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Levine recommends indoor masks; first 20-29 year old dies of Covid-19

Levine recommends indoor masks; first 20-29 year old dies of Covid-19

© 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC As area students prepare to return to school on Tuesday and as positive Covid-19 cases are rising in both nursing homes and  correctional facilities around the state, Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine is recommending masking indoors in public spaces regardless of vaccination status. This is in line with a […]

Weekly Covid Update: Most counties, including Windham, Windsor, lag behind state vaxx goal

Weekly Covid Update: Most counties, including Windham, Windsor, lag behind state vaxx goal

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Although Vermont may be the first state in the country to reach the 80 percent threshold for Covid-19 vaccinations, nine of the state’s 14 counties, including Windham and Windsor,  remain within the 70 to 79 percent Covid-vaccination range. Windsor County’s vaccination rate is currently at 73.7 percent, Windham County is at […]

Vermont closing in on 80% vaxx rate for lifting of all Covid restrictions

Vermont closing in on 80% vaxx rate for lifting of all Covid restrictions

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC With Vermont just 0.2 percent shy of the 80 percent vaccination rate goal as of numbers through Thursday, June 10, state officials announced the addition of dozens of walk-in clinics at state parks and other venues throughout the state this weekend. The coordination with state parks coincides with the annual Vermont […]

Weekly Covid Update: State within 8,000 of 80% vaccination rate, remains safest in nation

Weekly Covid Update: State within 8,000 of 80% vaccination rate, remains safest in nation

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Health officials announced on Friday that 78.6 percent of eligible Vermonters have been vaccinated with at least one dose, leaving just 7,878 more to go, as Vermont inches closer to the 80 percent vaccination rate threshold that will result in Gov. Phil Scott lifting all remaining Covid-19 health restrictions. To visit […]

Pandemic postponed annual meetings take place under sunny skies

Pandemic postponed annual meetings take place under sunny skies After 3-month delay, Weston, GM school district meet

By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC As the Covid-19 pandemic seems to be winding down, a number of municipalities are catching up with meetings (under sunny skies) that could not be held in their traditional March time slots this past winter. By the time the country was shutting down in mid-March 2020, most […]

Weekly Covid Update: Scott lifts curfew on restaurants, looks to 80 percent goal next week

Weekly Covid Update: Scott lifts curfew on restaurants, looks to 80 percent goal next week

© 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC On Friday, Gov. Phil Scott announced he was lifting curfews on restaurants, bars and social clubs beginning Saturday, May 29, allowing those establishments to return to their normal business hours. Local municipalities are still allowed to place their own restrictions on businesses if desired. In what had been an optimistic […]

Weekly Covid Update: Scott to lift all Covid restrictions once 80% of Vermonters are vaxxed

Weekly Covid Update: Scott to lift all Covid restrictions once 80% of Vermonters are vaxxed

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC On Friday, Gov. Phil Scott extended a challenge to Vermonters saying that once the state reaches an 80 percent vaccination rate for all eligible Vermonters, he will lift all restrictions put in place because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on state projections, the goal could be reached as soon as early […]

Fierman to LMH board: Fall classes 'most likely' entirely in-person

Fierman to LMH board: Fall classes ‘most likely’ entirely in-person Some online courses will be available

By Jasmin Gomez ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC At the Ludlow Mount Holly Unified Union School District meeting on Wednesday, May 13, Two Rivers Supervisory Union Superintendent Lauren Fierman announced that “we are most likely to be entirely in person in the fall.” Fierman clarified that being in-person does not mean that some online courses cannot […]

Health Dept. opens walk-in vaxx clinics to <br>out-of-staters working in Vermont

Health Dept. opens walk-in vaxx clinics to
out-of-staters working in Vermont

© 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vermont health officials announced that registration is now open, with walk-in opportunities available, to anyone who lives out of state but works in Vermont, regardless of their occupation. Human Services Secretary Mike Smith said the state might have additional announcements next week on further category expansion. Smith also said he […]

Weekly Covid Update: High case counts continue among younger Vermonters

Weekly Covid Update: High case counts continue among younger Vermonters

© 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Although many numbers started to trend downward this week, high Covid-19 case counts and outbreaks are likely to continue in the very near future in younger populations, i.e.: those not vaccinated, according to Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine. Driving the high numbers are the variants in the picture — […]

Springfield Hospital to allow visitors under some conditions

Springfield Hospital to allow visitors under some conditions

As per Gov. Phil Scott, visitors can now return to Vermont hospitals, including Springfield Hospital, under certain new restrictions. At Springfield Hospital, only fully vaccinated visitors are permitted to access the Inpatient Care Unit and Emergency Department unless they qualify under an exception. Visitors must have received their full Covid-19 vaccination series at least two […]

Vaxx signups start Monday for those 65+

Vaxx signups start Monday for those 65+ Covid-19 infections drop as deaths rise; state considers making educators' vaccines a priority

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC As the 65+ age band is poised to begin registering for the Covid-19 vaccine on Monday, March 1, Gov. Phil Scott indicated that state officials are considering priority vaccinations for educators and school staff as the state’s focus heats up to get children back to full-time in-person learning. Although Scott would […]

Weekly Covid Update: Travel restrictions loosened for those vaccinated

Weekly Covid Update: Travel restrictions loosened for those vaccinated

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC With vaccination rates and dose allotment on the rise and new Covid-19 cases on the decline, Gov. Phil Scott announced on Friday a loosening of travel restrictions, as well as changes to protocols within long-term care and other senior living facilities, for fully vaccinated Vermonters. Scott also said changes are expected […]

Boards struggle with holding annual meetings during pandemic

Boards struggle with holding annual meetings during pandemic Legislation may give municipalities more options

By Shawn Cunningham © 2020 Telegraph Publishing, LLC Town Meeting day is more than two months away, but municipalities — including school districts — throughout Vermont are working out how that annual ritual of direct democracy will be handled during a global pandemic in which personal contact can be hazardous. When Gov. Phil Scott announced […]

State to allow 2-household holiday gatherings

State to allow 2-household holiday gatherings

©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Citing stabilized case counts of under 100 over the past several days — including 63 on Tuesday, Dec. 22  — that suggested an overall “vast improvement,” Gov. Phil Scott announced that several  health guidelines will be loosened from Wednesday, Dec. 23 through Saturday, Jan. 2. These include expanding the state’s gathering […]

Scott allows bar seating with restrictions; lodgings can now book at 100 percent

Scott allows bar seating with restrictions; lodgings can now book at 100 percent

©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Gov. Phil Scott has “turned the spigot” for the hospitality sector this week, allowing for lodging to increase to 100 percent capacity and for restaurants and bars to offer bar seating with some restrictions. Lodging may now book 100 percent of rooms, however travelers should either be from Vermont or if […]

First day of school goes smoothly despite changes, challenges

First day of school goes smoothly despite changes, challenges

By Shawn Cunningham © 2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC The day that many have been waiting for and  — and somewhat dreading — arrived Tuesday as most Green Mountain District students reported to their classes to begin a strikingly different school year. By most accounts, the results were good and several parents said that their children […]

GMUSD schools seem more prepared for reopening than NEA statewide grades indicate

GMUSD schools seem more prepared for reopening than NEA statewide grades indicate

By Shawn Cunningham © 2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC On Thursday, Sept. 3, the Vermont NEA – the union that represents public school teachers in the state – released a “report card” for “overall preparation for safe start of school” as the Covid-19 pandemic continues. The grades in the report came from representatives of the local […]

Whiting Library reopens Aug. 3 by appointment

Whiting Library reopens Aug. 3 by appointment

The Whiting Library, 117 Main St, in Chester, will be reopening the library building to the public by appointment only beginning Monday, Aug. 3. Patrons will be required to call in advance at 875-2277 to schedule a 25-minute appointment slot. Appointments will be available at 11 and 11:30 a.m. and noon and 12:30 p.m. Monday, […]

A Complex Equation: Solving the puzzle of reopening schools

A Complex Equation: Solving the puzzle of reopening schools Part 1 of a series on reopening schools in the Time of Covid-19

This is Part  1 in a series on the issues around reopening schools closed by the pandemic in the fall. By Shawn Cunningham © 2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC The countdown clock is ticking. In less than three months the 2020/21 school year begins. And while Agency of Education Secretary Dan French is working with Vermont’s […]