FILE - Registered nurse Allison Miller administers one of the first Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccinations at UW Medicine Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020, in Seattle. Several states have been told to expect far fewer doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine in its second week of distribution, but the reason remains a mystery as the company said Thursday, Dec. 17, that its production expectations remain unchanged.(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

Coronavirus developments across New England:

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CONNECTICUT

A state Department of Health employee says he was fired after questioning the department’s authority to fine a bar that allegedly flouted state rules about crowd size.

The New Haven Register reports that Av Harris, a spokesman for the Connecticut Department of Public Health, was abruptly terminated Dec. 31.

His attorney, Irene Bassock, wrote in a letter to a department attorney that Harris raised concerns about interfering with a pending criminal investigation and the health department’s legal authority to levy the $10,000 fine against a Bridgeport sports bar.

“The facts demonstrate that his abrupt termination is illegal retaliation for speaking up about potentially unlawful activity,” Bassock told the newspaper. “Instead of terminating him, Mr. Harris should be commended for how ethically he performed his job.”

A request for comment was sent to Gov. Ned Lamont’s office seeking comment.

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MAINE

A three-member commission in Maine’s least-populated county has delivered a rebuke to the governor that includes falsehoods and repeatedly refers to the coronavirus as the “Wuhan Virus.”

The Piscataquis County Commission resolution objecting to Gov. Janet Mills’ COVID-19 executive orders states, for example, that face coverings cause pneumonia and respiratory disease, causing “far worse devastation to the populace than the virus itself,” the Bangor Daily News reported.

Mills spokesperson Lindsay Crete defended the governor’s policies, saying they led Maine to have some of the lowest rates of coronavirus infections and deaths in the country.

“She refuses to make the pandemic political, and her administration will continue to balance public and economic health as we put a lid on this deadly virus,” Crete said.

Despite the efforts, the coronavirus has been surging in Maine. The state’s death toll topped 500 on Saturday as the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported another 30 deaths.

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MASSACHUSETTS

The Worcester County Courthouse is scheduled to resume jury trials on a limited basis in the upcoming week, state courts officials say.

The plan is to conduct three trials in the next two months with COVID-19 safety protocols in place, The Telegram & Gazette reports.

There are nearly 40 murder cases pending in Worcester Superior Court, but those will have to wait until another phase of jury trials expected later this year.

A district court trial scheduled to begin Tuesday is for a man facing a drunken driving charge — the kind of case that has fewer witnesses and is generally quicker to try than many others.

Brian M. D’Andrea, clerk magistrate of Central District Court, said the case will be held in a courtroom that has been outfitted with safety precautions in mind.

The witness box is surrounded by plexiglass, and other barriers have been put into place to protect jurors.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE

A yoga instructor who returned to New Hampshire and taught classes after attending a rally preceding the breach of the U.S. Capitol has been issued a warning by New Hampshire’s attorney general.

Joanna Chipi, owner of Zen Den Yoga in Portsmouth, attended went to the rally Jan. 6 and was teaching classes two days later, defying a required quarantine for people who travel out of state, according to the warning, signed by Associate Attorney General Anne Edwards.

“In addition to jeopardizing the health and safety of both the public, your members and your staff, your failure to follow (emergency orders) is a violation of state law,” the warning notice says.

She told Seacoastonline.com that she was expressing her First Amendment rights at the demonstration Washington and that she didn’t participate in the breach. A state official said Chipi told her she thought she didn’t have to quarantine since she wore a mask at the rally.

The Associated Press could not locate a phone number for Chipi, and an email to the business wasn’t immediately returned Saturday.

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RHODE ISLAND

Vaccines have been given to board members at Lifespan and trustees at Care New England even as older adults across the state have to wait weeks or months for their turn, officials say.

Both companies, the state’s largest and second-largest hospital groups, respectively, have expanded eligibility to everyone who works there, no matter their age or risk or exposure, the Providence Journal reported. That includes lab techs, top administrators and others.

Jane Bruno, spokesperson for Lifespan, the state’s largest employer, said board members were offered available vaccination slots last weekend as part of the lowest tier of priority.

Care New England, which includes Kent Hospital, included trustees because of “their essential role in quality and financial oversight of the hospital,” said Dr. Raymond Powrie, executive chief of medicine.

State Department of Health spokesman Joseph Wendelken said the state provided vaccine to hospitals based on their total number of employees.

“The main aim of the first portion of our vaccination campaign is to preserve the hospital system. For that reason, it’s a reasonable use of vaccine for hospitals to vaccinate employees who are not necessarily high risk for exposure, but who are still critical to the functioning of the hospital. For example, a hospital cannot function without an IT department,” he said.

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VERMONT

Starting in the new week, Vermont school sports teams will be allowed to expand practices to include drills with limited contact and scrimmages with masks required at all times, Gov. Phil Scott said.

Games and scrimmages between other teams are not permitted, he said Friday. Outdoor and individual sports such as downhill and cross-country skiing may also start in small groups, the Republican governor said.

The spread of the virus in schools remains low, he said.

“We know how important these activities are for our kids’ well-being, both for their physical and mental health. It’s my hope we’ll soon be able to allow for competitions,” Scott said. That decision will be based on the data and advice of experts, he said.

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