Vt. governor picks panel for single-payer health plan

From Boston.com –

MONTPELIER – A health care policy specialist will lead Vermont’s Green Mountain Care board, the panel that will be responsible for implementing the state’s single-payer health care system, Governor Peter Shumlin said yesterday.

Advocates for the plan say the single-payer system will help control health care costs and guarantee coverage for Vermonters regardless of whether they have a job with health insurance.

Anya Rader Wallack of Calais will be chairwoman of the five-member board. Wallack has served as Shumlin’s special assistant for health care reform since shortly after he took office January.

“In putting together this team, I looked for five really smart people who are fully committed to the goal of controlling health care costs, achieving universal coverage, and who can work as a team,” Shumlin said. “I also looked for people who could think creatively about how to encourage and reward Vermonters and Vermont health care practitioners for improving health and getting the most value out of our health care dollars.”