Regulators set Vermont hospital budgets, aiming for cost control and stability

State healthcare regulators have approved the budgets of Vermont’s 14 hospitals for fiscal year 2026.

The Green Mountain Care Board went into this year’s budget review process with an ambitious goal of reining in costs, as insurance premiums in Vermont have seen double-digit increases over the past few years. That task was made trickier by the fact that many of the state’s hospitals are in a state of financial duress.

For the most part, hospitals proposed budgets that met the targets set by the Green Mountain Care Board, limiting operating expense growth and commercial insurance rate increases to 3%.

In a written statement, Green Mountain Care Board Chair Owen Foster said the board’s decisions “reflect our commitment to support hospital stability” while also protecting Vermonters from