By Anya Rader Wallack Editor’s note: Anna Wallack is the chair of the OneCare Vermont board of managers. OneCare Vermont is improving the health of Vermonters and lowering the cost of health care. OneCare is an Accountable Care Organization (ACO). We partner with health insurance companies, hospitals, independent medical practices, community health organizations and community…

Dear Editor, I’ve spent my professional life as a primary care pediatrician, mostly in Vermont. Now I’m retired and the beneficiary of Medicare. I see alarming signs that Medicare, a public good, is being privatized and abused by for-profit insurance companies. Their greed threatens the integrity and sustainability of Medicare. Medicare Advantage plans are actively…

Dear Editor, Egg prices have tripled in some states in the past year, largely because of the slaughter of nearly 58 million birds sickened by bird flu. Yet, no price can possibly justify the cruelty inherent in egg production. When chicks are hatched, all “useless” males are ground up alive or suffocated in large plastic…

By Jack Hoffman Editor’s note: Jack Hoffman is senior analyst at Public Assets Institute (www.publicassets.org), a non-partisan, non-profit organization based in Montpelier. He is a resident of Marshfield currently living in France. There were two threads running through Gov. Phil Scott’s fourth inaugural address last week. One was a clear, even refreshing, acknowledgement of the…

By Ethan Weinstein/VTDigger Two-thirds of Vermont’s 254 municipalities can expect a reappraisal order this year, according to the state’s Department of Taxes. And with so many townwide reappraisals in order, the state faces another issue: a lack of resources to handle the demand. “There’re not enough firms to go around to do this; that’s a huge…

On Tuesday, January 3, Sugarbush Resort submitted two sets of applications to the town of Warren Development Review Board seeking approval to redevelop the former Rosita’s Restaurant and three of the four parcels known as the “Sugar Cube” to house Sugarbush Resort employees. The Rosita’s project contemplates a four-story apartment building housing 16 studio apartments…

By Tiffany Tan/VTDigger A Rutland housing organization plans to build dozens of housing units at the former College of St. Joseph and possibly convert an existing campus building into a child care center. The Housing Trust of Rutland County moved closer to implementing those plans last week, when it secured an option to buy the…

The Vermont Homeowner Assistance Program (VHAP) has paid over $22.5 million in grants to assist homeowners impacted by the pandemic. This represents nearly 55% of total program funding available to homeowners. Administered by the Vermont Housing Finance Agency, VHAP launched in January 2022 to assist homeowners who have faced economic hardship brought on by the…

Green Mountain Power (GMP) is launching two programs to connect income-qualified customers with solar energy that has too often been out of reach for them. The Shared Solar Program (SSP) unlocks incentives in the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to create a qualified low-income program that saves participants money. Another program, the Affordable Community Renewable…

By Rep. Jim Harrison With the start of the new legislative biennium, all legislative proposals must start fresh. Bills that were proposed on the past, but not enacted, can be re-introduced again, as well as brand new initiatives. In a typical year there may be 600-700 new bills with about 10-15% of them getting enacted…

Saturday, Jan. 21, at 3 p.m.— Thetford —Last May composer-pianist David Feurzeig embarked on "Play Every Town": 252 free concerts in each of Vermont’s 252 towns to combat climate change through the power of community and music. With this project, he will become the first musician to perform in every Vermont municipality.  On Saturday, he’ll…

Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 7 p.m.—RUTLAND—Follow Sue and Marv Elliott, long-time Rutland birders and Audubon members, as they visit and photograph The Grand Tetons. Learn some of the history, flora and fauna of this beautiful American natural area. Presented by Rutland County Audubon in the Fellowship Room of the Grace Congregational Church, located at 8…

By Curt Peterson Fourteen-year-old Abraham Dunne of Hartland has selected pieces from his “treasure trove,”  for display in White River Junction as a “One Piece Curation” reserved by the Main Street Museum “for younger folks involved firsthand with storytelling through museum curation.” His finds will be exhibited until March 31.  Dunne, an engaging, articulate and…

Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 12:30 p.m.—CASTLETON—Jessilyn Dolan, director of the American Cannabis Nurses Association, will present a lecture and discussion panel regarding the advantages and disadvantages of cannabis use from medical and healthcare perspectives at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday at the Jeffords Center Auditorium at Castleton University. Panel members will include experts from the Castleton…

Sunday, Jan. 22 — RUTLAND—Celebrate your engagement and meet the largest group of the area’s top wedding professionals at the Rutland Bridal Show. Visit vendors to find great ideas and offers to make your special day, the very best it can be and enter to win a large selection of prizes.  The largest number of…