Vermont reported 136 new Covid cases Wednesday — but that may not be the final word. The state Department of Health continues to revise previous days’ case totals upward, including Tuesday’s figures, which rose from an initial report of 111 cases to 182.
A more reliable metric is the seven-day daily case average, which has started to hint at a slow, unsteady trend downward — now at 148 per day compared to a high of 165. Officials cautioned Tuesday that it’s too early to say for sure whether the decline will continue.
It’s now been nine days since Labor Day and two weeks since most schools reopened for the year. If either led to a spike in infections from social gatherings or classroom transmission, it might be evident in the coming days’ reports.
Whether or not the case rate has peaked, the most severe complications of Covid continue. Thirty-nine people are hospitalized with the virus, including 10 in the ICU. Another two hospitalized patients await Covid testing results.
One new death was added to the Department of Health’s data on Wednesday, bringing September’s total to 14. In total, 292 people have died since the beginning of the pandemic.
How schools have fared
In Tuesday’s data, the Department of Health reported that schools have recorded at least 78 cases in the past week.
That’s compared to a total of 40 cases in the previous week’s data, reported on Sept. 6. Thirty-six schools have reported two or more cases among students or staff.
Barre Town Elementary School and Williston Schools have been the hardest hit, according to the data, with each reporting six cases in a single week. Derby Elementary School also reported four cases in a week.
Pownal Elementary School and Williston Schools are tied for the most cases since the start of the school year, with seven cases each.
You can search for a school in the table below. Check out the Department of Health website for more details on what the school reports do and do not include.
