Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health on Wednesday issued a call for donations to address its "depleting stock" of personal protective equipment and hand sanitizer.

President and CEO Joanne M. Conroy said in a press release that, while the New Hampshire-based health network has "made strategic adjustments" to "best utilize" its supply of face masks, face shields, isolation gowns and gloves, it will need more as the coronavirus "gains momentum."

“No donation is too small," Conroy said in a press release, though she did not provide further information about the current supply. Asked for those details Wednesday afternoon, spokesperson Rick Adams assured that the situation was not "dire."

The Vermont Department of Health on Tuesday evening announced five new cases of COVID-19, the largest jump in diagnoses since the state's first case on March 7. The state now has 17 cases.

Two of the new patients are Vermont residents. One is a man "over the age of 80" who resides in a long-term care facility and is being treated at the University of Vermont Medical Center. The second is a Windsor County woman in her 70s who is hospitalized at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire, according to health department spokesperson Ben Truman.

The remaining three cases are not Vermont residents, he said.

The health department didn't include these patients when it posted updated numbers Tuesday afternoon. At that point, the department had adopted a new protocol to only post cases among Vermonters; data on nonresidents would be collected but not reported publicly, Truman said then.

But the department reversed course within hours. The department's COVID-19 site now labels these patients as "additional cases testing positive in Vermont."

"A lot of this has to do with the evolving nature of the spread of COVID-19 in the state," Truman said Tuesday evening, explaining the decision to post more data. "And as we can see how everything has been going simply in the last 24 hours, this is a vastly changing situation."
Truman initially told Seven Days that the reporting protocol aligned with that of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which he said reports cases based on a person's state of residence, not their location.

"Someone from out of state could be here, they get sick, they get tested, they go home," Truman said, adding that publishing the data could cause Vermonters to unfairly and inaccurately blame out-of-staters for the infection's spread.

On Sunday, nonresidents comprised half of Vermont's total eight cases. Seven Days and other outlets reported that ski towns were bustling with out-of-staters despite resorts being closed for business.
Truman said the health department is still determining the best way to present data so that Vermonters are informed of the virus' spread.

"The effort is to be as transparent as possible, respecting people's personal health information and providing the information that Vermonters need to have," he said.

A nursing home resident at Burlington Health & Rehab has tested positive for COVID-19, the facility confirmed Tuesday evening. Burlington city officials said they were aware of a second case linked to the same location.

The resident has since been moved from the Pearl Street facility, which provides skilled nursing care, short-term rehabilitation services and respite care. VTDigger.org first reported the case.

The 126-bed nursing home is one of nine in Vermont owned by Genesis HealthCare, a publicly traded company that operates more than 400 facilities nationwide.

The Vermont Department of Health reported five new cases of coronavirus Tuesday, bringing the state's total to 17. Two of the new cases involve Vermont residents.

Updated 6:23 p.m.

Gov. Phil Scott has ordered Vermont bars and restaurants to close for at least the next three weeks in the latest move to restrict public life amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Vermont Secretary of Commerce Lindsay Kurrle told lawmakers about the decision during a conference call Monday afternoon. The governor later confirmed it about an hour later in a press release that said establishments can continue to offer takeout and delivery service.

The order is effective 2 p.m. on Tuesday and runs through April 6, "though this could be extended," the press release said.

"These changes reflect the growing trend of confirmed coronavirus cases in Vermont, new recommendations from the CDC, social distancing and mitigation efforts recommended by the Vermont Department of Health, and ongoing discussions with neighboring states," the press release said.

The announcement arrives hours after Vermont officials said that they believe the coronavirus has started to spread through the community, with four new cases in the last 24 hours.

Editor's note: Seven Days is profiling some of the people defending Vermonters from COVID-19.

Life is normally a communal affair for those living in the Ethan Allen Residence, a 40-bed licensed eldercare facility in Burlington’s New North End. Unless residents are ill and bedridden, they eat their meals family style with staff in a common dining room.

Throughout the day, the seniors are encouraged to turn off their TVs, get out of their college-dorm-size bedrooms — many of which two residents share — and participate in daily activities, such as art classes, live musical performances and visits from schoolchildren. The more able-bodied ones help those with dementia, which, one administrator explained, gives the former a greater sense of purpose.

However, these aren’t normal times for the residents, or for Erin Schifilliti, director of nursing at the Ethan Allen Residence. Last Friday, Gov. Phil Scott issued an executive order that restricts access to eldercare facilities.