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Senator Peter Welch: Roundtable on Rising Costs of Health Care and Prescription Drugs Ahead of Senate Hearing 05/17/2024

From the Office of Senator Welch:

On Friday, Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) convenes Vermont business owners and employers to discuss the rising costs of health care and prescription drugs. The roundtable comes ahead of a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing examining prescription drug prices, competition, and innovation, and how to ensure medications are accessible and affordable for Americans.

Senator Welch has championed initiatives to lower prescription drug prices for Vermonters. This year, Senator Welch led the introduction of new bipartisan, bicameral legislation to streamline prescription drug patent litigation, encourage fair market competition, and lower prescription drug prices.

Senator Bernie Sanders: HELP Committee in Hearing on Dental Crisis in America 05/16/2024

From the Office of Senator Bernie Sanders:

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today at 10:00 a.m. ET, will lead the committee in a hearing titled, “Examining the Dental Care Crisis in America: How Can We Make Dental Care More Affordable and More Available?”.

Today in America, nearly 70 million adults and nearly 8 million children have no dental insurance and many of those who do have dental insurance find that coverage to be totally inadequate. More than 40 percent of children in America have tooth decay by the time they reach kindergarten, and about half of our nation’s seniors have no dental insurance. One out of five seniors are missing all their natural teeth and cannot afford a full set of dentures, which can cost many thousands of dollars. Estimates show 70 percent of older Americans have some sort of periodontal disease which can lead to rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular disease.

This crisis affects Americans of all ages and is only getting worse, hitting rural communities and low-income families the hardest. According to the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, there were 1.8 million visits to emergency rooms across the country for preventative dental conditions in 2019 – a 62% increase from 2014.

Speakers include:

  • Lisa Simon, MD, DMD, Associate Physician, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Member of the Faculty, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
  • Myechia Minter-Jordan, MD, MBA, President and CEO, CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, Boston, MA
  • Brian Jeffrey Swann, DMD, MPH, Board of Directors, Remote Area Medical (RAM), Co-Chair, Global Oral Health Outreach, National Dental Association, Rockford, TN
  • Gordon Roswell Isbell, III, DMD, MAGD, Past Trustee, Academy of General Dentistry, Gadsden, AL
  • Debra Sacco, DMD, MD, District III Trustee, American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, Chapel Hill, NC

I am NAMIWalks Vermont Promo 05/14/2024

Cathy LaClair, the Events and Fundraising Coordinator at NAMI Vermont, is joined by Margie Lemay, Office Manager at NAMI Vermont, to discuss the upcoming NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Walks Vermont event that will happen on June 1, 2024. 

The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Vermont is a statewide volunteer organization comprised of family members, friends, and individuals living with mental illness. We were founded in Burlington Vermont in 1983 and incorporated as a state affiliate in 1984. We have experienced the struggles and have joined together in membership to help ourselves and others by providing support, information, education, and advocacy. Our mission is to support, educate, and advocate so that all communities, families, and individuals affected by mental illness or mental health challenges can build better lives.

NAMIWalks Vermont brings together people of all ages to combat stigma, raise funds, and promote awareness of mental health conditions at an annual walk event. This yearly walkathon is our largest event, outreach campaign, and fundraiser. The goals of this event are to bring together peers, families, community members, organizers, and supporters to: 1) Raise awareness and reduce stigma surrounding mental illness. 2) To raise funds for NAMI’s top-rated free programming and services to Vermonters. 3) To build community and let people know that they are not alone.

For more information visit: www.namivt.org/namiwalks-vermont | Register at: www.NAMIWalks.org/vermont

Senator Peter Welch: Protect Our Care Report 05/07/2024

From the Office of Senator Welch:

On Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at 1:00 PM ET, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06) will join Leslie Dach from Protect Our Care for a press conference to discuss how big pharmaceutical companies are putting profits over patients. During the call, Protect Our Care will release a new report summarizing big drug companies’ recent investor reports, demonstrating how they are raking in profit and rewarding shareholders while more than 1 in 3 Americans are cutting pills or skipping doses because they can’t afford their medication.

This call comes at a time where pharmaceutical giants are laser-focused on undermining the Inflation Reduction Act by filing lawsuits and increasing their lobbying to protect their profits. Drug companies have been working behind the scenes with Republican lawmakers to repeal all of the Inflation Reduction Act’s provisions aimed at making prescription drugs more affordable for seniors. Big drug companies claim that the new law to make drugs more affordable will harm patients, but in reality, they’re telling investors the opposite and spending billions on rewarding their investors through stock buybacks and dividends, paying their executives millions, and spending millions lobbying to keep their prices high.

National Eating Disorder Association Walk 05/04/2024

From NEDA:

Connected by Healing. Moving Forward, Together.

Since 1987, NEDA has worked to advance research, community building, and awareness. NEDA Walks unite us in that work. Join us so we can do more for the 28.8 million Americans who will be affected by eating disorders in their lifetimes.

For more information visit: www.nedawalk.org

Senator Peter Welch: Energizing our Communities Act with Vermont Outdoor Recreation Leaders at the Catamount Outdoor Family Center 04/25/2024

From the Office of Senator Welch:

Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) joins Protect Our Winters (POW) and Vermont outdoor recreation leaders to celebrate Earth Week and unveil the Energizing Our Communities Act, legislation to support local communities that host Department of Energy (DOE) supported transmission projects. The program will help build trust between local governments and transmission developers so the nation can sustainably increase transmission capacity, which is crucial to a national clean energy transition. The Energizing Our Communities Act invests revenue from certain federal Department of Energy loan programs back into communities, including tribal governments, who host transmission infrastructure. This bill aims to support national transmission grid build-out by ensuring communities see the benefits of transmission at the ground level.

Who: Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.); Sam Masters, Protect Our Winters; John Atkinson, Executive Director of Catamount Outdoor Family Center; Ashley LaPorte, Vice President of Purpose & Impact, Burton; Ted Brady, Executive Director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns; and Blake Keogh, Athlete.

Senator Peter Welch: Celebrate Introduction of the STAGE Act with Vermont’s Nonprofit Theaters 04/24/2024

From the Office of Senator Welch:

Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) convenes leaders from Vermont’s nonprofit theaters under the marquee of The Flynn in Burlington to celebrate the introduction of the Supporting Theater and the Arts to Galvanize the Economy (STAGE) Act. The STAGE Act establishes a new Professional Nonprofit Theater Grant Program to support the theater arts industry and workforce through a lagging recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Featuring Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.); Vermont Secretary of Commerce Lindsay Kurrle; Jay Wahl, Executive Director of the Flynn Center; Susan Evans McClure, Executive Director of the Vermont Arts Council; Carol Dunne, Producing Artistic Director of Northern Stage.

Senator Bernie Sanders: Discussion with Vermont Seniors on the Older American Act 03/28/2024

Bernie Sanders: 'Discussion with Vermont Seniors on the Older American Act'

Senator Bernie Sanders: Sanders, Welch, and Balint Announce Millions in Federal Funding for Vermont Communities 03/18/2024

From the Office of Senator Bernie Sanders:

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and a representative from the office of Congresswoman Becca Balint (Vt.-AL) hold a press conference to announce millions in federal funding that the Vermont Congressional Delegation secured on behalf of Vermont projects to address critical needs across the state.

The funding for the Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) projects was included in the first package of Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations bills that passed the U.S. Senate and was signed into law by President Biden. The $460 billion package was passed in time to avoid a government shutdown of many key federal agencies.

Senator Peter Welch: New Bills to Improve SNAP for Vermont Seniors and Vermonters with Student Loans 03/15/2024

From the Office of Senator Welch:

U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) visits the South Burlington Senior Center to discuss two new pieces of legislation he recently introduced, both of which are designed to ensure the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) accurately captures the financial reality of those who rely on the program to put food on the table.

Senator Welch is joined by representatives from HungerFree VT, Age Well VT, and others.

Following the event, Sen. Welch visits with Vermont seniors.

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