Current News

VermontBiz Today Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) announced that Encore Renewable Energy has joined the organization’s core group of Champion Members. VBSR’s cohort of 21 Champion Members, which includes King Arthur Baking Company, Seventh Generation, Ben & Jerry’s, and Green Mountain Power, are corporate social responsibility icons – in Vermont and beyond. Brands around the globe look to these Vermont industry leaders to learn how to guide their businesses toward a just, thriving, and transformative economy that works for all people and the planet. 

VermontBiz One year ago this week, extreme rain caused catastrophic flooding across Vermont. Some areas of the state received more than two months-worth of rain—over nine inches of rainfall—in a matter of two days. Homes, businesses, and farms were damaged; many were destroyed. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) released the following statement on the anniversary of the first day of the July 2023 flooding: 

“Last July’s catastrophic flood took an immense toll on our state. It was an all-hands-on-deck moment. Vermonters across the state—neighbors and volunteers, first responders and emergency workers, local news reporters, leaders at every level of government and of every political leaning—came together to help the victims of this terrible disaster.  

VermontBiz The Vermont Department of Health has confirmed a case of measles in a Vermont resident. The individual was exposed while in the Hanover, New Hampshire area in late June. State health officials said there is no ongoing risk of measles from this case in Vermont. This latest case is unrelated to the one reported in April.  

New Hampshire’s public health office provided the Health Department with information about Vermont residents who might have been exposed. Vermont health officials reached out to those individuals and learned of one person who was experiencing symptoms.

VermontBiz Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) has been cited as Vermont’s most socially responsible acute care hospital by the Lown Institute, a Massachusetts-based non-partisan healthcare think tank.

The distinction is based on an evaluation of more than 3,500 U.S. hospitals using more than 50 metrics in categories such as health equity, value of care, and patient outcomes. Results are based on data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Internal Revenue Service, and other sources.

VermontBiz Vermont Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas today released a new report, Vermont 2024 Candidates and Campaign Finance. The report aims to enhance transparency for campaign finance reporting as the 2024 campaign ramps up. 

VermontBiz Vermont Smoke & Cure, renowned for its artisanal smoked meat products, today announced that its Uncured Turkey Pepperoni Stick has been named the winner in the Snack Stick category of the 2024 Taste for Life Food Essentials Awards. This recognition underscores the company's commitment to crafting high-quality, flavorful meat snacks that meet the growing consumer demand for healthier, protein-forward, on-the-go options to fuel their lives and adventures.

VermontBiz The Center for Community News (CCN) at the University of Vermont (UVM) will dramatically expand efforts to grow partnerships between local news outlets and universities across the country, forging a path to sustainability for local reporting in the regions that need it most. Thanks to the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and others, CCN will ramp up research, programming, education, and advocacy for student reporting programs, which are playing an increasingly vital role in reporting local news for Americans.

VermontBiz The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) this week announced its approval of Vermont’s application to provide Medicaid coverage for individuals transitioning out of incarceration. 

As outlined in the federal waiver, sentenced incarcerated individuals will become eligible for Medicaid 90 days before their release. Currently, incarcerated individuals are ineligible for Medicaid, regardless of economic situation, until they return to the community. Officials say the initiative will enhance continuity of care and support a more seamless transition back to Vermont’s communities. 

VermontBiz First responders provide critical and often live-saving services at both natural and technological disasters. They may be exposed to death, grief, injury, pain or loss, as well as threats to their own safety, frequent shifts and/or long shifts, lack of sleep, physical hardship, and other negative experiences. In many cases across Vermont, these first responders are community-based volunteers taking time away from their careers and family to respond in a moment’s notice to serve their neighbors in need. That is why Vermont State University’s Center for Social Justice and Trauma Response Care on the Castleton Campus is hosting its second Annual First Responder Wellness Conference on July 15-16. You can register here. 

VermontBiz Central Vermont Council on Aging (CVCOA), recognizing the need for more centralized office space to support the growth of its case management department, moved satellite offices from Windsor County to a shared office space in downtown Randolph.  

Previously, CVCOA had rented individual offices from the Randolph Senior Center, Royalton Senior Center, and from a Main Street storefront in Rochester. Each office was utilized by a single case manager. 

by Vermont Small Business Development Center VermontBiz In the heart of historic Waterbury, Ehren Hill and Cory Swafford took the leap in 2023 to purchase Blackback Pub, a welcoming, well-known gathering place that nurtures a sense of community. This is the place where locals and visitors alike forge friendships, share stories and celebrate life’s moments.

From the outset, the new partners’ goal has been to build upon the legacy and core values set by the previous owners and to deliver what their guests appreciate most: genuine connections; a selection of constantly changing regional beers on tap; freshly prepared and locally sourced American fare; a cocktail and wine bar; quality service; and a cozy ambiance.

by Timothy McQuiston VermontBiz Vermonters are again facing steep premium growth for 2025 due to the cumulative impact of hospital costs, drug prices and state health care policy choices. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont projects that these trends will continue and require rate increases of 16.3% for individual health plans and 19.1% for small-group plans for Vermonters covered by Vermont Health Connect. MVP Health Care is proposing an average increase of 11.7% for individual plan coverage and a 9.3% increase for small-group coverage.