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Editor’s note: This article will be updated
Gov. Phil Scott announced on Monday that Vermont’s hospitals may reopen for some elective procedures and nonessential appointments, if they follow a long list of conditions.
Hospitals had to cancel nonessential visits and elective surgeries on March 20 as part of Vermont’s efforts to reorient the health care system to focus on Covid-19 care. Hospitals can now restart “nonessential outpatient clinic visits, diagnostic imaging and outpatient surgeries and procedures,” according to a statement from Scott’s office.
Scott called Monday’s announcement the first phase of restarting Vermont health care system, and noted that surgeries that require overnight hospital stays were still banned. Companions may join patients for these appointments “only if required for direct patient assistance.”
“While postponing these procedures was necessary to help protect our healthcare system, workers and patients during this pandemic, we know these procedures are important to Vermonters’ overall health,” Scott said in an emailed statement.
“We thank everyone for their patience; they’ve helped us make sure we did not risk our ability to care for COVID-19 patients,” the governor added. “But we’re at a point where we can begin lifting some restrictions.”
During a Scott administration press conference Monday, Health Commissioner Mark Levine outlined the many steps hospitals would need to take to ensure safety.
- Screening patients for COVID-19-related symptoms prior to scheduled procedures.
- Screening all staff and essential visitors for COVID-related symptoms prior to entering facility.
- Protective equipment and supplies should be worn and utilized as necessary to ensure staff and patient safety.
- All patients and companions must wear mouth and nose coverings (provided by the patient or by the site) when in public areas.
- Waiting room chairs must be spaced to require a minimum of six-feet physical distancing.
- Providers must have written procedures for disinfecting all common areas.
- Providers must have signage to emphasize social restrictions and access to hand sanitizer.
- Continue to consider alternative care delivery models, including telemedicine, when appropriate.
- Providers will reevaluate and reassess policies and procedures frequently, based on COVID-19 related data, resources, testing and other clinical information.
Levine said that public health indicators could lead to the administration further opening the health care system, or closing it to elective procedures again if there’s a turn for the worse.
“On the more optimistic side though, if our efforts to slow and contain the spread of the virus continue to succeed, expect to slowly and safely reopen other parts of our health care system, such as dentistry and eye care,” he said.
Reopening other parts of the economy
Scott said Vermonters should expect the coronavirus state of emergency to extend beyond the May 15 expiration of his current “stay home, stay safe.”
But what that order would look like moving forward remains an evolving question, Scott added.
The governor said his administration is “trying to do all we can” and “trying to open up businesses as we can” amid the emergency, but would need to continue watching public health data as it decides whether to take additional steps.
It has already taken partial steps to reopen the construction and manufacturing sectors, as well as allowing a limited staff presence at administrative offices.
Scott said his next steps will be announced as soon as Wednesday.
“It’s more about the how, rather than which, sectors,” Scott said, “and trying to determine, you know, across the board, what can we do to provide for relief.”
Levine said health officials were continuing to watch public health data — including hospitalizations, presumed Covid-19 cases and percentage of positive testing results — to make sure that reopening steps were not creating a significant increase in caseload.
“So my hope is that we will be able to pick up the adverse trends that would require an intervention early enough in the case that things would not have gotten out of hand,” Levine said.
Scott said he preferred to focus on everyone following guidelines that would prevent Covid-19 from spreading amid economic reopening, rather than how his administration would undo those steps if cases spike again.
“I think that everything that we’re doing is moving us in the right direction so I would rather not talk about retreating. I would rather talk about how do we manage this so that we can get back to some sort of normal,” Scott said.
