Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) leaders and staff gathered Wednesday, October 18 at the Mount Anthony Country Club to honor employees for their service to the organization’s mission. One award every year is presented for each of the organization’s five core values: quality, empathy, safety, teamwork, and stewardship. The employees who received the awards are noted standard bearers and role models within the organization.

“We achieve remarkable success through the hard work and dedication of employees who come to work each day with our mission in mind,” said Thomas A. Dee, FACHE, SVHC’s president and CEO. “Our Putnam Awards honorees live our mission of exceptional care and comfort and help set SVHC apart as one of the best health systems in New England.”

Vermont Business MagazinePhysician's Computer Company (PCC), the leading EHR vendor for independent pediatricians nationwide, has announced a collaboration with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and 18 pediatric practices throughout the country to research childhood obesity. TheBMI 2+ Study, funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHBLI), will involve the AAP's Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS) research network and will measure the effects of Motivational Interviewing on obesity outcomes in children 3-8 years of age.

by Bernadette CRobin, Director of Marketing and Business Development, VNA & Hospice of the Southwest RegionThe Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice of the Southwest Region (VNAHSR) has been named as a Top 100 and a Top Agency of the 2017 HomeCare Elite®, recognition of the top-performing home health agencies in the United States. For 12 years, HomeCare Elite has annually identified the top 25 percent of agencies and highlighted the top 100 and top 500 agencies overall. The VNA & Hospice of the Southwest Region has been recognized for ten out of the last 12 years.

The ranking is developed by ABILITY® Network, a leading information technology company helping providers and payers simplify the administrative and clinical complexities of healthcare; and sponsored by DecisionHealth, publisher of Home Health Line and the Complete Home Health ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Coding Manual.

by Joyce Marcel. Photos by Randolph T Holhut. Vermont Business Magazine When you think about Vermont's economic destiny, do you first think about a crumbling old barn? Probably not. But Paul Bruhn does. “Vermont is really defined by its historic resources, its downtowns and village centers, the barns that dot the countryside – these define Vermont's character and are a very much part of Vermont's brand,” insists Bruhn, who has been the executive director of the Preservation Trust of Vermont since its founding in 1980. “And, as a result, they are the real foundation of our economic well-being.”

by Timothy McQuiston and Charlotte Lyman Vermont Teddy Bear President Bill Shouldice doesn't take a break from his shift on the packing line at the Shelburne plant to explain the dilemma his company faces. On the one hand, sales are great. You couldn't play Pandora before Christmas without hearing about PajamaGram, another VTB brand. On the other hand, he needs seasonal workers in a region of the state in which the unemployment rate hovers around 2 percent. You couldn't listen to local radio without hearing Shouldice in an ad looking for employees.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott has announced matching grants will be awarded to the Schooner Lois McClure and the General George Stannard House. The grants, totaling $80,000 and funded by the state legislature, support the restoration and rehabilitation of two important resources that are vital to the telling of Vermont’s maritime and Civil War histories. The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation is proud to administer the matching grants on behalf of the State of Vermont. The Division will present the grants at a ceremony on December 28, 2017 at the State House in Montpelier.

“I’m pleased to announce this funding, which supports preservation of our proud history, as well as our tourism sector – an important contributor to the Vermont economy,” said Scott.

Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) joined a letter led by Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and signed by Tom Carper (D-DE), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Al Franken (D-MN),Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) are calling for the reversal of reported internal policies across the Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) that ban the use of seven words, including “vulnerable,” “entitlement,” “diversity,” “transgender,” “fetus,” “evidence-based,” and “science-based.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Taxes has been working diligently to assess the impending impacts of federal tax changes. Coordinating closely with other departments and agencies, the department is focused on determining how aspects of the proposed bill will impact Vermonters, and what the magnitude of that impact may be. Douglas Farnham, Tax Department Economist and Director of Policy is coordinating a discussion across all state agencies and departments to ensure that the administration has a thorough and comprehensive understanding of the federal changes.

“The impacts of this bill go well beyond taxes, working with our partners in other agencies and stakeholders, we will explore the impacts, both positive and negative, and provide this analysis to the Governor, along with the policy responses worthy of consideration in the short and long-term,” Farnham said.

Public Assets Institute In November 550 more workers were employed. But over the longer term the trends have been different for different age groups. The biggest change is for the youngest Vermonters, ages 16 to 24. After a long decline, the share who had jobs climbed more than 6 percentage points from 2012 through 2016—from 52.2 percent to 58.6 percent. Meanwhile, the percentages of prime-age (25-54) and older (55-plus) workers employed has remained about the same since the end of the recession in 2009.

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for November was 2.9 percent. This reflects no change from the revised October and September rates. Jobs grew in both the seasonally adjusted and unadjusted data for both the month and year-to-year. The Labor Force also increased. However, the unadjusted unemployment rate for the state and in every Labor Market increased for the month, but are still below where they were a year ago. The national rate in November was 4.1 percent, also unchanged. As of the prior month’s preliminary data, the Burlington-South Burlington Metropolitan NECTA was tied for the ninth lowest unemployment rate in the country for all metropolitan areas. Overall, Vermont’s unemployment rate was tied for the fifth lowest in the country for November. New Hampshire was tied for third (2.7 percent, unchanged from October, see chart below).

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Secretary of Administration Susanne Youngissued a directiverequiring all executive branch employees participate in sexual harassment training classes offered through the State of Vermont Department of Human Resources (DHR). In response to the national dialogue around the prevalence of sexual harassment, Governor Phil Scott called on DHR to review the State’s sexual harassment policies and procedures and recommend any necessary changes. Policies were found to be current and in line with best practices, and the Department identified an opportunity to improve training requirements to increase effectiveness.

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power is preparing for a series of storms that are forecasted to hit Vermont startingFriday. Forecasters say theFridaystorm could bring 3-8” of snow, with the heaviest snowfall in Southern Vermont. Then another storm is set to impact Vermont earlySaturdaymorning with rain, freezing rain, and sleet.

“Our crews are preparing now and are ready to respond quickly to any outages from these storms,” said Kristin Carlson, GMP’s Vice President Strategic & External Affairs. “Early preparation is key to making sure we can get the lights on quickly and safely for customers.”

Safety is most important during winter storms and GMP reminds Vermonters to be careful on the roadways especially, as these storms will cause hazardous travel conditions.Sundayis forecasted to be clear, but GMP is tracking another snow storm forecasted for Christmas Day.