The Dartmouth 09/25/14

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VOL. CLXXI NO. 120

MOSTLY CLOUDY

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2014

HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE

Forums highlight health care changes

A FINE LINE

HIGH 68 LOW 47

By ERICA BUONANNO The Dartmouth Staff

DANNY KIM/THE DARTMOUTH

SPORTS

McMANUS ’15 SHINES IN RETURN PAGE 8

Students and others lined up at one of the last farmer’s markets of the season.

Freshmenjump-startjobsearch B y ERIN LEE

OPINION

BLAIR: A BROKEN SYSTEM PAGE 4

ARTS

JAZZ QUINTET TO PERFORM SATURDAY PAGE 7

A program launched this week aims to give freshmen a head start on the job search. Called the professional development accelerator program, it marks an effort by the Center for Professional Development to help

students make use of its services earlier and more effectively, the center’s director Roger Woolsey said. He said employers are increasingly interested in hiring students with hands-on experience, and the accelerator program provides freshmen access

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SEE ACCELERATOR PAGE 5

SEE HEALTH PAGE 2

Targeting distracted driving,Vermont law to take effect Oct.1

B y LUCIA McGloin READ US ON

to opportunities like job shadowing as soon as they arrive on campus. The program uses a website called DART that charts milestones in a student’s employment history, compares progress with the rest of their

In a five-part series of health care forums that ended yesterday morning, host and executive vice president Richard Mills sparked discussion among faculty and staff regarding changes to this year’s health care plans, before open enrollment begins on Oct. 21. The sessions, attended by around 450, explored factors driving changes in health coverage, including College President Phil Hanlon’s stated desire to address college affordability and a new tax under the Affordable Care Act. Although they covered the details of the health plans’ upcoming changes, the forums focused on broadening attendees’ perspectives of national health care trends affecting Dartmouth, Mills said. “The message is if we are trying to address affordability of college for students and families, which we are and is one of President Hanlon’s priorities, and we’re trying to control growth in cost of tuition, our revenues are

going to get squeezed and our health care costs are coming up,” he said. Mills said he seeks to involve faculty and staff in decisions about dividing funds between wages, salaries and benefits, noting that he wants to design a health plan tailored to employee preferences. “It’s likely we will never give people all of the wages and all of the benefits they hope to have, but if we can at least start to do it in ways that mean something for them, that’s a real positive,” he said. Health plans are no longer “one size fits all,” he said, and Dartmouth is responsible for educating its faculty and staff. In 2018, the Affordable Care Act will bring a 40 percent excise tax known as the “Cadillac Tax” on any plan with values exceeding a federally mandated threshold . A revenue source to help fund the Affordable Care Act, it is projected to cost the College

Starting next week, the use of handheld devices while driving will be illegal in Vermont, with legislation to follow in New Hampshire next summer. The two states join 12 others with legislation against handheld devices, including Connecticut, New Jersey and New York. The ban, which aims to reduce distracted driving, prohibits the use of any handheld electronic device. Drivers can still use their phones, but only through hands-free accessories such as Bluetooth or a dock that keeps the device stationary. The law, which goes into effect Oct. 1, will clarify practices for law

enforcement and the public, said Vermont State Police Lieutenant Garry Scott said. Enforcing existing laws against texting is sometimes difficult due to confusion about whether a driver using a phone for other purposes is legal, he said. “Now if you have any electronic device in your hand you are subject to being stopped,” Scott said. Violation of the ban incurs a fine between $100 and $200 for the first offense, and a fine between $250 and $500 for subsequent violations over two years. Vermont state rep. Maxine Grad, D-Moretown, a leading proponent

SEE DRIVING PAGE 3

BRUNO KORBAR/THE DARTMOUTH

The law prohibits the use of handheld devices, like phones, while driving.


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