VT’s Reopening Could Be Sooner Due To Strong Vaccination Rates

Great news, Vermonters! Gov. Phil Scott says he might speed up his reopening timeline given how quickly the state’s population is getting vaccinated against the coronavirus.

WTEN/10 News Albany reports that Governor Scott, at Tuesday's COVID-19 briefing, mentioned that the Vermont Forward Plan could be speeding up due to the state's strong vaccination rates.

Governor Scott said Vermont ranks first in the United States when it comes to the percentage of the population that has received at least one dose of the vaccine. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that number is now at 61.9%.

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The Vermont Forward Plan is what Governor Scott is calling the state's phased reopening and is tied directly with state vaccination rates. According to Scott, Vermont is approximately two weeks ahead of schedule.

Governor Scott had this to say:

Vermonters should be proud of what we've accomplished, but we also understand there's still a lot more work to do.

The governor said the state will continue to expand access to the vaccine through walk-in clinics, drive-thrus, and at events. He also set a date of July 4 with the goal of returning the state to as close to normal as possible. Certain vaccination goals need to be hit in order to move forward to the next phase of the reopening plan.

And, later this week, the federal government is expected to approve the use of the Pfizer vaccine for 12-to-15-year-olds. And that could also provide a boost to Vermont's vaccination rate. It's already been cleared by the FDA, now it just needs to be cleared by the CDC.

Check out the full story on WTEN's website here.