Vermont news

• Dr. Sunny Eappen: Sustainable nonprofit hospitals are vital to controlling health care costs

  06-09-2024 12:56 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Dr. Sunny Eappen, president and CEO of the University of Vermont Health Network.Health care is expensive, whether you’re receiving it or providing it. While most of us already know this hard truth, it’s at the center of attention as Vermont’s 2025 hospital budgets are being reviewed by our regulator, the Green Mountain Care Board. For us at University of Vermont Health Network, this isn’t a problem we think about once a year when we submit
  
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•  State police investigating ‘suspicious deaths’ at Pawlet residence

  15-09-2024 18:09 via vtdigger.org
  
  Photo courtesy of Vermont State PoliceVermont State Police investigating a report of a “suspicious person” early Sunday morning discovered the bodies of “deceased victims” at a home on Route 133 in Pawlet, according to a state police press release Sunday morning. The release did not indicate how many victims were found.Police said they were in the early stages of the investigation into what they labeled as “suspicious deaths.” “Initial work by detec
  
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•  State police investigating 3 ‘suspicious deaths’ at Pawlet residence

  15-09-2024 18:09 via vtdigger.org
  
  Photo courtesy of Vermont State PoliceUpdated at 8:21 p.m.Vermont State Police investigating a report of a “suspicious person” early Sunday morning discovered the bodies of three “deceased victims” at a home on Route 133 in Pawlet, according to a state police press release on Sunday. Police said they were in the early stages of the investigation into what they labeled as “suspicious deaths.”  “Initial work by detectives indicates this was
  
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• Fall Member Drive: Help us keep uncovering the hidden stories

  15-09-2024 14:09 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear reader,My name is Erin Petenko and I am the data reporter here at VTDigger. There is less than one week left in our Fall Member Drive and our goal has special significance this year. Recently the Center for Community News at UVM released a study showing that Vermont has lost 75% of its journalism jobs in the past quarter-century. VTDigger is working to fill that gap, and we need your help to raise $75,000 to reinvest in local news for Vermont. Donate todayAs a data reporter, my work lo
  
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• African women find community and healing at knitting group in Burlington

  15-09-2024 14:06 via vtdigger.org
  
  Elize Sikujuwa adds to the conversation during a meeting of a knitting group for New Americans in Winooski on Thursday, September 12. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerBURLINGTON— Fatuma Hussein, 61, had never knitted before she started coming to the third- floor classroom of an Old North End community center. But there she was on a recent Thursday evening, sitting in a beige armchair at the back of the room, working away on a fuzzy green and gray child’s hat.“I like it here,&rdqu
  
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• Resort, academy partner to make early snow in Stowe

  15-09-2024 13:14 via vtdigger.org
  
  An investment in snowmaking by Mansfield Winter Academy and Stowe Mountain Resort should get racers on the hill earlier in the season to train and race.
  Photo courtesy of Gordon Miller/Stowe ReporterThis story by Tommy Gardner was first published by The Stowe Reporter on Sept. 12.
  Mount Mansfield Academy could add an extra month and a half to its ski season as it partners with Stowe Mountain Resort and pumps a bunch of money into increased snowmaking capabilities in the areas the acade
  
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• Ron Jacobs: I am appalled at proposed Green Mountain Transit cuts

  15-09-2024 12:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Ron Jacobs of Winooski. He is a lifelong public transit rider and currently holds a senior discount pass from Green Mountain Transit.Frankly, I am appalled at Green Mountain Transit management’s proposed cuts to bus service. This decision highlights numerous problems with current policies regarding how Vermonters get to work, school, shopping and elsewhere in their daily lives.First and foremost, the idea that cuts are even considered as a reasonable solution to Green
  
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• Young Writers Project: ‘The Ocean’

  15-09-2024 12:06 via vtdigger.org
  
  “Swans Island, Maine,” by Amelia Van Driesche, 18, of BurlingtonYoung Writers Project is a creative online community of teen writers, photographers and artists, which has been based in Vermont since 2006. Each week, VTDigger features the writing and art of young Vermonters who publish their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for 12- to 18-year-olds. To find out more, visit youngwritersproject.org, or contact Executive Director Susan Reid at&nb
  
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• Bill Schubart: Health care, a way home

  15-09-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  According to a presentation from the Green Mountain Care Board, “Vermont was among the states with the lowest per capita health care spending in the 1990s, and since 2010 is consistently among the highest.”So, to envision and create effective change in our health care system, we must be honest with ourselves about the challenges and opportunities that deter or impel strategic change.ChallengesIneffective nonprofit board governance: Hospital boards (as well as many other nonprofit boa
  
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• Sen. Peter Welch visits the 1st adaptive mountain bike trail network in Vermont

  14-09-2024 01:10 via vtdigger.org
  
  U.S. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, speaks with Greg Durso in his adaptive mountain bike during a tour of Richmond Mountain Trails’ The Driving Range, the state’s first accessible adaptive-ready trail system, in Bolton on Friday, Sept. 13. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerMountain biking in Vermont should be more accessible to riders this fall, thanks to the first fully adaptive mountain bike trail network at the Richmond Mountain Trails in Bolton.U.S. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., met with l
  
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• Organization launches guide for BIPOC Vermonters to explore, connect and overcome barriers

  14-09-2024 00:40 via vtdigger.org
  
  The VT PoCket Guide website on Friday, Sept. 13. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerLooking to try a farm-to-table restaurant, find a nature activity or volunteer at a soup kitchen in your community? Such information is often inaccessible to communities of color. The VT PoCket Guide aims to help their members find and navigate options.Released this summer by the Vermont Professionals of Color Network, the web-based digital guide aims to support and empower Vermont’s marginalized communities by
  
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• ‘Person of interest’ in double homicide case faces new drug, firearm charges

  13-09-2024 23:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Federal Building in Burlington houses the U.S. District Courthouse and the U.S. Postal Service. File photo by Bob LoCicero/VTDiggerA former Stowe man termed by prosecutors as a “person of interest” in the killing of two Massachusetts men last October has been indicted on new federal charges, including one alleging he discharged a firearm in a drug crime. A federal grand jury in Vermont returned the indictment against Theodore Bland, 29, on Thursday, charging him with a serie
  
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• Twinfield teacher charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly drawing on student’s throat

  13-09-2024 22:48 via vtdigger.org
  
  A teacher at Twinfield Union School is facing a charge of aggravated disorderly conduct for allegedly using a permanent marker to draw around a student’s throat, according to Vermont State Police.Kathleen Wheelock, 48, of Montpelier, allegedly drew on the student after that student used a permanent marker on a whiteboard, police said. The incident occurred Sept. 5, according to a state police press release, although authorities began investigating on Sept. 10. “The student was n
  
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• A neighborhood dispute over a Williston dog rescue is headed to the Vermont Supreme Court

  13-09-2024 22:27 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dawna Pederzani and her rescue dog Layla in front of her home in Williston on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerShortly after the latest in a string of zoning complaints was filed against her, Dawn Pederzani staked three signs into her Williston home’s front lawn.Two of the signs feature skeleton hands, flipping off the neighborhood. “You make me wish I had more middle fingers,” one sign reads. The third is adorned with a rainbow, and reads, “Hum
  
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• South Burlington explores all-resident voter expansion

  13-09-2024 21:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  Election workers check in voters in South Burlington on Town Meeting Day on March 1, 2022. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThis story by Liberty Darr was first published by The Other Paper on Sept. 12.The South Burlington City Council last week directed its charter committee to explore the idea of allowing all legal residents of the city to vote in local elections.The South Burlington Democratic Committee asked that the council place a question about voter expansion on th
  
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• Jayna Ahsaf: Investing in community and upstream solutions, not prisons

  13-09-2024 12:56 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Jayna Ahsaf of Colchester. She is FreeHer Vermont campaign director for the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, a steering committee member for the Vermont Freedom Fund and on the board for the Will Miller Social Justice Lecture Series.We stand at a pivotal moment where the investments we make now could decide the fate of many vulnerable Vermonters. Despite the challenges our state faces, lawmakers are proposing to spend $70 million
  
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• Barre clinic offers free gender affirming care to members of LGBTQ+ community

  13-09-2024 00:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Sharon Segel, a nurse volunteer at the People’s Health and Wellness Clinic in Barre, stands in front of a newly painted rainbow wall in the waiting room that celebrates the launch of free gender-affirming health care to all residents aged 18 and above in Central Vermont. Photo courtesy of Daniel BarlowThe People’s Health & Wellness Clinic in Barre has launched free gender-affirming care services to make health care more accessible to clients, regardless of income or insurance, ac
  
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• Green Mountain Transit riders and drivers pan proposed service cuts

  13-09-2024 00:23 via vtdigger.org
  
  Clayton Clark, general manager of Green Mountain Transit, outlines proposed reductions in local bus service at a public hearing in Burlington on Wednesday, Sept. 11. Photo by Shaun Robinson/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — Carly Sehr said she bought her condo in South Burlington because it sits right on Green Mountain Transit’s No. 11 bus line. She doesn’t own a car and uses the service to commute to and from her job at a grocery store in Burlington.So Sehr was dismayed to learn that the b
  
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• VTDigger Fall Member Drive aims to raise $75K for independent news

  13-09-2024 00:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  VTDigger’s Shaun Robinson at an event with historian Jill Lepore at the Manchester Community Library on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerSmall and large donations from many members are the backbone of VTDigger’s news operation. Broad support from our readers provides the editorial and financial independence we need to continue delivering the honest truth when you need it most.We have just over one week left in our Fall Member Drive. Vermont has lost 75% of
  
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• Former Department for Children and Families social worker charged with sexually assaulting youth

  12-09-2024 23:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington on July 25, 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerA former state Department for Children and Families employee has been charged with sexually assaulting a youth she was working with when she was employed by the department several years ago.Sonja Herman, 31, of Swanton, pleaded not guilty Thursday in Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington to the felony sexual assault charge. She was released by Judge David Fenster on
  
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• Animals arrive for annual Tunbridge World’s Fair

  12-09-2024 22:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Nicole Sasson, left, a second year veterinary technician student at Vermont State University-Randolph, scans an ear tag on Iris while Jon Palmer, of East Montpelier, Vt., holds her still at the fairgrounds in Tunbridge on Wednesday, Sept. 11. Students helped to check in and inspect many of the over 500 animals that will be featured during the fair. Photo courtesy of Alex Driehaus/Valley NewsThis story by Emma Roth-Wells was first published by Valley News on Sept. 11.TUNBRIDGE — A
  
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• Samuel Charles Record

  12-09-2024 22:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born December 19, 1937Brattleboro, VermontDied September 1, 2024Brattleboro, VermontDetails of servicesSam’s wishes were for no service. A small gathering will take place on Sunday October 13, 2024 12:00pm at his daughter’s home 315 VT Route 30 in Newfane, VT.Samuel Charles Record, 86 of Randolph, Vermont died peacefully on September 1, 2024 at Pine Heights Nursing Home in Brattleboro, Vermont. Sam was born on December 19, 1937 on the farm on Orchard St. Ext. in Brattleboro
  
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• John N. Moore

  12-09-2024 22:30 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born June 26, 1954Minneola, New YorkDied September 4, 2024Colchester, VermontDetails of servicesVisiting hours will be held from 5:00PM to 7:00PM on Wednesday, September 11, at LaVigne Funeral & Cremation Service, 132 Main St., Winooski. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Winooski on Thursday, September 12, at 11:00 AM, with interment to follow at Resurrection Park Cemetery in South Burlington.It is with great sadness that the f
  
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• Joe Biden approves major disaster declaration for late June storms in Lamoille County

  12-09-2024 19:06 via vtdigger.org
  
  Moss Glen Falls road in Stowe. Photo courtesy of Kestrel Owen/Stowe Public Works Department.President Joe Biden has approved a major disaster declaration for Lamoille County in response to severe storms that hit parts of the state in late June.The president’s major disaster declaration, issued on Thursday, opens up additional federal resources to help state and municipal governments recover from storm damage, including federal dollars to repair public infrastructure and assistance from the
  
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• Board considers what to do with Roxbury Village School building

  12-09-2024 18:38 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Roxbury Village School was closed in fall 2023. File photo courtesy of Roxbury Village SchoolThis story by Tracy Brannstrom was first published by the Montpelier Bridge on Sept. 11.What to do with the Roxbury Village School building is on the minds of board members for the Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools, following the board’s decision to close the school last fall. At its Sept. 4 meeting, Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools Superintendent Libby Bonesteel presented a han
  
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• Question of excess hospital revenue stokes tension between UVM Medical Center and state regulator

  12-09-2024 00:59 via vtdigger.org
  
  Sunil “Sunny” Eappen, president and CEO of the University of Vermont Health Network, speaks during a groundbreaking ceremony on Dec. 15, 2022. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerBetween 2022 and 2023, the University of Vermont Medical Center made more money than it was supposed to. The Burlington hospital was among four Vermont hospitals that brought in more than their state-approved budgets would have allowed. In its 2023 fiscal year, UVM Medical Center collected roughly $1.74
  
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• U.S. Senate confirms Mary Kay Lanthier’s nomination to federal bench in Vermont

  12-09-2024 00:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  Mary Kay Lanthier speaks during a nomination hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary on Thursday, June 20, 2024. ScreenshotThe U.S. Senate has approved the nomination of Mary Kay Lanthier to serve as a federal judge in Vermont. The Senate voted 55 to 42 late Wednesday afternoon to confirm Lanthier to the position, which carries a lifetime appointment. Four Republicans joined all the voting Democrats and independents in the Senate in approving Lanthier’s nomination.
  
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• Vermont’s congressional delegation celebrates release of $51 million in federal flood aid

  12-09-2024 00:33 via vtdigger.org
  
  Flooding prompted road closures in the village of Jeffersonville on July 11, 2023. Photo by Shaun Robinson/VTDiggerVermont’s congressional delegation on Wednesday welcomed the release of $51 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation to reimburse the state for repair costs from damages caused by flooding in 2023. Authorized through the annual appropriations process for the nation’s Highway Trust Fund, the aid comes through the Federal Highway Administration&rs
  
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• As commission shapes the future of public education, what does it know about the past?

  11-09-2024 23:20 via vtdigger.org
  
  Zoie Saunders, interim secretary of education, speaks during Gov. Phil Scott’s weekly press conference held at the Central Vermont Technical Center in Barre on Tuesday, June 11, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe newly created Commission on the Future of Public Education in Vermont has a big job: studying the state’s education system in order to chart a future that’s equitable, high-achieving and affordable. To do so, its members must learn from the most significant
  
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• News from VTDigger is different; Let me tell you why

  11-09-2024 23:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  Join the driveDear reader,My name is Ethan Weinstein. I’m a reporter here at VTDigger covering education and the prison system. What I do behind the scenes is what sets VTDigger apart from other kinds of news sources, and it’s why you should support us right now during our Fall Member Drive, if you can. Every week, I spend hours scanning hundreds of court dockets and documents — cases that impact our everyday lives: the crimes that affect us and our neighbors, the alleged
  
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