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Guest editorial: Vermont has found new tools to make COVID disappear – Addison Independent

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Guest editorial: Vermont has found new tools to make COVID disappear – Addison Independent


“It ain’t over until it’s over.” —Yogi Berra

Vermont has discovered some highly effective new instruments to make Covid disappear. Because the very starting of this pandemic, our well being division and different leaders and authorities took daring steps to “sluggish the unfold” of the virus.

First we have been informed to remain house, keep protected, wash our arms, and preserve our distance from others in public. Then we have been informed to masks up and restrict journey and huge gatherings.

As testing and vaccination turned out there, these instruments have been pushed out throughout the state, with a powerful emphasis on defending probably the most weak Vermonters — the aged or disabled and people with underlying circumstances, akin to immune compromise.

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The success of those measures was spectacular. Our well being care assets have been strained however by no means overwhelmed, as they have been in different states and nations. Deep gratitude and appreciation is because of our leaders, well being care staff, and all the opposite frontline staff who stored us shifting ahead below the specter of an infection, critical illness and demise.

Now we now have entered a brand new period in our response to Covid. Covid nonetheless causes demise or long-term incapacity for a lot of Vermonters. It has prompted many extra to depart the workforce completely. Companies battle to stay open within the face of provide chain disruptions, buyer wariness, manpower shortages and burnout.

For the foreseeable future, the “new regular” appears to contain rolling surges in Covid circumstances as a consequence of new variants of the virus, complicated public coverage, modifications within the climate, and even the kitchen sink. Whereas the numbers of hospitalizations and deaths as a consequence of Covid have remained comparatively low because the Omicron surge, they proceed nonetheless because the elusive virus stays uncontained in the neighborhood.

To fight the continual stress and impairment this case has prompted, Vermont has pulled out some highly effective new instruments to make Covid disappear:

  • We’ve stopped calling Covid a pandemic. Now it’s endemic, or end-emic as some say. This makes it seem to be a virus we will dwell with.
  • We’re closing state-run vaccination and testing websites. This may occasionally make entry to those vital instruments harder for deprived residents or those that dwell in distant areas. However the upside to those closures is the implication that issues are actually actually getting higher. It would additionally get monetary savings for the state, making it an actual win-win for Vermont.
  • We’ve stopped these miserable every day reviews of latest circumstances, hospitalizations and deaths. Nobody needs every day reminders of how devastating this illness continues to be. And we now have stopped these dreary weekly Covid press conferences with Gov. Scott and the administration. These good of us at all times tried to place a optimistic spin on the scenario in Vermont, however that would solely go on for therefore lengthy.
  • We’ve loosened or eliminated Covid restrictions in our public faculties. This restores freedom of alternative for college students and their households. Hopefully, it’s going to additionally enable face-to-face (relatively than mask-to-mask) engagement within the classroom, similar to outdated instances.

Certainly, these are highly effective new instruments. In the event that they work, possibly issues will lastly be all proper once more. And in the event that they don’t work, we will simply proceed our sluggish, spiraling descent into the maelstrom.

All of us are looking for some endpoint to all of this. And we proceed to hunt steering and assist from our specialists and leaders to get us to our purpose. Sadly, it’s nonetheless unclear what that purpose is likely to be, and unclear how we would be capable to obtain it.

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In that context, well being coverage choices have been made that resulted in unintended penalties. Let’s deal with only one: the impression on Vermonters most weak to critical illness and demise from Covid, specifically immune-compromised residents and the aged or disabled.

Within the early days of the pandemic, defending these weak Vermonters was the highest precedence in implementing public well being insurance policies and procedures by the administration. Not a lot anymore. Actually, it feels to many who Vermont has turned her again on them.

And actually, the clear message now could be that they need to fend for themselves. Proper now, the distressing actuality confronted by these weak Vermonters is that public coverage not has their backs — as an alternative, public coverage has pushed them additional into the shadows the place they can’t be seen or heard.

Not solely should they proceed to deal with all of the outdated security precautions imposed by Covid — masking, washing, distancing and avoiding — however now they need to guard towards the elevated danger of publicity as a consequence of “opening up.”

They should take further precautions. They should ask household guests if and once they have been examined for Covid, and, higher, ask them to remain masked and/or outdoors in any case. They should double-mask once they go grocery purchasing (one masks for themselves, one for these different consumers who usually are not adequately masked). For these with disabilities who’re unable to masks themselves, all public areas should stay off limits.

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They should preserve a private inventory of speedy antigen assessments. These assessments usually are not for their very own use — in the event that they take a look at optimistic, it’s already too late — however to make it slightly extra potential to interact immediately with household and different potential guests.

And for these weak Vermonters, this case has engendered a regrettable new degree of mistrust. Mistrust of the specialists and leaders and policy-makers who not have their backs. But additionally a brand new mistrust of family and friends and even strange passersby who now unwittingly pose an elevated danger for infecting them.

Perhaps we’re doing the fitting factor. Perhaps these highly effective new instruments will take us in the fitting route. Perhaps unintended penalties are unavoidable.

Regardless of the case, possibly a bit extra fine-tuning of public well being coverage could possibly be useful. The current modifications in coverage, particularly these modifications that place accountability for Covid precautions on the person, have led to appreciable confusion and a number of interpretations.

On condition that state of confusion for most of the people, it could possibly be very helpful to weak Vermonters if the Division of Well being may present clear and considerate tips each for weak people and the overall inhabitants to assist shield weak Vermonters and maybe even enable them to take part in the neighborhood once more.

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Notice: Dr. David McKay is a retired doctor from Middlebury and previous president of each the Vermont Medical Society and the Vermont Psychiatric Affiliation.



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Vermont

Vermont expected to get light snow Saturday. Here’s the forecast

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Vermont expected to get light snow Saturday. Here’s the forecast


Wintry weather spreads across the South

Significant snow and icy precipitation are moving from Texas to the Carolinas.

Following a week of cold temperatures and harsh winds, this weekend will see light snow across New England, including Vermont.

While the snow is expected to cover the entire state of Vermont, this weekend’s snowfall will be calm, with no strong winds to create a storm and only a small amount of accumulation.

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Here’s what to know about the timing, location and effects of Saturday’s snowfall in Vermont.

Where in VT will it snow Saturday?

According to the National Weather Service (NWS) of Burlington, light snow is expected throughout the day on Saturday, with the greatest chances of snow in the morning. Most areas of the state will see one inch of snowfall, with two inches possible in the middle region of the state.

While Vermont has seen extremely strong winds over this past week, the wind is expected to die down Friday night and stay mild throughout the snow Saturday. As of right now, the NWS has not issued any hazards or warning for Saturday, as the snowfall is expected to be calm.

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VT weather next week

Temperatures will stay in the 20s throughout the weekend, with slightly warmer temperatures coming in next week. Snow showers are expected overnight from Monday to Tuesday.



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Committee leadership in the Vermont Senate sees major overhaul – VTDigger

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Committee leadership in the Vermont Senate sees major overhaul – VTDigger


Sen. Chris Mattos, R-Chittenden North, center, speaks with Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington, at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Thursday, Jan. 9. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger

Nine of the Vermont Senate’s 11 standing committees will have new leaders this biennium and three will be helmed by Republicans, Lt. Gov. John Rodgers announced from the Senate floor Thursday afternoon.

The committee overhaul follows the retirement, death or defeat of a considerable number of veteran chairs last year — and after Republicans picked up six seats in the 30-member body in November’s election. Democrats and Progressives now hold 17 seats, while Republicans control 13.

Unlike the Vermont House, where committee positions are chosen unilaterally by the speaker, Senate assignments are doled out by a three-member panel, the Committee on Committees, which this year includes two new participants: Rodgers, a Republican, and Sen. Ginny Lyons, D-Chittenden Southeast. Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth, D/P-Chittenden Central, returned to the committee. 

The trio had few experienced senators from which to choose, given that — as Baruth noted in his opening remarks to the chamber Wednesday — nearly two-thirds of the Senate’s members joined the body over the past two years. Illustrating the point, newly sworn-in Sen. Seth Bongartz, D-Bennington, was tapped to chair the Senate Education Committee. (Bongartz had previously served in the House since 2021 — and had tours of duty in both the House and Senate in the 1980s.)

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Perhaps the most significant appointment went to Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington, who will chair the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. He succeeds Sen. Jane Kitchel, D-Caledonia, who retired after leading the budget-writing panel for 14 years.  

Sen. Nader Hashim, D-Windham, will helm the Senate Judiciary Committee, following the death last June of veteran Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington. 

The Senate Natural Resources & Energy Committee will be led by Sen. Anne Watson, D/P-Washington. Its former chair, Sen. Chris Bray, D-Addison, was defeated in November. 

Republicans flip six seats in the Vermont Senate, shattering Democratic supermajority


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Sen. Alison Clarkson, D-Windsor, takes over the Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs Committee from Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden Southeast. Ram Hinsdale defeated Clarkson for the role of Senate majority leader in November, requiring the former to step down from her committee leadership position and allowing the latter to step up. 

The three Republicans chairing panels are Sen. Richard Westman, R-Lamoille, who will run the Senate Transportation Committee; Sen. Russ Ingalls, R-Essex, who will head the Senate Agriculture Committee; and Sen. Brian Collamore, R-Rutland, who will lead the Senate Government Operations Committee. (Republicans similarly made gains in House leadership positions this year.)

Sen. Wendy Harrison, D-Windham, takes over the Senate Institutions Committee from Ingalls, who chaired it last biennium. 

The sole returning chairs are Lyons, who will continue to lead the Senate Health & Welfare Committee, and Sen. Ann Cummings, D-Washington, who will retain control of the Senate Finance Committee. 

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Speaking to reporters Thursday afternoon, Baruth said the Committee on Committees had intentionally sought partisan equilibrium on certain panels. The Senate Education Committee, for example, which is expected to engage in heavy lifting as lawmakers reconsider the state’s education funding scheme, includes three Democrats and three Republicans. For a bill to clear that panel, four members would have to approve.

“What I intended for that committee… to do is to put out bipartisan bills,” Baruth said of Senate Ed. 

Similarly, Baruth called the composition of the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee “very centrist,” with four Democrats and three Republicans. 

“They’re going to have a lot of work to do, hard work, but the one thing I want them to think — to think long and hard about — is any kind of raising taxes or fees,” Baruth said. “The only time I’m looking to do that, if it’s necessary, is if it brings down the property tax.”

Ethan Weinstein contributed reporting.

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Gov. Scott comes out swinging on education funding during inaugural address

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Gov. Scott comes out swinging on education funding during inaugural address


This article will be updated.

Gov. Phil Scott proposed a sweeping overhaul of what he called Vermont’s “broken and failing” education funding and governing systems during his inaugural address Thursday.

In his first major speech since voters overwhelmingly reelected him and booted Democrats up and down the ballot from office, Scott focused on the topic that most infuriated Vermonters in November: affordability.

“When it comes to politics, I know it can be hard to admit when you’ve gone down the wrong path and need to turn around,” Scott told House and Senate lawmakers during his fifth inaugural address at the Statehouse in Montpelier. “But we’re not here to worry about egos. We’re here to do what Vermonters need. And they just sent a very clear message: They think we’re off course.”

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As is typical for an inaugural speech, Scott did not delve into specifics on Thursday — the details of his plan will be unveiled later this month during his budget address.

But in the broad strokes, Scott teased a plan that would overhaul Vermont’s byzantine school governance structure and see the state assume a direct role in deciding how much districts spend.

“The bottom line is our system is out of scale and very expensive,” Scott said. “And as obvious as these challenges are, we haven’t been able to fix it.”

At the heart of Scott’s vision is a transition to a so-called foundation formula, whereby the state would calculate how much districts should spend on their schools and provide them corresponding grants.

Currently, local voters decide how much their school districts should spend when they approve or reject budgets during Town Meeting Day in the spring. Whatever the amount, the state must pay. To calculate each town’s fair share into Vermont’s more than $2 billion education fund, residential property tax rates are adjusted based on how much each district is spending per pupil.

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While potentially explosive in a state where local control is jealously guarded, a foundation formula is fairly typical across the country. And in Vermont, a bill to transition over to such a system even passed the House in 2018 with Democratic support. The architect of that 2018 legislation, then-GOP Rep. Scott Beck, was just elected to the Senate and named Republican minority leader for the chamber — where he is working closely with administration officials on their education plans.

Sophie Stephens

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Vermont Public

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Senators including Senate Minority Leader Scott Beck (center) on the first day of the 2025 session on Wednesday, Jan. 8.

“I think what we’re going to see [from the governor] here in a couple, three weeks is something that is far beyond just education finance,” Beck said in an interview Thursday. “I think it’s going to get into governance and delivery and outcomes.”

Beck said the transition to a foundation formula would force a series of questions, including whether districts would be allowed to approve any spending beyond the state’s base foundation grant.

“And in that case, where do they get that money from? And under what conditions can they access that money?” Beck said. “There’s a myriad of decisions that go into that whole thing. None of those decisions have been made. But I think in various circles, we have committed to going down the road of building a foundation formula in Vermont.”

Beck said he expects Scott’s education proposal will also include provisions that are designed to reduce staffing in the public education system.

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When Scott first took office in 2016, the state spent about $1.6 billion annually on public schools. This year, that number will exceed $2.3 billion.

Vermont schools now have one staff person for every 3.63 students, the lowest ratio in the United States. In 2018, Scott pushed hard, and unsuccessfully, for legislation that would have instituted mandatory caps on staff-to-student ratios.

“With what we’re spending, we should not be in the middle of the pack on any educational scorecard,” Scott said. “And our kids should all be at grade level in reading and math. In some grades, less than half hit that mark. While educators, administrators, parents and kids are doing their very best to make things work, the statewide system is broken and failing them.”

Inaugural and state-of-the-state speeches tend to include a laundry list of policy ideas. But Scott’s 43-minute speech was focused almost entirely on education and housing — he renewed calls to trim development regulations and to bolster funding for rehabbing dilapidated homes.

Scott only briefly discussed last summer’s floods, and made glancing mentions of public safety, climate change, and health care. The governor, who voted for Vice President Kamala Harris in November, made no mention of President-elect Donald Trump or national politics.

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Seeking to highlight some successes, the governor noted that overdose and traffic fatalities have declined recently, the state has welcomed more than 1,000 refugees in the past few years, and that the state park system saw near record visitation last year.

The governor has long argued that Chittenden County is prospering at a rate disproportionate to the rest of Vermont. He intensified that rhetoric in Thursday’s speech.

“As the rest of the state struggles to catch up, they carry the same burden of increasing taxes and fees and navigate the same complicated mandates and regulations,” the governor said. “And regardless of how well-intentioned these policies are, they’re expensive and require resources that places like Burlington, Shelburne and Williston may have, but small towns like Chelsea, Lunenburg, Peacham, Plainfield — and even Rutland, Newport or Brattleboro — do not. Too many bills are passed without considering the impact on these communities.”

Early in his speech, Scott paid tribute to several veteran legislators who died in the past year, including senators Bill Doyle and Dick Sears and representatives Don Turner, Bill Keogh, and Curt McCormack. Scott choked up and was visibly emotional when his recalling “my dear friend and mentor,” Sen. Dick Mazza, who died in May.

Former Governors Peter Shumlin, Jim Douglas and Madeleine Kunin attended the speech.

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