Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Barr Hill Gin, the most awarded gin in the United States and a pioneer of Landcrafted® spirits, launches its 9th annual Bee's Knees Week (June 13-22, 2025) with an ambitious target: 300,000 additional square feet of new pollinator habitat, equivalent to 22 football fields of flowering plants. The award-winning distillery's conservation initiative will push its cumulative impact past 1.3 million square feet of pollinator habitat created since the campaign began in 2017. This year's effort has been moved to June to coincide with Pollinator Week, hosted by Pollinator Partners, and comes at a critical time for North American pollinators. Bumblebee populations have plummeted nearly 50% since 1974, with over 70 pollinator species now listed as endangered or threatened by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

Vermont Business Magazine Every spring and summer, independent organizations release hospital rankings, but the mix of letter grades, star ratings, and other reviews can leave patients and families unsure of what they really mean for their care. University of Vermont Health Network is committed to helping patients make sense of these ratings, and to demonstrating how the organization continually tracks and improves the quality and safety of the care it provides. 

Vermont Business Magazine A multi-sector regional partnership dedicated to improving public health through work on initiatives ranging from food security to digital equity has been honored as a Public Health Champion by Vermont Public Health Association. University of Vermont- Central Vermont Medical Center serves as the convener and fiscal sponsor for the collaborative. The award, presented last month at the Association’s annual meeting, highlights the work of THRIVE collaborative both in promoting public health and in crisis response – specifically the group’s “effective tactical flood response and collaboration to meet vital community needs” following regional flooding in the summer of 2024. 

Vermont Business Magazine On Tuesday, June 3, the Kraft Family and New England Patriots Foundation celebrated the 2025 Myra Kraft Community MVP Award Winners. They recognized 26 volunteers for their contributions to the New England community at an awards ceremony at Gillette Stadium. In total, $275,000 in donations were distributed to the nonprofits represented by each volunteer. Twenty-five organizations each received $10,000 and THE BASE received this year’s grand prize of $25,000.

Vermont Business Magazine Community Care Network-Rutland Mental Health Services (CCN-RMHS) has launched a Veteran Care Navigator program, designed to provide specialized support to Veterans and active-duty service members and their immediate families, ensuring timely and coordinated assistance for those who have served our country. CCN-RMHS Veteran Care Navigator services, facilitated by Brodie Johnson, will provide care coordination to individuals around mental health support, substance use treatment, Veterans’ benefits and housing assistance, among other supports. 

Vermont Business Magazine Research by cardiologists at University of Vermont Medical Center is giving doctors powerful new insights that may change the way cardiologists treat patients recovering from heart attacks and other serious cardiac events. Led by David Schneider, MD, chief of cardiology at UVM Medical Center, the research focuses on a specific protein found on platelets — the tiny cells in blood that help form clots. By understanding the prevalence of a specific protein on a patient’s platelets, doctors can determine whether someone is more likely to have a second heart attack – also known as recurrent heart attacks. Recurrent heart attacks account for about 25% of all heart attacks in the U.S. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Brattleboro Retreat has received two prestigious Lamplighter Awards from the New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCo), as well as a major teaching honor for its Medical Staff President, Dr. Jarred Zucker. Together, these recognitions highlight the Retreat’s deep and ongoing commitment to education, both in the public sphere and in training the next generation of mental health professionals. The Unravelling podcast was recognized with a Silver Lamplighter Award. The podcast brings together expert insight and lived experience to tackle complex mental health topics. Launched in June 2024, the show has reached listeners in over 25 countries and earned a 5-star Apple Podcasts rating. It is also being used in professional development settings, such as at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. 

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed S.53 regarding certification and Medicaid coverage for doulas, S.59 regarding amendments to the Open Meeting Law, but vetoed S.125, a bill regarding collective bargaining that was supported by the unions. In his veto message, Scott said, "This bill would effectively unionize a group of Judiciary employees with a simple definitional change. I’m concerned that despite unions testifying this was a priority for their organization, employees who would be impacted by this bill were not consulted or asked to testify."

Vermont Business Magazine Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) today released the following statement after President Trump bypassed California's governor to deploy National Guard troops to California: "Let’s be clear: Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in California is not about the protests there, ICE, or immigration. It is about using extremely dubious legal authority to expand his never-ending grasp for more power and his effort to move this country toward authoritarianism. This is a president who has usurped the constitutional responsibilities of Congress; threatened to impeach judges who rule against his policies; sued media that criticize him; extorted money from law firms that have represented his opponents; and is withholding funds from universities for teaching courses he doesn’t like."

Vermont Business Magazine We the Veterans and Military Families announced today that Governor Phil Scott has joined leaders across the nation in recognizing Military 250, a year-long national initiative celebrating the founding anniversaries of the U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. This movement seeks to elevate the voices of veterans and military families, promote civic participation, and foster a renewed commitment to service and community. As part of a statewide celebration, Governor Scott has reaffirmed Vermont’s steadfast dedication to active-duty service members, veterans, and military families through a proclamation that highlights its deep-rooted commitment to supporting service members and their families and will be celebrated from June 8 to June 14, 2025.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Captive Insurance Association CEO Kevin Mead today announced his intent to retire. He said there is no set date for his stepping down but wanted to give the VCIA board time to find a successor and allow for a transition. Mead has led the South Burlington trade association since February 2022. Vermont is the largest domicile for captive insurers in the nation. VCIA is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Charity Clark today announced she joined a coalition of attorneys general in suing the Trump Administration, and in particular the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), over its official plans to redistribute thousands of previously seized machine gun conversion devices to communities across the United States. ATF’s action involves Forced Reset Triggers, which allow even novice shooters to achieve the firepower of a military machine gun. Although ATF previously classified FRTs as machineguns, ATF—under directive from Trump Administration leadership—signed a settlement agreement that promises to stop enforcing federal law against FRTs and to redistribute thousands of FRTs that ATF had previously seized.