![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VTD-Bratt-hospital-13-1200x900.jpg\")
A crowd of about 100 people rally July 14 in support of the birthing center at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. Photo by Kevin O\u2019Connor\/VTDigger<\/p>\nA crowd of about 100 people rally July 14 in support of the birthing center at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. Photo by Kevin O\u2019Connor\/VTDigger<\/p>\n
BRATTLEBORO \u2014 As medical groups call for higher state reimbursements to help Brattleboro Memorial Hospital\u2019s birthing center stay open, local leaders are debating whether to ask residents to assist by raising municipal taxes for an unspecified donation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe choice belongs to the taxpayer, and it\u2019s one that deserves an open, transparent and thoughtful public discussion,\u201d Selectboard member Peter Case told his colleagues Tuesday of hopes to hold a special Town Meeting as early as September. \u201cProperty values, economic development, emergency care, physician recruitment and the community\u2019s ability to attract young families all depend on a strong hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
The not-for-profit regional healthcare hub, facing a projected $14.5 million overall budget deficit<\/a> after recent management upheaval<\/a>, announced July 1 it would close obstetric services within the next six to nine months<\/a> if it can\u2019t find a way to cover estimated unit losses of $4.8 million this fiscal year.<\/p>\n \u201cThe BMH Birthing Center\u2019s financial challenges stem from structural issues that affect rural hospitals across Vermont, including inadequate reimbursement for obstetrical services, declining birth volumes and rising costs,\u201d the hospital said in a statement Wednesday. \u201cThese are challenges that require both immediate assistance and long-term policy solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n In a letter<\/a> released this week, seven medical groups representing 3,000 Vermont clinicians urged Gov. Phil Scott and the state Agency of Human Services to help the hospital by raising Medicaid obstetric reimbursement rates to match those paid for other primary care services.<\/p>\n Medicaid pays for nearly half of Windham County births, the groups noted \u2014 a ratio higher than the state average of 36.9%.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Department of Vermont Health Access has the authority to increase reimbursement for these services immediately,\u201d wrote the heads of the Vermont Medical Society, Vermont Academy of Family Physicians, Vermont Nurse Practitioners Association, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England and state branches of the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Nurse-Midwives and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.<\/p>\n The state has received the letter but has yet to respond, an Agency of Human Services spokesperson told VTDigger Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n For its part, the five-member Brattleboro Selectboard voted unanimously Tuesday night to explore holding a special Town Meeting to consider a tax hike to aid the birthing center.<\/p>\n Local leaders haven\u2019t discussed a specific proposed sum above their current $27 million annual budget, although Town Manager John Potter offered a memo Tuesday with a potential range of $100,000 to $1 million.<\/p>\n \u201cThe model we\u2019re talking about here would be a one-time special assessment that would not be baked into the budget going forward,\u201d Selectboard Chair Oscar Heller said.<\/p>\n The hospital is the only Vermont facility providing obstetrical services in Windham and Windsor counties, with the nearest alternatives located in New Hampshire at Cheshire Medical Center in Keene and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon.<\/p>\n Rural hospitals in Vermont and nationwide<\/a> have cut birthing services in recent years, including Copley Hospital in Morrisville<\/a> and Springfield Hospital<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Brattleboro hospital officials weren\u2019t present at Tuesday\u2019s selectboard meeting.<\/p>\n \u201cThe willingness of the selectboard to explore every available option, including potential municipal support, reflects the deep value our community places on ensuring families can continue to access labor and delivery services close to home,\u201d the hospital said in a statement Wednesday. \u201cWe continue to pursue a comprehensive solution that includes state support, philanthropy and other sustainable funding opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n Several residents at Tuesday\u2019s meeting questioned the usefulness of a tax hike, noting a hospital-distributed list of talking points said \u201cwhile one-time grants are helpful and appreciated, they do not address the ongoing structural funding gap.\u201d<\/p>\n Residents also said the town has yet to address its own costly problems, be it repairing infrastructure or replacing its aging public works garage and public swimming pool \u2014 each carrying multimillion-dollar price tags.<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \u201cWe cannot afford to fund what the municipality needs,\u201d said Dick DeGray, a former selectboard chair who voiced the belief that many people rallying for the birthing center were citing more fears than facts. \u201cThis has become a heart issue, not a head issue. We need to do our homework.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Real estate agent Susan Bellville asked local leaders to seek financial help from the 21 other towns in Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts that rely on the facility.<\/p>\n \u201cIt makes absolutely no sense for Brattleboro to be standing there attempting to raise money to help the hospital when we have absolutely no buy-in from anybody else who uses it,\u201d Bellville said.<\/p>\n The selectboard has yet to publicize another session on the matter, although members suggested Tuesday they could schedule a follow-up discussion for as early as next week.<\/p>\n Residents have expressed growing frustration with local spending. A year ago, Brattleboro defeated a proposed municipal budget<\/a> for the first time in its Town Meeting history, rejecting a $25 million initial plan that would have raised taxes 12.1%. This spring, residents approved the current municipal budget\u2019s<\/a> 6.3% tax increase only after considering a call for level funding.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we keep raising taxes,\u201d resident Randy Blodgett said in proposing the lower number earlier this year, \u201cwhen do we break people\u2019s backs?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A crowd of about 100 people rally July 14 in support of the birthing center at Brattleboro Memorial…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":952656,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[35],"tags":[154649,24127,210,1141,1142,3170,620,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-952655","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health-care","tag-brattleboro-memorial-hospital","tag-childbirth","tag-health","tag-health-care","tag-healthcare","tag-medicaid","tag-tax","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116965785566423629","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/952655","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=952655"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/952655\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/952656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=952655"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=952655"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=952655"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Brattleboro](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VTD-Bratt-hospital-12-1200x900.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n