Author: The Hippo Press

Covid-19 news

On Sept. 24, during a press conference, state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan reported that New Hampshire continues to see between 35 and 40 new infections of Covid-19 on average per day, while the percent-positivity rate relative to all tests remains low, around 1 percent or less. Chan also reported that the number of new hospitalizations as a result of the virus has “crept up slightly,” from 10 or fewer total people in the state to around 16 to 17 on any given day.

During the same press conference, Gov. Chris Sununu announced the creation of the Special Education Provider fund, which provides $4 million in federal CARES act funding to Granite State schools, aimed to help students and families with developmental disabilities. According to Sununu, the fund will benefit 21 schools in New Hampshire that serve more than 750 students.

Sununu also provided updated guidance to restaurants and bars in New Hampshire. Effective Oct. 1, the six-foot distancing rule for tables and booths at restaurants can be lifted, as long as protective barriers are in place. “We do continue to see positive data in restaurants. They are currently not a source of widespread transmission,” Sununu said, “and so we’re very confident that we can move forward with this model in a very safe manner.”

With Halloween around the corner, Sununu announced the release of a trick-or-treat safety tip sheet, which is available to view online at nh.gov. The sheet contains all the regular tips for motorists and families to remember on Halloween night, but with additional safety suggestions, such as wearing a mask or face covering when handing out treats and bringing a bottle of hand sanitizer with you while out trick-or-treating.

On Sept. 28, the governor’s office announced in a press release that the state will be able to conduct 25,000 more Covid-19 rapid antigen tests per week once a new shipment of BinaxNOW Rapid Antigen testing kits from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration arrives. The nasal swab tests, which provide results in 15 minutes, are expected to be distributed across the state to community testing locations in the next few weeks, and the FDA expects the state to be able to conduct up to 400,000 rapid tests by the end of the year. They will be targeted to symptomatic individuals who are in in-person school settings, as well as frontline health care workers, emergency responders and other high-risk populations. “The BINAX test will allow the state to significantly ramp up testing in a targeted fashion — specifically for students and vulnerable populations,” Sununu said in the release. “The rapid results will make decisions much easier for parents and educators.”

Details of Sununu’s Emergency Orders, Executive Orders and other announcements can be viewed at governor.nh.gov.

City school changes

The Nashua School District will delay switching to hybrid learning for most students and continue with remote learning until January 2021, according to a letter from Superintendent Jahmal Mosley that was sent to the community on Sept. 18. “We have decided to maintain the current course and predictable remote schedule, which has proven to be a steady course for many of our students’ families and our staff as they navigate work schedules, day care arrangements, and, for some of our families, caring for loved ones during this trying time,” the letter reads. Students with special needs will start attending school in person next week, and students in kindergarten and in first grade, “who learn best through play and hands-on learning,” will start to attend school later in the season following a hybrid schedule. All other students will continue to be fully remote. “We need to be confident in having students and staff return to school. Safety and well-being is paramount and, by taking additional time this fall, we will make a decision with greater confidence about our return to in-school for all students. Right now, we are still facing too many unknowns,” the letter reads.

Meanwhile, the Manchester School District announced last week that on the week of Oct. 12 it will start a multi-week process of transitioning to hybrid learning for more grade levels, despite receiving confirmation Friday that two staff members who had been in school buildings (Memorial High School, Beech Street Elementary School and McDonough Elementary School) had tested positive for Covid-19. According to a press release, those staff members are isolating at home, and the Health Department is completing a public health case investigation and contact tracing process. “We understood from the beginning it was likely we would eventually see positive Covid-19 tests in our schools once students and staff returned,” Dr. John Goldhardt, Superintendent of Schools, said in the release. “I will be clear: I would not further open schools if I did not feel it was safe to do so; however, I also want to make sure families understand that if the situation worsens, we may need to pull back.” Students in kindergarten, first grade and some specialized programs started the year with the option for some in-person learning, and other grades will gradually start hybrid learning, if families choose, throughout mid and late October, according to the release. High school students’ return dates are tentative right now, as those schools have asked for more time to prepare for the return to in-person classes.

Interim chief

Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig announced in a press release that she has named Assistant Chief of Police Ryan Grant as interim chief of police for the Manchester Police Department, effective Oct. 1, the day after Chief Carlo Capano retires. Craig plans to announce her nomination for chief of police at the Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 6, though the board will note vote on the nomination until the next board meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 20.

Operation SOS

When the Department of Justice launched Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge, intended to reduce the supply of synthetic opioids, in 2018, it targeted 10 districts with some of the highest drug overdose death rates in the country, which included New Hampshire, according to a press release from the office of United States Attorney for the District of New Hampshire Scott Murray. As part of Operation SOS, Murray was asked to designate a county to focus on prosecuting every readily available case involving fentanyl, fentanyl analogues and other synthetic opioids. In a Sept. 25 press release, Murray said that since the operation started, approximately 93 defendants have been charged with drug trafficking offenses in federal court. “By taking aggressive action against drug traffickers in Hillsborough County, Operation SOS is limiting the supply of fentanyl and other drugs in the community and helping to reduce the overdose death rate in that county,” Murray said in the release.

Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester recently received two honors: It was named to the “Great Colleges to Work For” list put out by ModernThink for the 13th consecutive year, while Forbes named SNHU the best employer in New Hampshire in late August, according to a press release.

Arhaus, a retailer that sells handcrafted home furnishings, will open a 15,000-square-foot store next spring at Tuscan Village in Salem, according to a press release. Tuscan Village has previously announced lease agreements with LL Bean, Ulta Beauty, Old Navy, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Chase Bank, as well as local brands Drive Custom Fit, Pressed Café and Tuscan Market, all scheduled to open in the spring.

The Hudson and Bedford fire departments have been awarded $2,170,180 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to recruit and train new firefighters, according to a press release. The funds come from FEMA’s Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response Grants program, and each department will be able to hire four new firefighters, with Hudson getting $1,098,456 and Bedford getting $1,071,724.

Alene Candles in Milford is looking to recognize four community members who have gone above and beyond to help their friends, families and neighbors during the pandemic, according to a press release. Alene is asking the public to nominate people for its Milford Luminaries program, through which it will donate $4,000 to area nonprofits, with each luminary choosing where to direct a $1,000 donation. Nominations are due by Oct. 16 and can be submitted at alene.com/milfordluminaries.

Covid-19 news

On Sept. 16, Gov. Chris Sununu issued Emergency Order No. 69, authorizing the commissioner of the state’s Department of Health and Human Services to appoint new members of the state’s health ethics committee.

On Sept. 18, Sununu issued Executive Order 2020-18, extending the state of emergency in New Hampshire due to the Covid-19 pandemic for another three weeks through at least Oct. 9. It’s the ninth extension he has issued since originally declaring a state of emergency on March 13.

On Sept. 21, Sununu issued Exhibit R to Emergency Order No. 29, which had been issued on April 9. Emergency Order No. 29 requires state agencies, boards and commissions to submit recommendations to Sununu if any regulatory deadlines should be adjusted in response to the state of emergency. Per Exhibit R, the expiration of any child day care agencies and licenses in New Hampshire are stayed during the state of emergency. Renewal application deadlines for child care agencies have also been deferred until 90 days after the end of the state of emergency.

Details of Sununu’s Emergency Orders, Executive Orders and other announcements can be found at governor.nh.gov.

House upholds vetoes

On Sept. 17, the New Hampshire House of Representatives sustained every veto from Gov. Chris Sununu, including paid family and medical leave and a minimum hourly wage, prompting divisive responses from House and Senate leaders. “Over the past two years, Governor Sununu has vetoed a record-breaking 79 pieces of legislation, 65 of which had bipartisan support,” Senate Majority Leader Dan Feltes (D-Concord) said in a statement. “This year, in the middle of a global pandemic, Sununu vetoed over one-third of the bills sent to his desk, many helping working families, frontline workers, and small businesses.” “This year’s session has been filled with Washington style political stunts from Democrats,” House Republican Leader Dick Hinch (R-Merrimack) said in a statement following the votes. “They want to raise taxes so badly that they have clearly abandoned professional protocol throughout the pandemic and pushed through their radical partisan agenda. Today Republicans stood united together to push back against these stunts on behalf of the citizens of New Hampshire.”

LEACT

New Hampshire can begin to implement all recommendations from the New Hampshire Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community and Transparency, after Gov. Chris Sununu issued a roadmap on Sept. 17 for how to move forward, according to a press release. LEACT was established through an executive order in June after the murder of George Floyd, and it recently released a report that focused on reforms to training, reporting and investigation of police misconduct, and community relations. “Today I am endorsing every single recommendation from all three parts of the LEACT report,” Sununu said. “Their charge was difficult — to come up with recommendations on how to improve law enforcement here in New Hampshire.” The release said that Sununu will issue an Executive Order to take immediate action on many of the reforms within the next two weeks, while the Attorney General will lead the effort to craft legislation for any of the reforms that require passage through the legislature.

Mental Health Plan

A report highlighting the progress that the state has made on the New Hampshire 10-Year Mental Health Plan of 2019 was released last week, according to a press release from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. The department published the plan in January 2019, and it prioritized 14 recommendations to advance the mental health system within the first two years of implementation. The new report highlights several improvements since then, including an increase in permanent housing for individuals with mental illness, new transitional housing program beds, increased the state’s Housing Bridge Subsidy Program, established more integrated primary and behavioral health care programs at community mental centers, increased the number of children served by the Care Management Entity, and expanded Assertive Community Treatment to increase accessibility throughout the state. “The 10-Year Mental Health Plan provides the pathway to a mental health system that makes services and programs available to patients when they need them,” DHHS Commissioner Lori Shibinette said in the release. “We are committed to realizing this goal, and while our work continues, this report highlights the important progress that is being made.”

First Lady Melania Trump visited Concord Hospital on Sept. 17 as part of her efforts to combat opioid use, according to a report from WMUR. She was there to learn about the hospital’s “Eat, Sleep, Console” protocol, the goal of which is to wean babies from addictive drugs with minimal or no medication.

Middle-school student Kaylin Emerson of New Boston recently won the Walter A. Felker Memorial Award from the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association for a paper she wrote about maple chemistry, according to a press release. Emerson took part in the annual statewide contest, which is open to kids 16 and younger.

Livingston and Bronstein parks in Manchester have been chosen as two of 14 sites nationwide to transition to organic grounds management as part of Stonyfield Organic’s #playfree initiative, according to a press release. Stonyfield is donating $5,000 and access to experts from Osborne Organics, and Hannaford is matching the monetary donation.

The construction of Exit 4A on Interstate 93 in Derry and Londonderry has been put on hold after price proposals for the design-build project exceeded the New Hampshire Department of Transportation’s cost estimate by more than $30 million, according to a press release. The department will work with both towns and affected property owners to figure out its next steps and will work toward a more cost-effective design.