By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com

As he is preparing to leave office, 47th State Representative Hank Vaupel looks back on his time serving Livingston County.

The Fowlerville Republican said he didn’t get everything done that he wanted, but that they got a lot of good legislation passed in his 6 years of office and that he’s happy about that.

Vaupel is term limited and cannot run again for House.

He chaired the House Health Policy Committee for the past 4 years and said he is particularly pleased with successes on opioid reform bills and telehealth bills that make health care more accessible to the underserved. Vaupel believes one of his biggest successes was co-chairing the House CARES Mental Health Task Force. He said they toured the state looking at quite a few mental health issues and were able to address many. Though much of it was reducing red tape, Vaupel believes they’ve made headway in creating a lot of awareness for issues while reducing stigma and shining a light on areas of needed change.

One thing he regrets not getting finished is reform in prescription drug pricing transparency. He said they got close, but not all the way- and he believes the efforts will continue on in his absence and potentially pass next term. Another issue he believes needs to be addressed in Lansing is term limits. Vaupel called them a “good thing,” but said the way they do it, with Representatives needing to campaign every second year, should be looked at. The effect of it, he says, is that you’re working with a new group of people every 2 years, even within your own party, and it can take time to bring people up to speed on complex issues.

Overall, though, Vaupel said he couldn’t ask for a better area to represent. He gave a big “thank you” to the people of the 47th District and Livingston County as whole for being allowed to represent them these past 6 years.

Vaupel said he is now looking forward to taking a couple weeks off to relax, while enjoying his 50th wedding anniversary coming up in January. He said he and his wife “absolutely” intend to stay in the Fowlerville-area.