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Howard Dean Visits N.H., Talks Healthcare

Ryan Lessard
/
NHPR

Former Vermont Governor, Howard Dean, visited New Hampshire last night. Speaking at Saint Anselm’s Institute of Politics, Dean spoke about some of the unintended but beneficial side effects of the Affordable Care Act.

2004 Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean, says that New Hampshire and Vermont are outliers in the country when it comes to the new healthcare law. 

“New Hampshire, I read today, has one company on the exchange. That is a screw up. If you don’t have a competitive marketplace, it’s your job to make sure you do.”  

Dean says Vermont is similarly lacking in competition. 

“But we’re gonna have to be a lot more regulatory in Vermont than we’d like and that’s because, like New Hampshire, we only have one ACO.”  

Dean also says he thinks elements of the Affordable Care Act have the potential to change economic incentives in favor of the patient through fewer fee-for-service programs.  He also thinks the U.S. economy could improve through fewer employee-based insurance plans. 

In recent months Dean has made visits to early presidential election states like New Hampshire and Iowa.

Before becoming a reporter for NHPR, Ryan devoted many months interning with The Exchange team, helping to produce their daily talk show. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire in Manchester with a major in Politics and Society and a minor in Communication Arts. While in school, he also interned for a DC-based think tank. His interests include science fiction and international relations. Ryan is a life-long Manchester resident.

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