AUGUSTA, Maine – Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, nominated Christy Daggett of Presque Isle to the newly created Advisory Council on Affordable Healthcare at a confirmation hearing before the Legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee on Feb. 1.
Daggett earned unanimous support from the committee and will fill the role of an individual with expertise in health economics and research pending a confirmation vote before the Maine Senate.
“Christy Daggett understands the barriers hardworking Mainers in rural parts of the state face when it comes to quality, affordable health care. Between her wide-breadth of research and policy analysis and her experience working on the ground in Aroostook County at ACAP and AMHC, Christy is the person you want leading the charge to lower health care costs and improve access to care in rural Maine,” said Jackson. “Bringing reform to an out-of-control industry fueled by pharmaceutical companies and insurance giants won’t be easy, but I know that Christy and the newly confirmed members of the Advisory Council for Affordable Health Care are up to the task.”
With a master’s degree in public policy and management, Daggett has spent her professional life working on rural public policy issues from workforce and economic development to public health. She currently serves as chief financial and administrative officer for Aroostook Mental Health Center, a private, non-profit community health and social service organization with operations in Aroostook, Washington and Hancock counties. Before joining AMHC, Daggett spent four years at the Aroostook County Community Action Program. Daggett has also authored a number of reports and articles on rural health policy and has appeared before the Maine Legislature as an expert on these matters.
“The question of who gets access to healthcare in Maine, and when, and how much, has threaded through my professional life,” said Daggett. “Underneath the issue of access, though, lies the thornier issue of cost. Addressing the costs of healthcare in Maine will help to broaden access in a sustainable way.”
The Advisory Council on Affordable Healthcare was created during the 130th legislature as part of the Office of Affordable Healthcare. The Council was established to study in-depth trends and issues in Maine’s healthcare and make recommendations to the Governor and the legislative oversight office. The Advisory Council includes 13 members who must be confirmed by the Committee on Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services. Of these 13 appointments, six are made by the Senate President and five are made by the Speaker of the House. The Commissioner of Health and Human Services and the Commissioner of Administrative and Financial Services each fill a non-voting role on the Council. All confirmed members will serve a 5-year term.
