CEO says “ok for now” on PPE By Polly Mikula On April 2, Governor Phil Scott announced new steps in the state’s plan to prepare for a surge in COVID-19 cases, and in turn, the need for additional hospital and medical capacity. “We continue to expand our medical surge capacity to be prepared for what…

Staff report The Vermont Department of Labor received 40,000-50,000 unemployment claims in the last two weeks of March. “That’s the same number of claims that we typically get in a year,” DOL spokesperson Kyle Thweatt said. Tens of thousands of unemployment claims have yet to be processed, he added. The surge is expected to continue…

By Anne Wallace Allen/VTDigger People who are filing for state unemployment insurance for this week will start receiving their weekly $600 supplement from the federal government when they receive their unemployment check next week, according to state officials. But for the self-employed and independent contractors, who are also in line to receive assistance from the state…

On Friday, April 3, Attorney General T.J. Donovan published Attorney General’s Directive to Law Enforcement on the Enforcement of COVID-19 Emergency Order. The directive is geared toward law enforcement, including state’s attorneys, sheriffs, and police. The directive establishes that the Attorney General will bring all enforcement actions related to the COVID-19 Emergency Order and provides steps…

Staff report On Sunday, April 5, the state of Vermont released a summary of ventilators and personal protective equipment (PPE) available as part of the coordinated fight against COVID-19. Under the “most likely scenario” modeling the state currently has a sufficient supply of N95 FFP respirators, surgical masks and gloves. It does not have a…

By Katy Savage Volunteers from the Rutland MINT Makerspace are committing to making 10,000 face shields for the Rutland Regional Medical Center as the hospital combats the coronavirus. MINT MakerSpace spokesperson Karen McCalla said MINT members Gabe Oberkirch and Tom Lichtman created the design for the shields and are cutting them with a laser. Oberkirch…

By Polly Mikula On Friday, April 3, Health Commissioner Mark Levine officially recommended that Vermonters wear cloth facial masks, or coverings, if they need to leave their homes for essential purposes. This advice is based on new data about how COVID-19 can spread before a person has any symptoms, in other words: before they know…

Staff report The state identified 70 new coronavirus positive cases Saturday, April 4 — the largest increase of any single day so far. The next day brought 52 more. The state has double its confirmed cases in just a week, 280 new cases in seven days for a total of 575 confirmed cases as of…

The supply of surgical masks is at a critical all-time low throughout the entire nation. Orders for the standard disposable masks used in hospitals are back-ordered, due to the high demand for protective equipment. Because of these supply concerns, many hospitals across the country have requested homemade surgical masks as an emergency stopgap measure. According…

By Julia Purdy Voices who opposed the ban on single-use plastic bags as more hygienic and utilitarian may be getting some support from an unanticipated source: COVID-19. Since at least 2010, when the University of Arizona, partnering with Loma Linda University, randomly examined 84 reusable grocery bags in actual use and found significant traces of e.coli and…

The state identified 71 new coronavirus positive cases Saturday — the largest increase of any single day so far — and reported three new deaths in Vermont. Sunday brought 52 more. The new cases bring the total number of positive coronavirus tests in the state since the beginning of the outbreak to 512. Thus far,…

On Friday, April 3, Health Commissioner Mark Levine, MD, recommended that Vermonters wear cloth facial masks, or coverings, if they need to leave their homes for essential purposes. This advice is based on new data about how COVID-19 can spread before a person has any symptoms. Because people may have COVID-19 but no symptoms, wearing…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imXVykm-5PY&feature=youtu.be Mike Coppinger, Executive Director of the Killington Pico Area Association, interviews owner and publisher of the Mountain Times Polly Mikula. They talk about the Killington community's response in the wake of COVID-19. This interview was taped on April 1, 2020

Medical surge preparations Gov. Phil Scott today (April 2) announced additional medical surge locations to prepare for a surge of COVID-19 patients and the need for additional hospital and medical capacity. In partnership with the Vermont National Guard, the state is creating two additional high capacity care sites for surge: one in Essex Junction at…

Tuesday's coronavirus #s, charts: While Vermont continues to see more coronavirus cases each day, the exponential growth is rate is not as steep as some had feared. Experts expect social distancing will continue to work and broader testing will allow contact-tracing, which will help identify those who may be contagious. For daily local news about…