023, according to the University of Vermont Medical Center’s Form 990 filing (noted on GuideStar) on page 8, the Center paid the four companies $114,454,522 collectively.
Located in Atlanta, GA., Charlotte, NC., Aurora, CO., and Burlington, VT., they provided “traveling nurses” to assist the Medical Center’s staffing problem in 2023. The issue continues to exist at most, if not all, of Vermont’s hospitals.
In-house hospital personnel know that “travelers” are paid substantially more in compensation. This is added to the additional cost of meals and housing allowances while locally employed. For many hospitals, this is a budget-busting cost to absorb.
In his November 20, 2024 press conference, Governor Phil Scott provided an idea as to why the State is in this position. Not since his weekly press conferences during the COVID-19 pandemic have I seen the Governor so despondent, and more so now.
The Governor noted that over the last 10 years, the State has lost over 14,000 young people under the age of 18. He went on to note that at the same time, Vermont has 28,000 fewer in the workforce between the ages of 40 and 54, the prime working years. Meanwhile, in the last 10 years, the State saw its 65-and-older population grow by 48,000.
The problem is by no means solely limited to the health care sector. The Vermont Association of General Contractors noted in a recent story in Vermont Biz that its industry needs over 3,000 tradespeople. Meanwhile, the Governor stated that we need between 24,000 and 36,000 new houses by 2029.
The list of sectors in need of staff includes tourism and hospitality, manufacturing, agriculture and dairy operations, public safety and first responders, mental health, child daycare, and more.
Layered alongside the above is the cost crisis the State is witnessing in terms of town and school budgets and healthcare insurance.
What needs to be publicized is the infrastructure the state, cities, towns, and schools are postponing due to a lack of resources or being tapped out in their ability to bond.
At the same time, there are those who adamantly, religiously, if you will, believe that the only issue the State must address is reducing its decarbonization impact and assisting with the worldwide effort to do so.
Do they believe that this is what a Vermonter needs to hear when they cannot find a doctor, their local medical center is to close, or they fear what their tax bill might be next year?
It was somewhat comforting to hear that the Democratic-controlled Legislature got a wake-up call this past election cycle. Vermonters care about the climate, but imposing impossible-to-meet mandates from the Clean Heat Standard legislation is not a priority now. Replacing a propane kitchen stove with an electric stove can wait. But let us see if, in January, when the Legislature convenes, it is listening to what is ailing Vermont. And it is surely not what the climate change lobbyists have in mind.
Much of what has been stated above is familiar. What is now apparent from watching the Governor’s November 20th news conference was sobering. Are the crises that Vermont has been dealing with (and I left out the recent flood disasters in central Vermont) much worse than what he described? If I am correct, how deep a hole are we really in, or is the hole going to get much deeper?
Recent reports on the status of our State’s healthcare, education, and housing were the “canaries in the coal mine,” and it seems that they are not doing well.
Five years from today, we do not want the naysayers to say we told you so because those who could have made a difference had their own agenda and ignored the signs.
In January, the Legislature, the administration, school districts, the education department, and the 250-plus municipalities need to acknowledge where we are at honestly. It would be of great help if the Governor did not try to be so low-key about what we are genuinely facing—the ability to survive as a State.
The author is a U.S. Marine (retired), CPA, and columnist living in Arlington, VT.