Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Thanks to the incredible generosity and support of the community, Rutland Regional Medical Center recently exceeded its $377,000 goal in support of the Imagine a Healthy Heart campaign to bring a new nuclear medicine camera to the Rutland Heart Center. The Rutland Health Foundation, the fundraising department of Rutland Regional Medical Center, reported $377,788 gifts and pledges raised as of the campaign close on September 30, 2019. 

Vermont Business Magazine State health officials are advising Vermonters to safely dispose of certain paint and coating removers (paint strippers) determined to be too dangerous to use. That’s because some of these products contain a dangerous chemical called methylene chloride. Methylene chloride can affect the nervous system and increase a person’s chance of getting cancer, and can damage the liver, kidney and heart. Exposure to a buildup of methylene chloride fumes in a small space can be fatal.

Vermont Business Magazine A new study ranks Vermont number 19 for retail gun sales per person in America in 2018. There were 79.4 sales per 100,000 people last year, marking a 59.2 percent increase since 2009. Vermont also had a relatively high rate of gun-related suicide, ranking 16th overall.

Vermont Business Magazine Norwich University will host a benefit concert with Vermont native and Nashville-based country musician Jamie Lee Thurston to support Northfield’s The Veterans’ Place Inc. at 8 pm Saturday, November 9, in Plumley Armory during Veterans’ Day weekend.

Vermont Business Magazine Planned Parenthood Vermont Action Fund Independent Expenditure Political Action Committee (PPVTAF IE PAC) honored five extraordinary Choice Champions at its Sex, Politics & Cocktails event at the Farmhouse Tap & Grill in Burlington on Thursday, October 10th. PPVTAF IE PAC saluted Choice Champion honorees Senator Virginia "Ginny" Lyons for her incredible leadership in the Vermont Senate to advance legislation protecting reproductive rights for all; Attorney General T.J. Donovan and colleagues Deputy Attorney General Josh Diamond, and Assistant Attorney General Eleanor "Ella" Spottswood for their dedication to protecting and advancing reproductive justice in Vermont; and Zoe Koeninger for their work as a Planned Parenthood of Northern New England Peer Educator to improve the health and safety of their school and community.

Vermont Business Magazine In a statement issued today, the Vermont Regional Center (VRC) will pursue a motion for reconsideration with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regarding its September 25, 2019 decision affirming the closure of the VRC. The decision to seek a motion for reconsideration was made after consultation with the VRC’s EB-5 counsel and the impacted VRC projects. The VRC plans to file the motion on October 25, 2019 and will make the motion publicly available at that time, the statement said.

Vermont Business Magazine Efficiency Vermont and Vermont Technical College (VTC) are launching a new partnership to help grow Vermont’s weatherization workforce. This week, contractors from around the state will gather at VTC to participate in the Building Performance Institute's (BPI) Building Analyst Certification training free of charge. Successfully completing this course will allow these contractors to become partners in Efficiency Vermont's Home Performance with EnergyStar weatherization program.

New non-profit subsidiary to provide malpractice insurance across the network

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont Health Network has completed the process of relocating its captive insurance company to Vermont. The VMC Indemnity Company, LTD, board of directors voted unanimously in 2017 to relocate the health network subsidiary that provides medical malpractice insurance coverage for its medical providers. The decision came after a thorough analysis conducted by the health network that showed the UVM Health Network could continue to provide cost-effective coverage to our providers while locating it in Vermont.

Path forward recommends public-private partnership

Vermont Business Magazine The College of St Joseph, Vermont Works, Vermont Innovation Commons and its partners have concluded a feasibility study for the College of St Joseph, and have identified an opportunity for a reimagined College and campus to move forward. The recommendation of the study is to form a public-private partnership to invest in and renovate a campus and establish programs to support businesses and entrepreneurs while leveraging the federally recognized Opportunity Zone in which the campus is located.

by Olga Peters Boarded up windows. Piles of dirt. A chain link fence stretching the length of the empty Putnam Hotel at Bennington’s “Four Corners” intersection. At the heart of Bennington’s downtown, the Putnam Hotel had succumbed to a fate common in rural America. Dying industries, changing demographics, and a struggling economy had stripped the building’s glory leaving it empty and depleted. Not anymore.

by Olga Peters Large projects like the Putnam Block can create ripples of confidence. Bob Stevens, of Stevens & Associates, said that when people see the investments people are making, and they see things improving. They become more willing to make their own investments figuring that the market is becoming stronger and will pay their investments back. Stevens is part of the Bennington Redevelopment Group. He helped lead the rehabilitation of the Brooks House in Brattleboro after a fire in 2011.

by Olga Peters “The unicorn program.” That is how a recent student with the Bennington Rescue Squad described the organization’s year-long apprenticeship program. Bill Camarda, Deputy Executive Director, oversees the only EMS apprenticeship program registered with the state of Vermont.