Dr. Mark Levine

Dr. Mark Levine and Gov. Phil Scott File photo

Vermont prepares for approval of pediatric COVID-19 vaccine

MONTPELIER- The state is preparing for the pending federal approval of a pediatric vaccine for children under 5, and Gov. Phil Scott said his administration is turning their focus to mitigating pandemic impact at a press conference Tuesday.
Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said...

Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine

Pandemic reaches one million deaths in US

MONTPELIER- The state appears to be changing more of its COVID response from a pandemic phase to an endemic phase. During the administration’s weekly COVID briefing Tuesday, Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said vaccinations and testing would shift away from state-run sites to health...

Data from the Department of Financial Regulation shows hospitalizations are rising slightly but remain below earlier peaks during the Omicron variant’s spread in January and February. Courtesy Vermont Department of Health

As BA.2 spreads, state urges acting on personal risk levels

Ending mask mandate for public transportation considered “premature” MONTPELIER - At the governor’s weekly press conference on Tuesday, commissioner of health Dr. Mark Levine said the BA.2 variant continues to spread in Vermont and throughout New England, but hospitalizations...

BA2 not causing severe symptoms, pandemic correlates with opioid overdoses

MONTPELIER- Vemont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said COVID-19 variant BA2 is “driving an uptick” in COVID-19 cases in Vermont at the administration’s press briefing Tuesday.
“We’ve had a 29% increase in our seven-day average of numbers of cases, you can see a very slight uptick,”...

Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine at Tuesday's press briefing

Eyes on the BA2 strain

MONTPELIER- Even as COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations continue to fall in Vermont, the state is evaluating the potential impact of BA2, a variant of the COVID-19 Omicron strain.
“We continue to monitor any developments concerning the BA2 subvariant of Omicron, both abroad and here...

Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine

Levine predicts endemic phase for COVID-19

MONTPELIER- The number of new COVID-19 cases continues to fall in Vermont and across the country, state officials said Tuesday, and Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said the waning Omicron wave may have hastened an end to the pandemic phase of the virus response.
“It may seem like we’...

Dr. Mark Levine File photo

No omicron variant in Vermont yet, but it is all around the state

MONTPELIER- The Omicron variant has not been identified in Vermont yet, Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said during Tuesday’s COVID-19 briefing, although it has been identified in every state bordering Vermont, as well as in Quebec.
“We’re continuing our genetic sequencing work...

COVID rate takes a big jump, state says

MONTPELIER- Administration officials at Tuesday’s press briefing said COVID-19 cases increased by about 42% over the past week, with an elevated number of cases in Bennington County. Current COVID modeling doesn’t anticipate that cases will fall over the next four weeks.
Gov. Phil Scott...

Agency of Education Secretary Dan French at Wednesday's press briefing by Gov. Phil Scott and his administration.

State extends school masking plans

MONTPELIER- Gov. Phil Scott announced a change in the state’s masking guidance for schools, a new school vaccination incentive plan, and pleaded with Vermonters to be civil in their discourse at his press briefing Wednesday.
Gov. Scott said the administration’s school mask guidance had...

Gov. Scott at Tuesday's press conference

Delta variant raises virus concerns

MONTPELIER- Vermont reached an 80% vaccination rate last week, but national officials are warning that a new COVID-19 variant may result in outbreaks in parts of the country that aren’t as protected as Vermont.
At his COVID-19 press conference Tuesday, Gov. Scott said the so-called Delta...