Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported August 24 that COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are still considered "Low." Total cases for the week increased to over 500. However, hospitalizations decreased to 30 from 50 the previous week. As of August 23, there have been 11 COVID-related fatalities in August, for a pandemic total of 707. Vermont now has the lowest COVID death rate in the nation, at 112 per 100,000 population. There were 12 deaths from COVID in Vermont in both June and July. June and July had the fewest COVID fatalities since July 2021 (2).

Vermont Business Magazine On Thursday, August 25th, Champlain College awarded its 2022 Distinguished Citizen Award to Weiwei Wang, co-founder, and director of operations and development of the Vermont Professionals of Color (PoC) Network. In its 61st year, the Distinguished Citizen Award recognizes and celebrates leaders whose personal and professional achievements exemplify Champlain’s commitment to developing engaged citizens who have made a meaningful impact on their communities.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Changemakers Table, with contributions from the Vermont Community Foundation and the Johnson Family Foundation, has distributed 22 grants totaling $60,260 to provide unrestricted operating support for organizations and initiatives led by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) across Vermont. The Vermont Changemakers Table, convened by the Vermont Community Foundation and Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR), hosts an annual cohort of approximately 20 leaders under the age of 35 from across Vermont. The cohort collaboratively designs a grant round to deploy a pool of funds aimed at addressing community-level challenges across the state.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Education announced today that it signed a contract with the Vermont Education Health Initiative (VEHI), on a program to advance educator health and wellness in Vermont. The program, PATH Forward, will provide targeted wellness supports to Vermont’s educator workforce, and support Vermont’s supervisory unions and school districts in developing robust wellness programs that meet their individual needs. PATH Forward is a strategic investment in school-based wellness programs, both to meet their immediate needs, and build capacity going forward.

Vermont Business Magazine Jenna’s Promise and the North Central Vermont Recovery Center (NCVRC) are pleased to announce the One-Year Anniversary Celebration of the opening of Jenna’s House Community Center on August 27th, 2022. Located at 117 St. Johns Road in Johnson, Jenna’s House has been a growing center point for Lamoille Valley, serving individuals and families recovering from Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) as well as the community at large.

by Peter Sterling, REV Incredibly and finally, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has begun the shift to a clean energy America. For the first time ever, the massive resources of the U.S. Government will be mobilized to move our country off of climate change causing fossil fuels and onto renewable energy sources like wind, solar and hydro power. We are finally looking at a future where renewable energy and other pro-climate technologies will benefit from a level of government support comparable to what the fossil fuel and nuclear industries have received for decades. For the first time there will be an energy storage tax credit, a comprehensive EV tax credit, a long term commitment to a solar tax credit for homeowners, and extra incentives for renewable energy businesses that pay prevailing wages and help to build solar equipment in the US.

Vermont Business Magazine The federal government has authorized the Vermont Department for Children and Families (DCF) and Agency of Education (AOE) to provide a temporary food benefit to preK-12 students who would normally receive free or reduced-price meals at school. These benefits, called Pandemic EBT or P-EBT, are provided to students who missed meals at school due to COVID. Benefits are $48.78 each month an eligible student had at least one COVID-related absence February through June 2022. Eligible children will also receive a one-time benefit of $391 for the summer.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) on Friday will welcome Carole Johnson, Administrator of the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA), to Vermont to meet with health care providers and educators. The discussions will cover a range of health care issues in Vermont, including the health care workforce crisis, Vermont’s extensive Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) network, and opportunities to support and strengthen primary health care across the state. HRSA, an agency within the US Department of Health and Human Services, oversees federal initiatives to support the primary health care workforce, including the National Health Service Corps and Nurse Corps, and the delivery of primary care to more than 30 million people – including over 180,000 Vermonters – through FQHCs.

Vermont Business Magazine The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) has been awarded a $50,000 grant from The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) through the “Inspire! Grants for Small Museums” program. The funding will support initiatives to improve digital and in-person accessibility, allowing people with a wide range of abilities and learning styles to take part in meaningful experiences at the museum. A new, fully accessible BMAC website will make it easier to gain information about exhibits and events, and the museum’s online events will include real-time captioning. Visitors to the museum will be able to use assistive listening devices and iPads pre-loaded with videos of ASL translations of exhibit text.

by Al Gobeille and Rick Vincent, UVMHN Recently, we presented the University of Vermont Health Network’s proposed budget for next year to our Vermont regulators, the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB). Despite years of serious belt tightening, several major forces are driving our need for a significant increase. We took this opportunity to share with the GMCB what’s at stake and explain why our budget proposal is necessary to stabilize our finances and put us on a path to sustainability. Together, the two of us have more than three decades of experience managing and reviewing hospital budgets. From our perspective, this is the most crucial budget we’ve assembled. Actions taken now will clearly impact the future of health care in our communities.

Vermont Business Magazine US Department of Agriculture Deputy Secretary Dr Jewel Bronaugh today announced USDA is investing $121 million in critical infrastructure to combat climate change across rural America. The funding will include grants for 15 energy-efficiency and renewable-energy projects throughout New Hampshire and Vermont. These include the Big Picture Farm in Townshend which received a $18,039 REAP grant and the VT NH Veterinary Clinic in East Dummerston received a $16,378 REAP grant.