Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • ESG: THE NEW IMPERATIVE
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • COVID-19
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Transformation
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Digital Health
  • Insights
    • ACA 10 Years After
    • Best Practices
    • Special Reports
    • Innovations
  • Data/Lists
    • Rankings/Lists
    • Interactive Databases
    • Data Points
  • Op-Ed
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Awards
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
    • Women in Healthcare
    • - Luminaries
    • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
    • - Leaders to Watch
    • - Luminaries
    • - Top 25 Women Leaders
    • - Women to Watch
  • Events
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Custom Media Event: ESG Summit
    • Transformation Summit
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Supply Chain Revenue Cycle
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Strategic Marketing
    • - Virtual Health
  • Listen
    • Podcast - Next Up
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • MORE +
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Safety & Quality
June 17, 2021 08:26 PM

Many small vaccine clinics helped Vermont reach 80% goal

Associated Press
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Getty Images

    A small, walk-in vaccination clinic held in Waterbury on Thursday is one of the reasons Vermont was able to be the first state in the country to give at least one COVID-19 vaccination shot to 80% of the eligible population.

    On Thursday seven people were vaccinated at a pop-up clinic held by the Waterbury Ambulance Service outside the Waterbury headquarters of the solar power company SunCommon.

    "I've been meaning to get it for awhile," said Brad Lewis, 38, of Williston who got the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine on Thursday along with his employee Ben Smith, 28, of Bristol.

    Lewis said his relatives, all of whom are vaccinated, have been urging him to get vaccinated. "I've been the odd man out," he said.

    Smith said he wanted the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine so he'll be able to visit a relative in the hospital. When asked why he hadn't done it before he said he really didn't have a reason.

    "This was the closest one," he said when asked why he went to Waterbury.

    Seven might not sound like much, but when the small numbers are multiplied by the scores or hundreds of opportunities across the state they add up to thousands of people protected against COVID-19. It's been enough for Vermont to reach 80%, the threshold that was crossed on Sunday.

    Gov. Phil Scott had promised to lift all state COVID-19 restrictions when the goal was met. On Monday, he lifted the restrictions, and on Tuesday the state of emergency in place since the pandemic began was allowed to expire. But the state isn't stopping at 80%, continuing with dozens of clinics this week alone.

    "They and the people staffing them were critical to our ability to meet people where they are," said Ben Truman, a spokesman for the Vermont Health Department. "These and all the vaccination options allow us to provide the widest range of vaccination opportunities, so that anyone can get their shot when and where it is convenient to them."

    Initially after the vaccines began to be rolled out earlier this year it was a challenge to make vaccination appointments. Then as the eligibility expanded and people began to get vaccinated, the focus shifted to those who weren't as determined. Then the no-appointment clinics began to be offered at locations across the state, everything from hospitals, to racetracks, to farmers' markets to waste transfer facilities.

    On Thursday, the University of Vermont Health Network said it was winding down three mass vaccination sites at the Champlain Valley Fairgrounds in Essex Junction and the Berlin Mall. A clinic at Porter Medical Center in Middlebury closed last week.

    The focus will then be on the walk-in clinics available throughout the state, at pharmacies and primary care practices.

    Mark Podgwaite, the executive director of the Waterbury Ambulance, said Thursday the shift to the walk-in clinics began in early May.

    "Most of the guys that we do now are these guys," he said referring to Lewis and Smith. "Males in that age range, 'well, I'll get to it' kinda deal, or they need to be persuaded or maybe they need a reason."

    After spending the morning at the SunCommon, Podgwaite and his crew were headed to the Waterbury farmers' market. Of the seven people vaccinated, he said he was "very pleased."

    "The threes, the fives, the tens are what made the difference," he said.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    COVID vaccines saved 20M lives in 1st year, scientists say
    COVID vaccines saved 20M lives in 1st year, scientists say
    monkeypox
    Providers prepare for monkeypox, discuss infection control practices
    Sponsored Content
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • COVID-19
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Digital Health
    • Insights
      • ACA 10 Years After
      • Best Practices
      • Special Reports
      • Innovations
    • Data/Lists
      • Rankings/Lists
      • Interactive Databases
      • Data Points
    • Op-Ed
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Awards
      • Nominate/Eligibility
      • 100 Most Influential People
      • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
      • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
      • Excellence in Governance
      • Health Care Hall of Fame
      • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
      • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
      • Top 25 Innovators
      • Diversity in Healthcare
        • - Luminaries
        • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
        • - Leaders to Watch
      • Women in Healthcare
        • - Luminaries
        • - Top 25 Women Leaders
        • - Women to Watch
    • Events
      • Conferences
        • Transformation Summit
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Leadership Symposium
      • Galas
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Supply Chain Revenue Cycle
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Strategic Marketing
        • - Virtual Health
      • Webinars
      • Custom Media Event: ESG Summit
    • Listen
      • Podcast - Next Up
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • MORE +
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing