Out In The Mountains : News - Sen. Ed Flanagan Returns to the Statehouse

Sen. Ed Flanagan Returns to the Statehouse
Still Recovering from Car Crash, Senator Supports Health Insurance Reform

      MONTPELIER - Sen. Ed Flanagan (D-Chittenden), recuperating from a car crash over the past six months, returned to standing ovations at the Statehouse in May.
     Flanagan served as Vermont’s state auditor from 1992 to 2001, during his tenure becoming the first openly gay statewide elected official in the United States. He was elected to the Vermont State Senate in 2004, serving Burlington in Chittenden County.
     In mid-November, Flanagan was headed back to Burlington from the Statehouse on Interstate 89 when his car left the road, flipped over and landed in a ravine where a teenager hunting for deer discovered the car the next day. Flanagan survived cold temperatures for about 18 hours before he was discovered.
      In his return to the Legislature, Flanagan said he didn’t know where he would be without the medical care that was made possible by his insurance.
      He urged lawmakers to pass the medical insurance program designed to cover Vermonters now without health insurance. Both the House and Senate passed the measure by wide margins, and Gov. Douglas has said he will sign it into law.
     Flanagan addressed health care issues when he ran for the Senate in 2004, after his mother had received care in a nursing home due to injuries from a car accident. He said she has fully recovered from that accident.
     Flanagan continues a long rehabilitation process from his own accident. He spoke haltingly, but passionately, about the need for health care reform. The Catamount Health care plan, which Flanagan emphasized is a compromise solution, will go into effect in 2007.
      Flanagan addressed the Senate in his return trip on May 5th.
      “I’m humbled by my insights about the vulnerability of every Vermonter and the need for comprehensive health insurance,” he told the Senate. “I can’t imagine where I’d be without the sustained intensive rehab therapy that my insurance made possible. I can’t imagine how working Vermont families can stay afloat after an uninsured wage-earner sustains a serious injury or illness.”
      Flanagan thanked his family, friends and medical personnel in two hospitals where he was treated for six weeks before he regained consciousness and was able to return home.
      Flanagan, along with all other members of the Senate and House, will be up for re-election this fall.
     Did he plan to run for office again, OITM asked?
     “Definitely,” was his answer.