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This story has been updated with new information from the VA.
A 90-year-old patient at the White River Junction VA Medical Center is among three new cases of COVID-19 identified by the Vermont Department of Health on Saturday.
The new cases bring the total to five in Vermont — four presumptive positive cases as well as one that has been confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The White River Junction VA Medical Center patient is from Windsor County, and is being cared for by specially trained medical staffers in “respiratory isolation” at the hospital, according to a press release from the facility. The VA is waiting for confirmation of the positive test from the Centers for Disease Control.
A second patient, a male in his 50s, is now in home isolation after being initially treated at Central Vermont Medical Center, and is following the Centers for Disease Control guidelines. He had recently returned from Italy, was in self-isolation and developed symptoms toward the end of that 14-day period. He remains in quarantine, according to the Health Department.
The third patient is also a male in his 50s and a resident of Westchester County, New York. He is a second homeowner who became ill 24 hours after he came to Vermont and was evaluated at Springfield Hospital. He was subsequently released and is now in self-quarantine, according to the Vermont Department of Health.
Dr. Mark Levine, commissioner of DOH, said in a legislative hearing Saturday afternoon that people fleeing New York City or Westchester to their second homes up north is a “theme that we’ve started to hear more about.”
The results of all three presumed positive tests came back last Friday evening, according to Department of Health spokesperson Bennet Truman.
Epidemiologists from the department immediately started tracing the travel histories and community interactions of the patients to identify persons who may have been in close contact and at risk for exposure to affected patients, according to Truman. State health officials have notified counterparts in New York and New Hampshire.
More than 100 COVID-19 specimen tests were conducted Saturday, with more than one specimen per person in some cases, he said in a briefing with lawmakers.
“You’re starting to presume it’s circulating in the communities. To what extent, we don’t know,” Truman said. He emphasized the importance of social distancing, frequent handwashing and other preventive steps Vermonters can take to curb spread of the disease.
Truman couldn’t comment on the status of the patients who tested positive. But the department had been in contact with the three hospitals and the patients “are receiving the best care possible,” Levine said in a statement.
Levine said the department has been in contact with the three facilities and we “know these patients are receiving the best care possible.”
“We expected that Vermont would see more cases, and that there likely will be more,” Levine said in a statement. “As Gov. Scott said yesterday, the full focus of the state is on minimizing spread of COVID-19 in our communities. We all have a critical role to play in flattening the potential curve of infections.”
Mandatory VA pre-screening
White River Junction VA Medical Center is now pre-screening “everyone who enters the campus,” including patients, and has begun restricting access to visitors and children. As a result, patients may experience longer wait times for appointments, according to a press release from the facility.
To prevent the spread of the virus, the VA has “immediately isolated” veterans and staff who are known to be at risk for a COVID-19 infection or who meet the CDC criteria for evaluation because of symptoms including fever, cough and shortness of breath.
As part of this process, everyone who enters the campus will be pre-screened. This may lengthen entry times, so patients are advised to allow for that when arriving for their appointments. White River Junction VA Medical Center has also begun restricting access to visitors and children under the age of 18.
Central Vermont Medical Center command center
The Central Vermont Medical Center opened a command center earlier this week to direct the hospital’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. That center is an administration change in which hospital leaders get updates and troubleshoot issues multiple times a day with hospital staff, according to UVM Medical Center spokesperson Annie Mackin.
The hospital is also “reviewing inventory and supply chains, and providing support for staff,” according to a statement from CVMC President Anna Noonan.
“We stand ready to provide care to any member in our community who needs our care,” Noonan said. “We are ready to manage this pandemic and have implemented protocols, policies and practices that will allow us to continue to provide the best care possible for our patients, our Woodridge residents and their families, while limiting exposure to the virus for our staff and our community.”
Editor’s note: The DOH issued a correction Saturday afternoon, regarding the status of the Westchester County, New York patient who is not being hospitalized at this time. The story has been updated with new information about two of the patients and VA guidelines. Elizabeth Gribkoff also contributed reporting.
