Current News

Vermont Business Magazine New mothers from throughout Vermont and northern New York will enjoy modern, private rooms with ample space for their partners and visiting loved ones in the “Glen and Rosemarie Wright Mother Baby Unit” unveiled Tuesday at The University of Vermont Medical Center. The Wright's were the lead donors among the 800 individuals and organizations who helped support the $15.8 million project. The current “Mother Baby Unit” is located in facilities that are 50-70 years old and contains small rooms, most of which have two beds. Twenty-two single-bed rooms in the new unit will dramatically reduce double occupancy and provide 44 percent more space per room for patients and families. An additional 3 rooms will be able to accommodate two beds.

Other features that will enhance the patient experience include:

by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org A revised revenue forecast for fiscal year 2016 puts the state back in the black. State economists say the general fund tax receipts will grow by 3 percent in the coming year, or by $40 million. At the beginning of 2015, revenues were down by $18 million.The revised forecast, presented Monday by Jeffrey Carr, the economist for the Shumlin administration, and Tom Kavet, the economist for the Vermont Legislature, shows modest growth in the state’s economy.

Vermont Business Magazine A Vermont Department of Health analysis shows that Vermonters are at greater risk for serious illnesses, even death, when the statewide average temperature reaches or exceeds 87°F. Adults age 75 and older and 15 to 34 experience the highest rates of heat-related illnesses. Adults 65 and older are at higher risk for death on such hot days.

Vermont Business Magazine A new study released just days after the US House passed a bill that would prevent states from requiring labels on genetically modified foods reveals that GMO labeling would not act as warning labels and scare consumers away from buying products with GMO ingredients. The study, presented at the annual conference of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, held in San Francisco on July 27, relies on five years of data (2003, 2004, 2008, 2014 and 2015) and includes 2,012 responses to a representative, statewide survey of Vermont residents. It focuses on the relationship between two primary questions: whether Vermonters are opposed to GMO’s in commercially available food products; and if respondents thought products containing GMO’s should be labeled.

Vermont Business Magazine Brattleboro Memorial Hospital is among the first hospitals in Vermont to acquire the Olympus EVIS EXERA III video endoscopy system. This system uses a video processor, light source, endoscope, and monitor to enable physicians to look inside the gastrointestinal (GI) system to diagnose, detect, and treat GI diseases such as colorectal cancer. The advanced imaging in the EVIS EXERA III system will help BMH physicians to detect GI disease at an earlier stage when treatments are most successful.

“By acquiring this new system we are able to further our commitment to providing exceptional care to our patients. With this advanced technology we increase our capacity to provide more accurate diagnoses, shorter procedure times, and an overall improved procedural experience,” said Steven R. Gordon, President and CEO of Brattleboro Memorial Hospital.

The University of Vermont Medical Center Joe Golding, CEO of Advancement Resources, was giving a presentation to faculty and health care providers from the UVM Medical Center, the UVM College of Medicine and the UVM College of Nursing and Health Sciences when Yael Friedman noticed something unusual. Friedman, a major gift officer for Academic Health Sciences at UVM, noticed that every time Golding sat down, he put his foot up the table in front of him. He also looked tired. Little did she know that Golding's life was about to change radically – with her help.

Left to Right: Kara Landry, Cindy Golding, Joe Golding, Mary Cushman, MD. Courtesy photo.

Vermont Business Magazine BAYADA Hospice, with three offices in Chittenden County, announced that it has been selected by the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (The CMS Innovation Center) to participate in its Medicare Care Choices Model (MCCM) demonstration project. Under this program, beginning in January 2016, BAYADA will be able to expand its existing community-based palliative care services to more patients in Vermont and New Hampshire who are seriously ill.

“The CMS Innovation Center provides a framework for supporting seriously ill, hospice eligible patients who might otherwise go without access to community-based palliative and hospice care.” said Dr. John Saroyan, BAYADA Hospice Medical Director. “The Medicare Care Choices Model will allow us to engage patients who qualify for hospice but who wish to continue pursuing the full spectrum of medical and hospital-based services.”

Vermont Business Magazine Merchants Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: MBVT), the parent company of Merchants Bank, today announced net income of $3.12 million and $6.45 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.49 and $1.02 for the three and six months ended June 30, 2015, respectively. This compares to net income of $3.41 million and $6.82 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.54 and $1.07 for the three and six months ended June 30, 2014, respectively. The return on average assets was 0.72% for the three months and 0.75% for the six months ended June 30, 2015, compared to 0.82% for the same periods in 2014. The return on average equity was 9.73% and 10.15% for the three and six months ended June 30, 2015, respectively, compared to 11.15% and 11.23% for the same periods in 2014. Merchants Bancshares' Board of Directors approved a dividend of $0.28 per share, payable August 21, 2015, to shareholders of record as of August 7, 2015.

Vermont Business Magazine Reinforcing other real estate reports that show strong home sales with a moderate increase in prices, Coldwell Banker Hickok & Boardman Realty today released the Mid-Year 2015 Vermont Market Report for Chittenden, Franklin, Grand Isle, and Addison Counties. Sales jumped 13.7 percent during the first six months of the year, with more residential properties selling in each of the four counties than a year early. Across all four counties tracked in the report, the median sales price rose 5.7 percent.

A rebounding local economy, historically low interest rates, and an influx of first-time home buyers have contributed to the healthy sales growth. Northwest Vermont is facing some headwinds, however. Affordability issues, lagging wage growth, and rising property taxes have added to affordability concerns for both mid-range and high-end buyers. (See county-by-county reports below.)

Vermont Business Magazine A Vermont nonprofit is among nine grantees that will collectively receive nearly $1.2 million in grants to improve rural lives. The grant, announced today, is to rehabilitate or replace substandard homes, according to NeighborWorks America, a national nonprofit that creates opportunities for people to live in affordable homes, improve their lives and strengthen their communities. In support of the Safe and Sound initiative, Wells Fargo Housing Foundation donated $1 million and is the lead funder of the effort.

Under the Safe and Sound Rural Housing Rehabilitation or Replacement program, 50 rural homes will be rehabbed or replaced in at least five rural regions by Dec. 31 to raise the visibility of rural communities as unique and inviting investment opportunities.

The NeighborWorks America Safe and Sound rural grant participants are:

Vermont Business Magazine The "Fiske Guide to Colleges," a leading college guidebook, has selected Champlain College for its 2016 edition highlighting more than 300 of the "best and most interesting schools" in the United States, Canada and Great Britain. Compiled by former New York Times education editor Edward B. Fiske, the guidebook selects colleges based primarily on academic quality. It includes information about each college's academics, social life, student body, financial aid, campus setting, housing, food and extracurricular activities.

"Our inclusion in the Fiske Guide is an recognition of the value and quality of a Champlain College education," noted Champlain President Donald J. Laackman.

"Guides that include student voices, qualitative evaluations, and realistic quantitative comparisons are valuable resources for parents, students and high school counselors looking for colleges that are a good fit," he added.

by Mike Smith Military members will often assign the term “weenie” to people who speak with much bravado, but when confronted with the prospect of actually fighting for this country — or putting their life on the line for others — they simply run the other way.

Donald Trump is acting like a weenie.

More than 58,000 Americans were killed in Vietnam and another 153,000 were wounded. When you come from privilege, as does Trump, true courage and heroism would have been serving in the military or speaking out against the war in a meaningful way. Trump chose to do neither. Doing neither is, well, being a weenie.