Vaccination clinics continue through storm

A plow truck rolls through downtown Woodstock, Vermont, on Tuesday afternoon. (Gareth Henderson)

Parts of Vermont got up to a foot of snow on Tuesday, and though some roads became treacherous, the state's COVID-19 vaccination clinics remained open and just 21 appointments had been canceled due to weather as of 11 a.m. People who had to cancel due to the storm could either keep the same time for a different day this week, or set an entirely new appointment.

The state is currently vaccinating Vermonters age 75 and older, which is the first part of Phase 2 of its vaccination process. As of Tuesday morning, 87 appointments were available in Windsor County, according to Mike Smith, the state's secretary of human services. At a press briefing Tuesday, he said the state was looking at adding appointments at Mount Ascutney Hospital in Windsor starting next week, and allocating more vaccine doses to Springfield Hospital soon. The state is also adding appointment slots in Windham and Orange counties, as well as several locations in northern Vermont.

Along with the vaccination effort, the state has formed a working group which is discussing the best time to start opening up long-term care facilities to "congregate dining and other activities" once enough time has gone by for the vaccine to build up sufficient immunity for the residents, according to Smith. The residents and staff of those facilities were among the top-priority groups in the first phase of Vermont's vaccination process.

"Our seniors living in long-term care facilities have been isolated for far too long, and it is our hope to re-establish those social connections as soon as possible," Smith said.

All 37 skilled nursing facilities in Vermont have received their first and second doses of the vaccine, he added. Smith also said 87% of residential care facilities and 94% of assisted living facilities have received their first dose, with many of these individuals receiving their second dose as well.

Overall, state officials said the declining number of COVID-19 cases in long-term care facilities is a key reason why the state has seen a gradual decline in case growth and COVID-19 death rate. However, Bennington County has seen a recent spike in cases, which the state is closely monitoring. Vermont's positivity rate remains around 2%, and the Northeast region's positivity rate recently dropped below 5% for the first time since November.

— Gareth Henderson