Covid cases in Vermont continue to break record; CAES kids vaxx clinic goes smoothly Like rest of the state, area towns see rise in Covid numbers

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Vermont Covid-19 case numbers continue to shatter records, with a new record daily total of 591 cases reported on Thursday, and a weekly record 2,386 cases, a jump from 1,856 cases from last week. Friday added another daily total that breached the 500 mark with another 505 cases. The Vermont total now stands at 44,030 cases since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020.

Also, the first vaccine clinic for children 5 to 11 held in a school within Two Rivers Supervisory Union was “very smooth,” according to a school nurse at Chester-Andover Elementary School. It was held today, Friday, Nov. 12. The clinic, which had space for 150 children, was “definitely busy” and saw kids from throughout the area and not just CAES students, she said. Two other TRSU elementaries, Cavendish Town and Ludlow, will be holding such clinics on Monday, Nov. 15. VIEW THE LIST BY CLICKING HERE

On Tuesday, state Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said that there is no simple answer why Vermont is seeing so many cases now. Rather, he contended, several factors have come together including: the Delta variant is more contagious and spreading faster than contacts can be alerted; Vermonters are a “victim of our own success,” meaning that the virus was kept so low early on, not many got immunity from the virus itself; many people were vaccinated early on and their immunity is likely waning; and behavior changed, loosening Covid restrictions that were followed early on.

Levine urged combining all preventative steps into a single package including vaccination, stay home if sick, get tested when needed, wearing a mask indoors in public spaces, and keep gatherings safe by limiting group size, being outside when possible, and avoiding crowded spaces.’

Cases in all TRSU schools; testing helps kids stay in school

Lauren Fierman, superintendent of Two Rivers Supervisory Union, said seven cases reported over the past week, spread among all five TRSU schools.

TRSU received notice on Saturday and Sunday after surveillance testing conducted on Thursday, Nov. 4 that there were six positive cases reported across the district. Cavendish Town Elementary reported its first positive case. And one positive case each was found at Chester-Andover and Mount Holly elementaries as well as Green Mountain Union High School. Ludlow Elementary School reported two. Another positive case was added to the LES tally on Wednesday after more testing.

On Monday, Nov. 8, all five schools implemented the Test to Stay program. As a result, across the SU over 100 students (who were close contacts to positive cases and would otherwise have had to isolate) were instead able to attend school this week.

Wednesday, Nov. 10, was the last day of TTS for some schools and today was the last day for the rest involved in the incident from last week. LES students affected by the additional positive case at that school began TTS today and will finish next Wednesday.

“Our nurses, administrators and other staff mobilized very quickly — and worked very hard, including time over the weekend — to make this possible. We are very pleased to have been able to put the TTS program into effect and have so many students continue with in-person instruction,” Fierman said.

The reported school numbers from Vermont’s Health Department website, dated Nov. 8, showed:

In Springfield: Five new cases and 14 cases in total have been reported at Riverside Middle School; Elm Hill shows two new cases, 10 in total; Union Street School is showing zero new cases in this past week, 15 in total; Springfield High School showed one new case, five in total; and River Valley Tech showed zero new cases, two in total.

Total statewide K-12 numbers reported 217 new Covid cases with 1,502 since the school year began.

Vaccine clinics for children 5 to 11 began for TRSU schools today, with one held at Chester-Andover.

Area town numbers all on the rise

Local Covid-19 numbers have reversed course and are on the rise with Chester back to a double-digit case count with 14 new cases, an increase from five cases last week. That brings Chester’s total to 233 for the entire pandemic.

Springfield saw a significant jump with 67 cases reported this week, up from 25 last week. Ludlow reported seven new cases this week, up from three  last week. Cavendish reported four new cases, a slight increase from three last week. Those community updates can be seen here.

Overall, new cases in Windsor County continued to increase with 172 reported a jump from 125 last week. Windham County again reversed course, now with 109 new cases, up from 82 last week.

Deaths decline; positivity rate hits over 4 percent

Deaths of Vermonters due to Covid-19 declined with 10 reported this week, almost half of the 19 tallied last week. So far, 393 Vermonters have died from Covid-19. Of the most recent deaths, six people were over 80 years old, one was age 70 to 79, one was age 60 to 69, and two were age 50 to 59.

Currently, 52 people are hospitalized with Covid-19, down from 45 last week. The number of people in intensive care has decreased from 16 to 13. The positivity rate has jumped above 4 percent, at 4.2 percent versus 3.3 percent last week.

In this report, the total positive case numbers, deaths and other statistics are based on data from Friday, Nov. 5 to Friday Nov. 12, published on the Health Department’s Case Dashboard.

14,000 Vermont kids signed up for vaxx

Gov. Phil Scott said more than 14,000 Vermont students in the 5 to 11 age range have signed up to get the newly approved Pfizer vaccine. That’s about 30 percent of that population.

Parents must have made an appointment for their child to receive the vaccine. Appointments for both the school-based and state-run clinics can be made at healthvermont.gov/KidsVaccine or by calling 855-722-7878. Families may need to add their child as a dependent in the registration system.

As of Thursday, Vermont remains a national leader for vaccination rates for ages 12+ with 91.3 percent of eligible Vermonters having received at least one dose of vaccine, up from 90.7 percent last week. County vaccination rates have now recalibrated to include numbers of Vermonters five and older rather than for 12. Windsor County stands at 77 percent vaccination rate, and Windham County is at 78 percent. For vaccination details, visit the Vaccine Dashboard.

Boosters are available for Vermonters who have had the J&J vaccine. And boosters are available for those who have received Pfizer or Moderna vaccines who are 65 and older. They are also available for those 18 and older with certain medical conditions or who are employed in specific high risk of exposure jobs. They are also available for those 18 and older who are Black, Indigenous and people of color or those who live with someone who is BIPOC. To see if you are eligible, click here. To schedule your booster shot, check for availability at walk-in vaccine locations below or check for clinics by appointment by clicking here. You can also make an appointment on line here.

CLINICS

Nearest walk-up clinics and by-appointment clinics for children

Saturday, Nov. 13

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 17 Belmont Ave., Brattleboro, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.(12+), 1:30-5:30 p.m. (age 5-11)

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 53 Fairview St.., Brattleboro, 9 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.

Rutland Regional Medical Center, 160 Allen St., Rutland, 7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Monday, Nov. 15

School Clinic: Ludlow Elementary School, 45 Main St. Ludlow, 9 to 11 a.m. (ages 5 to 11)

School Clinic: Cavendish Town Elementary, 573 Main St., Proctorsville, noon to 2 p.m. (ages 5 to 11)

School Clinic: Hartford High School, Hartford, 4-7 p.m.

Diamond Run Mall, Rutland, 8:30 -11 a.m. (12+), 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. (age 5-11)

Tuesday, Nov. 16

School Clinic: Riverside Middle School, Springfield, 4-7 p.m. (12+), 7-8 p.m. (12+ and age 5-11)

School Clinic: Rutland Northeast Primary School, 117 Temple St., 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (12+ and ages 5 to 11)

School Clinic: Hartford High School, Hartford, 4-7 p.m.

White River School, 102 Pine St., WRJ, noon-3 p.m. (age 5-11)

VFW- Brattleboro, 40 Black Mountain Road, Brattleboro, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 53 Fairview St., 9 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.

Diamond Run Mall, Rutland, 8:30 -11 a.m. (12+), 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (12+ and age 5-11)

Wednesday, Nov. 17

School Clinic: Riverside Middle School, Springfield, 9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (12+ and age 5-11)

School Clinic: Rutland Intermediate School, 65 Library Ave., 9 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. (12+ and ages 5 to 11)

Rutland Regional Medical Center, 160 Allen St., Rutland, 7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 53 Fairview St., 9 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.

Thursday, Nov. 18

School Clinic: Riverside Middle School, Springfield, noon-5 p.m. (12+)

School Clinic: Hartford High School, Hartford, 4-7 p.m. (12+), 7-8 p.m. (12+ and 5-11)

School Clinic: Hartland Elementary School, Hartland, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. (age 5-11)

Asa Bloomer State Bldg., 88 Merchants Row, Rutland, 9 a.m. -3 p.m.

Rutland Regional Medical Center, 160 Allen St., Rutland, 7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 53 Fairview St., 9 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.

Diamond Run Mall, Rutland, 8:30 -11 a.m. (12+), 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (12+ and age 5-11)

Friday, Nov. 19

School Clinic: Riverside Middle School, Springfield, 4-7 p.m. (12+), 7-8 p.m. (12+ and 5-11)

School Clinic: Windsor Elementary School, Windsor, 9 a.m.- noon. (age 5-11)

Rutland Regional Medical Center, 160 Allen St., Rutland, 7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 17 Belmont Ave., Brattleboro, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Diamond Run Mall, Rutland, 8:30 -11 a.m. (12+), 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (12+ and age 5-11)

For details on all vaccination locations or to schedule an appointment, visit Vermont Health Department website or call 855-722-7878.