Thursday, November 12, 2020
Vermont set another record for new coronavirus infections on Thursday, the latest surge of cases in a second wave of the pandemic that's hitting just as cold weather forces more people indoors.
The 109 new cases reported Thursday marks the first time that Vermont has hit triple digits in a single day since the pandemic began. The previous single-day record of 76 was set just a day prior. (The Vermont Department Health initially reported 72 new cases Wednesday but later added four more to that tally.)
Vermont's seven-day average is now 50, the highest it has ever been. Nineteen people are currently hospitalized, the most since April. Five are in intensive care units. Another three are hospitalized with suspected cases.
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Wednesday, November 11, 2020
The newest figure eclipses the previous record of 70 set on April 3 and brings Vermont's seven-day case average to 38, about three shy of what it was at the peak of the pandemic's first wave back in the spring.
Fourteen people are currently hospitalized, including six in intensive care — again, the most since late April — while another four were hospitalized with suspected cases.
“I understand that Vermonters feel fatigued from the pandemic, its impact on all of us and the sacrifices it has required,” Gov. Phil Scott wrote in a Tweet on Wednesday. "But we must all do our part to slow the spread, protect our neighbors, keep kids in schools and keep our economy open."
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Tuesday, November 10, 2020
The announcements coincide with an alarming surge of new infections in both Vermont and around the country. They also mark the first time that Scott has been forced to tighten his proverbial spigot since he started loosening restrictions in the spring.
Vermont reported 46 new cases Tuesday, raising its seven-day average to 32 — the highest it has been since mid-April. Current forecasts show the seven-day average could potentially double over the next six weeks, which would result in a far higher figure than what Vermont saw at the peak of the pandemic's first wave.
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Monday, November 9, 2020
State officials are strongly urging residents to stay home for the holidays, avoid unnecessary travel and keep all private gatherings to 10 people or fewer. The Vermont Department of Health is also encouraging anyone who recently attended an event with people outside of their "usual social circle" to consider getting tested immediately.
That guidance, issued Sunday, arrived a day after large crowds gathered in cities around the country, including Burlington, to celebrate news of president-elect Joe Biden's victory.
State officials' renewed calls for caution come as the number of coronavirus infections in Vermont has risen sharply of late. On Saturday, Vermont reported its first COVID-19-related death since July, while the state reported 43 new cases on Sunday — the most in a single day since April 9.
As of Monday, the seven-day case average was 28, the highest since mid-April. Four people are currently hospitalized, including one person in the intensive care unit; four more people are hospitalized "under investigation," according to the health department.
In a press release Sunday, the health department said it was investigating "more outbreaks and situations than at any time since the pandemic started."
"Some of the new cases are associated with current outbreaks, with others scattered among people in various communities," the release said. "Many of the cases, clusters and outbreaks are tracing back to social gatherings where masking and physical distancing break down."
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Friday, November 6, 2020
While the hospital has found temporary assignments for about 130 of those workers, the rest have been furloughed and must use their combined time off — vacation, sick and personal days — if they want to be paid.
During a phone briefing with reporters Friday, hospital president and chief operating officer Dr. Stephen Leffler implied that the hospital was not paying the furloughed workers because it wanted to incentivize them to accept the temporary gigs.
"Every day, we're having new jobs pop up where we need people to do different things than they would normally do," Leffler said. "We want to make sure that we are getting as many people as possible that are willing to do that."
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Wednesday, November 4, 2020
According to spokesperson Neal Goswami, the problem is related to the hospital network's main electronic medical records system, Epic, which was taken offline as a "precautionary measure" following the discovery of last Wednesday's attack.
Epic is currently used in clinical settings at four of the network's six hospitals: Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin, Porter Medical Center in Middlebury, Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh, N.Y., and the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington.
All four are asking patients to start calling their providers 24 hours prior to any appointments so that clinics have time to prepare.
"The clinics [backed up] seven days' worth of appointment lists, and seven days' worth of clinical information," said Dr. Wouter Rietsema, vice president of the Plattsburgh hospital's Population Health and Information Services. "But [starting Thursday], they will be sort of operating in the dark."
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Friday, October 30, 2020
University of Vermont Health Network hospitals continued to rely on old-fashioned, paper-based systems Friday, two days after a cyberattack crippled key digital infrastructure. And according to Dr. Stephen Leffler, president and chief operating officer of UVM Medical Center, it remains unclear when its electronic medical records system and other operations will be back online.
"I can tell you that there's days in front of us where we'll be using a paper system," he said during an afternoon phone briefing with reporters.
Leffler emphasized that the six Vermont and northern New York hospitals within the network continue to serve patients — albeit at a slower pace and with some limitations. "We have been caring for people without issue," he said, adding that staff were well-trained on contingency plans and had "switched pretty seamlessly to paper."
According to Leffler, UVM Medical Center on Friday performed roughly half of the surgeries it typically does. "The biggest issue really is efficiency," he said. "When we're on the electronic medical record [system] and all the pieces are connected normally, we can be very efficient in how we deliver care."
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Thursday, October 29, 2020
The University of Vermont Health Network fell victim to a cyberattack Wednesday, disrupting operations throughout the Vermont and northern New York hospital chain. The attack appears to be part of a coordinated assault on the nation’s health care system allegedly perpetrated by Russian hackers.
The hospital conglomerate experienced "a significant and ongoing system-wide network issue,” spokesperson Neal Goswami said Thursday, describing it as a “confirmed cyberattack.” A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albany field office, Sarah Ruane, later said that it was investigating the incident alongside state and local authorities.
According to Goswami, the network lost access to a web portal that patients use to schedule appointments and access electronic medical records, slowing services throughout the hospital system.
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency issued a warning Wednesday "of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers." The federal agency said the hackers were using malware to steal data from hospitals and hold it hostage.
At a press conference Thursday evening outside of the UVM Medical Center in Burlington, hospital officials would not say whether the attack was related. They also would not say whether it involved the same type of ransomware that has disrupted patient care at other hospitals around the nation, deferring questions about the investigation to the FBI.
Dr. Stephen Leffler, the hospital’s president and chief operating officer, said at the press conference that he had received no such demands. “I’ve had no contact with anyone at this point,” he said. “So I really can’t comment on that.”
Tags: UVM Health Network , UVM Medical Center , Neal Goswami , Stephen Leffler , Michael Schirling , Phil Scott , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
The University of Vermont Medical Center will be a trial site in the final testing phase of a coronavirus vaccine, officials announced on Tuesday.
The hospital, working with UVM's Vaccine Testing Center at the Larner College of Medicine, will enroll 250 participants for the phase three trial of a vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Gov. Phil Scott congratulated the medical center for being named a study site, which he said “will allow Vermonters to contribute to the important work of vaccine development.”
The third, and last, vaccine testing phase determines whether or not a vaccine is effective; it comes after a vaccine has proven to be safe across a broad population.
The AstraZeneca vaccine is one of four currently in the third stage of trials in the U.S., though testing was paused in early September after a UK participant began experiencing neurological symptoms.
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Friday, October 23, 2020
Employers will be able to apply for hazard pay on behalf of their employees starting next Wednesday in the second round of a program aimed at compensating frontline workers.
This time around, the Frontline Employees Hazard Pay Grant Program will cover employees from 26 different business categories, including grocery stores, pharmacies and childcare providers. The previous round of hazard pay grants, announced in August, was open to employees in just 14 categories, primarily health care and eldercare workers.
Once an employer is approved, employees can receive either $1,200 or $2,000 to cover work between March 13 and May 15. Employees who made under $25 an hour between March and May are eligible for the hazard pay grants, with exceptions for some health care workers who may receive the grants regardless. And employees who worked during that time, but who are no longer employed at the same business, are also eligible.
Applications will open next Wednesday, October 28 at 9 a.m., for the first-come, first-served program, funded by a $22.5 million appropriation from Vermont's allotment of the federal CARES Act.
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