Top stories in the news this week included a new navigation system for hospital helicopters. Entergy Vermont Yankee and the state of Vermont were back in court again. Mosquito entomologists prepare for Eastern Equine Encephalitis season. Opponents continued to stay entrenched in their positions over the F-35. And the state launched an $8 million dollar outreach campaign for its new health care exchange.
These were some of the voices in the news this week:
Back In Court, Yankee Again Argues Federal Law Trumps State's Authority
(Cheryl Hanna) "I mean the fundamental question is: ‘what is the relationship between a state and a federally regulated, currently operating nuclear facility?"
Sides Still Split On Basing F-35 In Vermont
(Brigadier General Richard Harris) "The overall impact will be similar to what we’ve seen over the last 25 years flying the F-16 as far as noise."
Hospital Helicopter Service Gets An Upgrade
(Jim Erdman, DHART’s Program Business Manager) "Commercial airlines have had a structure built for themselves at 30,000 feet where commercial airliners fly. What we’ve done is replicated that sort of infrastructure so that we can use our instrument flight rules at 3,000 foot level instead which is where helicopters fly when they are flying when they are doing emergency medical services missions."
State Launches $8 Million Outreach Campaign For Health Care Exchange
(Mark Larson , commissioner of the Department of Vermont Health Access) “Through a variety of different strategies we’ll spend over $8 million this year in efforts to provide information to Vermonters about Vermont Health Connect and the plans that will be available.”
(Patsy Kelso, an epidemiologist for infectious diseases with the Vermont Department of Health)
“Yeah, it’s really labor intensive, and that’s why we simply can’t be everywhere in Vermont trapping and testing mosquitos but we’ll focus our activities on areas that had eastern activity last year.”
