VT SRC/SILC Position on Access to Health Care
The Vermont State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) and The Vermont State Independent Living Council affirms its belief that adequate, appropriate and affordable health care must be made available to persons with disabilities, especially such individuals seeking employment.
The SRC believes that it is important to sustain access to health care throughout the employment cycle – including during periods of transition between jobs. The availability of health care coverage allows the individual to better prepare for employment and for a more constructive contribution to the workforce. Benefits of such coverage are ultimately reaped by everyone – the person with a disability, the employer, and society overall – in terms of socioeconomic productivity. Evidence shows that a more productive employee tends to submit fewer and less costly health care claims, lowering expenditures for all concerned.
The SRC also feels that transitions in health care coverage (as between a period of unemployment and employment) should be made as seamless as possible to allow for an optimal environment in which to work productively. Those employed individuals who are not covered by health care policies offered by their employer should also have access to adequate and appropriate care.
As the Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) is a dual customer agency and as the VT SRC oversees and advises DVR, the SRC feels it has a responsibility to suggest ways to improve conditions both for individuals with disabilities seeking employment and for prospective employers. This position on access to health care does just that.