Vermont State Hospital Will Not Reopen Under Governor's Plan

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Vermont has no plans to send mental health patients back to the state hospital in Waterbury, which was closed by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene, Gov. Peter Shumlin said. Construction on a new facility likely is years away. 

The roughly 50 patients housed there have been sent to other facilities across the state. Shumlin laid out a plan Thursday that he said would lead the state through a “three- to five-year transition,” likely ending with a new facility to house the most acutely mentally ill. 

“Building a replacement facility is years away at best, and we need to put services in place now to ensure all Vermonters have access to the care they need,” Shumlin said.