Vermont reporters provide a roundup of ongoing local coverage of the coronavirus, the results of a new VPR/PBS poll and more for Tuesday, August 4.
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The latest coronavirus data:
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Vermont Department of Health reports 5 new cases of COVID-19
The Vermont Department of Health reported five new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the total number of cases identified in Vermont to-date to 1,431. Of the new cases, two were identified in Chittenden County, one in Addison County, and two were identified in Washington County. So far, 1,249 people are known to have recovered from the disease.
The state has seen 57 deaths from the new coronavirus, thought no new deaths were announced today. There are currently 13 people hospitalized with symptoms under investigation, and one person is hospitalized with a confirmed case in Vermont.
The state reports it has tested 98,801 people to date, and is currently monitoring 25 people as close contacts of confirmed cases. Just over 1,000 travelers are being monitored.
- Abagael Giles
To listen to an interview with a contact tracer working in Vermont on Vermont Edition, head here.
About 64,000 Vermonters have already voted by mail
Secretary of State Jim Condos said he expects to see record voter turnout in Vermont for Tuesday's statewide primary.
As of Monday, more Vermonters have returned ballots to their town clerks than voted by mail in the primaries in 2016 and 2018 combined. The current record high for primary voting is 120,000 votes, set in 2016.
“As of Monday afternoon at 3 p.m., we had absentee requests of 145,400. We had had returned ballots so far of around 64,000,” Condos said.
Condos said he expects to see the number of returned ballots go up “exponentially” in the next couple of days. Ballots not yet mailed in should be returned in person to local town clerk’s offices.
- Abagael Giles
More from VPR: Vermont’s 2020 Primary Election Is Like None Other. Here’s What You Need To Know
State officials may 'put boots on the ground' in Mississippi prison
Vermont may need to send state officials to Mississippi to make sure that Vermonters held in a private prison there are getting the COVID testing and health care they need.
That was the word Tuesday from Human Services Secretary Mike Smith as he updated on an outbreak at the CoreCivic facility.
“We have people on the phone every day with them,” Smith said. “Those meetings have been almost 24/7 now, making sure that we stay on top of that what's going on down there. We may put boots on the ground there. That's an option we may have to do, if we feel that is necessary.”
At least 85 Vermonters out of the 219 at the prison have tested positive for COVID-19. Smith and other officials said the state should have insisted that CoreCivic test all the Vermont inmates, not just those showing symptoms.
- John Dillon
Gov. Scott laments lack of time to campaign
A week before the primary election, Governor Phil Scott says he'd like to campaign more, but needs to stay focused on COVID-19.
A new VPR-Vermont PBS poll finds the two-term incumbent enjoys wide support, with Democrats favoring him even more than Republicans.
But at a news briefing Tuesday, Scott downplayed his odds this election year.
“I think I have as good a chance as any of my other competitors,” he said.
Scott faces four challengers in the August 11 GOP primary.
- John Dillon
More from VPR: Vermont’s 2020 Primary Election Is Like None Other. Here’s What You Need To Know
Businesses can now apply for grants to fund hazard pay for frontline employees
The Scott Administration is encouraging companies to apply for hazard pay grants available to workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Legislature created the $28 million dollar program using federal funds. Lawmakers had hoped to include more employees – such as those working in grocery stores – but those workers were not eligible for the federal dollars.
Human Services Secretary Mike Smith said the money is available on first come, first served basis.
“Eligible employees must have been working in a job with an elevated risk of exposure to COVID 19 during the emergency period,” Smith said. “This job must have been in person, and not done through telework.”
Employees can receive grants of $1,200 or $2,000. The money is available for health care workers, people working in homeless shelters, residential treatment centers and other workplaces.
- John Dillon
Tropical Storm Isaias expected to hit Southern Vermont tonight
Tropical Storm Isaias is making its way toward Vermont, likely bringing strong winds upwards of 50 miles per hour. Green Mountain Power warned this could down trees and power lines, causing outages.
GMP spokesperson Kristin Kelly said Vermonters should be careful and take precautions.
“So if there are downed lines and trees, stay away from them. Call us first. And there is still time now to prepare for outages. Make sure your phone’s charged up get batteries for your flashlight, or anything else that you would typically do,” Kelly said.
The storm is supposed to reach southern Vermont this afternoon and linger until midnight.
- Anna Van Dine
Officials say state failed to ensure private prison tested all Vermont inmates
Gov. Phil Scott has acknowledged that his administration failed to ensure that Vermont prisoners held in a Mississippi prison were all tested for the coronavirus.
Scott spoke at a news briefing Tuesday, as officials gave more details of the outbreak inside the prison run by CoreCivic, a private contractor. At least 85 of the 219 Vermonters held there have tested positive, and more tests are pending.
“In hindsight, you know, I should have seen this coming in some respects,” Scott said. “But we were relying on CoreCivic to do the testing. And they were testing with symptomatic cases and not throughout.”
Vermont routinely tests all its inmates, regardless of whether they show COVID-19 symptoms. Officials say CoreCivic will now test all Vermonters in Mississippi.
- John Dillon
Republican gubernatorial candidate supports abolishing the Department of Corrections
Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Cavett said he would abolish the state's Department of Corrections as it currently exits, if elected.
Cavett is one of four Republicans challenging Gov. Phil Scott in the August 11 primary.
In 2010, Cavett pled guilty to one count of aggravated sexual assault, for assaulting a minor over a six-year period in the 1990s. He served several years in prison.
Cavett thinks the department of corrections should change its focus.
“What we really need to look at is the rehabilitative part of this. And to know that these people are still part of our community, and that they need to be welcomed into the community at large, and therefore they are not liabilities, but assets," Cavett said.
Cavett is a registered sex offender in Vermont. He claims he was coerced into pleading guilty and denies the charges for which he was convicted.
Read or listen to the full story.
- Henry Epp
New poll indicates that 50% of Vermonters oppose colleges bringing students back to campus
Most of Vermont’s colleges and universities are going to have students back on campus soon. Arrival will involve quarantining and testing, but schools are also thinking ahead to how they’ll keep track of student health as the semester goes on. At Vermont Technical College, students will use a web app to log their temperature and answer a set of screening questions every day. Jason Enser is dean of students at VTC.
“So if anybody answers yes, it flags them as red, and we tell them not to come to campus until they check with their health care provider,” Enser said. “So if their temperature goes above 100.4 or they answer yes to any of those questions, we don’t want them coming here until they get cleared.”
All the Vermont State Colleges will use the app. Other colleges have similar screening plans. A new VPR-Vermont PBS poll found that 50% of people oppose colleges allowing students back on campus this fall, with 44% in favor.
Find the full poll results here.
- Anna Van Dine
Burlington's Public Safety Committee meets Tuesday to discuss budget cuts
The Burlington City Council’s Public Safety Committee will meet Tuesday night to discuss how to implement recently approved cuts to the city’s police budget.
The city council in Vermont’s largest city slashed nearly 9% from its police budget and allocated $250,000 dollars to new public safety programs, like increased social services.
The council also approved a plan to shrink the size of the Burlington Police Department by 30% through attrition.
Burlington approved the cuts as cities around the country were reexamining police budgets in light of protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The budget reductions at the Burlington Police Department came after activists and residents flooded public meetings and demanded that city leaders overhaul the city’s police force.
- Liam Elder-Connors
More from VPR: Burlington, Bennington Officials Respond To Demand For Policing Reform
Kanye West files paperwork to run for President in Vermont
Rapper Kanye West has filed paperwork to appear as a presidential candidate on Vermont's general election ballot in November.
Secretary of State Jim Condos told Seven Days that election officials will need to verify that West's form is complete before he officially appears on the ballot.
Condos did not know at the time of the interview whether West is running as an independent or a minor party candidate.
West announced his candidacy after deadlines for many states had already passed. As of Monday evening, about ten candidates had filed to appear on Vermont's ballot.
- Sam Gale Rosen
Dr. Anthony Fauci calls for regional approach to school reopenings
Dr. Anthony Fauci told New Hampshire doctors and medical students that it wouldn't be prudent to open schools in some parts of the country because of the coronavirus.
The nation's top infectious disease expert spoke via video conference on Monday to students and staff at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. He said while the nation's default principle should be that children return to school, the decision should depend on the infection rate in each location.
President Donald Trump, who has been ramping up criticism of Fauci, recently threatened to hold back federal money if school districts don't bring their students back in the fall.
- The Associated Press
New poll shows widespread concern for small businesses
According to a new VPR-Vermont PBS poll, more than two-thirds of Vermonters say they are very concerned about the future of small businesses in the state.
Bill Beanland and his brother opened Vermont Bedrooms in Rutland in 1984. He said during the shutdown, his mattress sales were down 78% in April and 55% in May – and global disruptions in the supply chain are still impacting his business.
"I've experienced five recessions. Our store burned down and we were out of business for a year,” Beanland said. “And… this is like nothing I've ever seen before.”
He said federal assistance, unemployment benefits and federal stimulus checks have all helped and he said many businesses, like his, have gotten a boost from second home owners flocking to Vermont.
Rebounding sales make him cautiously optimistic, but Beanland said if there’s another shutdown, all bets are off.
Read or listen to the full story.
- Nina Keck
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