Vermont Covid numbers rise as state continues to reopen businesses

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The Vermont Department of Health confirmed 16 new cases of Covid-19 on Thursday, contributing to a weekly increase of 84.

This is the largest single-week increase since early April, prompting CBS News Wednesday night to identify Vermont as one of 16 states that have seen “dramatic increase of cases since Memorial Day.”

Overall Vermont now has a total of 1,110 cases. Despite the weekly spike, no new deaths have been reported. The number of fatalities has remained at 55 for several weeks. But three Covid-19 patients are currently hospitalized, an increase of three this week. Those in the hospital who are suspected of having the illness has dropped from 13 to nine.

During Wednesday’s press conference, Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine reclassified the Winooski activity from a “cluster” to an “outbreak,” saying that 74 cases, as of Tuesday night, could be traced to that occurrence, with 80 percent of cases in the Winooski area but also spreading to Burlington.

During this past week, Windsor County has seen an increase of three cases for a total of 55 and Windham County has seen an increase of two cases.

Allowed: some indoor restaurant dining, sports practices

On Friday, June 5, Gov. Phil Scott announced loosening restrictions for restaurants, approving indoor dining at 25 percent capacity or 10 customers, whichever is greater, effective last Monday.

Physical distancing of 6 feet must be observed and reservations must be taken to avoid crowded waiting areas.

Bars are not approved to reopen yet. Lodging capacity has also been increase from 25 percent to 50 percent.

Scott also has lifted the quarantine period for out-of-state visitors from surrounding counties in New England and New York state that have fewer than 400 active cases per 1 million residents.

Beginning Monday, June 15, organized low-contact sports can resume intra-squad activities such as single-team scrimmages and practices as long as the total group number, including players, coaches and officials, does not exceed 25, mirroring the current social gathering limit.

Competition between Vermont clubs is expected to resume on Wednesday, July 1. For details, click here.

Covid-19 testing continues to be open to everyone

According to the Department of Health, a total of 47,209 people have been tested in Vermont to date, an increase of 9,000 this week, hitting a daily average over 1,300 over that span.

An additional pop-up Covid-19 testing date has been added for Springfield on Tuesday, June 16 and June 23 with space still available. The testing site is located at 303 South St. in Springfield. The state is encouraging health care workers, first responders and child care providers to get tested. People who are returning to the state, who will be at day seven or later in their 14-day quarantine period can also be tested. Registration is required. For the Springfield location, you can register through this link. Open times are listed under the June 16 and June 23 dates.

For more state-wide details on Covid-19 information and resources, click here.