Current News

Vermont Business Magazine AFT Vermont has announced that this Saturday, Central Vermont Medical Center support staff will hold a rally at City Hall Parkin Barre to put pressure on their administration to agree to a fair union contract that improves patient care, staff retention, and working conditions for the nearly 500 support staff employed by CVMC. This group includes cleaning and kitchen staff, nursing aides, front desk staff, and other groups who earn the lowest wages at the hospital.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development has amended fourteen program funding opportunities to remove harmful DEIA scoring criteria. The overhaul brings these programs into compliance with Executive Order 14151, Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing, issued on January 20, 2025. USDA Rural Development will not consider previous Administration DEIA-based “key priorities” and discretionary points while scoring applications submitted under the following programs.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Blue Cross Vermont CEO Don George sent a letter in mid-January to key healthcare stakeholders discussing the dire situation of Blue Cross Vermont in particular and the state's healthcare industry in general. On Wednesday, March 26, the Green Mountain Care Board will meet, and likely vote on, FY26 Hospital Budget Guidance. Earlier this month, a staff presentation by the GMCB noted how most of the hospitals are losing money so far this year. In his letter below, George notes how the Blue Cross Vermont reserves have lost $100 million in member reserves in five of the last six years and last October was the worst month ever. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Mental Health (DMH) is hosting its annual conference at the Killington Grand Resort Hotel on April 9, 2025. The event will feature workshops, presentations, and opportunities for mental health clinicians to earn continuing education credits. Attendees will hear from keynote speakers AnneMoss Rogers, an expert in suicide prevention, and Keith Whyte, a national leader in addiction prevention and responsible gambling. The conference is themed, “Revitalize Mental Health: Empower, Strengthen, Transform.”

Vermont Business Magazine A new study has revealed the states that spend the most money on healthcare, with Alaska topping the ranking. Alaska was highest in per person spending and very high as a percentage of income. Vermont ranked eighth in spending but was higher in percentage, as of course different states have different income levels. New York and Massachusetts, for instance, spent more, but because their average incomes are higher, they spent a lower percentage. Meanwhile, West Virgina spent slightly more per person than Vermont but over 20.05 percent of income versus Vermont's 15.36 percent.

Vermont Business Magazine April is Sexual Assault Awareness (SAAM) month, and The Safety Team, a Vermont-based nonprofit provider of comprehensive violence prevention and trauma recovery programs, is dedicated to raising awareness on risk reduction and empowered healing for all those at risk. To promote Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April), The Safety Team will host a COMMUNITY EVENT: Fostering Safety in an Unsafe World, a complimentary interactive presentation, Monday, April 14 at 6:00 p.m. at the Mainstreet Landing Performing Arts Center Film House (60 Lake Street, Burlington, VT 05401). The event will include a presentation and video as well as easy-to-learn strategies and techniques. A live demonstration from The Safety Team (all trained in martial arts with many earning black belts and beyond) will take place along with a Q&A session.

Vermont Business Magazine Creativity and community will be in high fashion this April, when dozens of oncology and infusion nurses and some cancer patients from University of Vermont Cancer Center take the stage at Higher Ground Ballroom as part of Infusion Fashions: A Chemo Gown Extravaganza. The event, which will be held from 5-9 pm on Saturday, April 12 at Higher Ground Ballroom, 1214 Williston Road, South Burlington, is the brainchild of Louise Friedeborn, RN, an oncology nurse at UVM Cancer Center. It brings nurses, patients and members of the community together to raise awareness and funding to support cancer patients and their families.

Vermont Business Magazine This March, Central Vermont Council On Aging (CVCOA) celebrates the amazing work of the 13 nutrition program sites we partner with and support. It takes the combined efforts of a small staff and dedicated volunteers to ensure hundreds of community members receive meals on a daily basis. Older adults (age 60+) can call CVCOA’s Helpline (1-800-642-5119) to sign up for Meals on Wheels and receive healthy meals delivered to their door. In addition, meal sites offer congregate meals where anyone can come enjoy a meal with neighbors. Monday through Friday, volunteers take to the roads to bring warm meals to their neighbors (a loose term when some routes cover more than 70 miles). Volunteers often share that part of their motivation comes from a sense they are “paying it forward” as one day they may rely on the service themselves. 

by Joshua Defibaugh, University of Vermont The University of Vermont’s office of Innovations hosted the final presentations of the second annual Joy and Jerry Meyers Cup this Saturday at the Alumni House’s Silver Maple Pavilion. Out of the three UVM undergraduate teams that presented their business ideas to a panel of judges, Campus Storage Solutions won the grand prize of $225,000 in cash, the largest undergraduate prize for a business pitch competition in the country. Israel, who served as the company’s CEO, was inspired to start Campus Storage Solutions with Logan Vaughan (’27) after facing their own personal challenges with storing and moving belongings over the summer while away from college. 

Vermont Business Magazine Today during President Trump’s Cabinet meeting, Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said, ‘We are going to eliminate FEMA.’ Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) released the following reaction: “The Trump Administration’s grand plan for victims of natural disasters is to abandon them—and it’s a complete non-starter. Eliminating FEMA’s ability to respond after a disaster hits would be catastrophic not only for flood victims in Vermont, but for hurricane victims in the Carolinas, tornado victims in Kansas, and wildfire victims in California."

Public Assets Institute, Montpelier The federal government is making massive cuts to government functions that Americans—and Vermonters—count on and is planning to make more cuts. Layoffs of federal workers, funding freezes, tariffs, and cuts to government programs, including public benefits for those most in need, could threaten the well-being of Vermont’s people and its economy. While we may not know the scale of these cuts, the timeline, or where cuts will occur, this crisis needs attention. To address funding gaps and ensure that families can meet their basic needs, now is the right time for the legislature to craft its response to federal actions before the end of the legislative session, which is rapidly approaching. By considering options to raise revenue and prepare to expand state benefits, the state can protect Vermonters and avoid the worst impacts of federal cuts.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark today announced she has been elected to serve on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), a bipartisan organization of state attorneys general from across the country and U.S. territories. The Executive Committee oversees the management of NAAG and functions as the governing body of the association for the benefit of its members. Attorney General Clark was first nominated by the Democratic Party Caucus and then elected during the annual business meeting at the NAAG Capital Forum in December 2024. She has been serving in her new role since January 2025.