By Marvin Klikunas, M.D. Editor’s note: Kilkunas practices medicine in Williston. As I write this commentary, the seven-day rolling average of daily Covid cases in Vermont is 209. Even during the depths of last winter, before a vaccine was available, the daily average as plotted in VTDigger never reached 200. Forty-eight people were hospitalized with…

By Ethan Weinstein Despite a call from Lt. Gov. Molly Gray to issue stricter pandemic measures, Gov. Scott remained firm during his press conference Tuesday, Sept. 21, that he would not provide pandemic measures such as an indoor mask mandate without a state of emergency. “I know there are some who would like to see…

By Steve Costello Editor’s note: Steve Costello is the vice president of Green Mountain Power. Time and again, Vermonters amaze and inspire with their kindness and generosity — from our communities’ strength seen throughout Vermont during the 10th anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene just last month, to the seemingly endless acts of kindness that have…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger Amid a rise in cases, Lt. Gov. Molly Gray on Sept. 16 called on the Scott administration to take “greater measures” to dampen the spread of Covid-19. The Vermont Dept. of Health reported a record-setting 314 cases Thursday but said an IT problem might be partly to blame for the day’s spike…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger Surveillance testing has been touted by Vermont officials as a cornerstone of its Covid-19 mitigation efforts in K-12 schools. But only a little more than one-third of Vermont’s public school districts and a quarter of its private schools will have actually begun testing by the end of September, according to figures provided…

Staff report Hospitalizations continue to reach recent highs, according to data from the Vermont Dept. of Health. As of Tuesday, Sept. 14, 43 people were hospitalized for Covid, with nine in intensive care. That’s the highest daily count of hospitalizations during the current surge for the second day in a row, according to the state.…

By Ethan Weinstein Like seemingly every other business in the area, Rutland Regional Medical Center (RRMC) is struggling to find staff. But these staffing woes have been compounded by an additional problem: an influx of patients who put off elective care during the Covid state of emergency. “We are seeing here at Rutland Regional some…

By Alan J. Keays/VTDigger Three Vermont State Police troopers out of the Shaftsbury barracks have resigned and a criminal probe is underway to determine whether they may have violated federal law by making fake Covid-19 vaccination cards. The matter has been referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont, as well as…

By Curt Peterson With 78 Covid cases confirmed in Vermont schools this week alone, local schools are scrambling to deal with the highly contagious Delta variant. The Dept. of Health daily dashboard indicates the general population in some local towns has been exposed in large numbers to the variant. In the latest town-by-town data, covering…

Area ski resorts among them By Fred Thys/VTDigger Some large Vermont employers say they’re waiting to learn more about President Joe Biden’s order that all employers with more than 100 workers be vaccinated against Covid-19 or be tested weekly, while others says they already require employees to be vaccinated. Biden’s order will affect about 100…

By Erin Petenko/VTDigger As Vermont schools settle into the school year, state data shows that the number of cases among young children has risen dramatically in recent weeks. Infections among children under 12 rose to a peak in late August, then began to decline, but they’ve shot up again in the past two weeks, according…

Staff report The Vermont Dept. of Health (DOH) reported 14 new Covid cases in Rutland County and 11 new cases in Windsor County, on Tuesday, Sept. 7 — in the past 14 days there have been 190 and 170 respectively. These numbers underscore an ongoing surge in virus activity since the Delta variant surfaced early…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by five medical doctors, Meghan Gunn, Ebrahim Ghazali, Judy Orton, Ann Marie Swann and Jaclyn Lozier; Kelsey Pierce and Emily Rice, physician's assistants; Bridget Bromirski, pediatric nurse practitioner; and Lynn Mann, doctor of osteopathic medicine. We are writing this in response to the many “anti-masking in school” groups that have…

By Eric Davis The Vermont Department of Health reported on Tuesday, Aug. 31, that there were 968 new cases of Covid-19 reported in the state over the past week, and that there were 36 people hospitalized with Covid. The count of new cases and hospitalizations in Vermont is now the highest it has been since…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger A group of 91 rank-and-file Vermont health department employees have penned a letter to the department’s leaders, begging them to take a firmer stand as the state sees a surge of Covid-19 cases. The letter, delivered to Health Commissioner Mark Levine, State Epidemiologist Patsy Kelso and Deputy Commissioner Kelly Dougherty Thursday morning,…