Yes I recall the part about VTS being true, and me being shocked by it.
Almost no recreational sailboat will have Class A -- the power draw is too great and the expense is much higher...
It may be that some commercial shipping is filtering out Class B targets, but I've certainly been seen in the Gulf of the Farallones approach area by ships. It's a great comfort to hail them and be told "yes I see you".
Some people get mixed up and think Class B refers to the receive-only units that are now cheap and popular. That's not the case -- Class B is transmit/receive, but at a lower rate (fewer times per minute), less broadcast RF power, and with less data than Class A.