Covid-19 update | As of Jan 10 | As of Jan 14 |
---|---|---|
Total cases statewide | 223,599 | 235,898 |
Total current infections statewide | 17,208 | 21,291 |
Total deaths statewide | 2,027 | 2,079 |
New cases | 19,850 (Jan. 4 to Jan. 10) | 12,299 (Jan. 11 to Jan. 14) |
Current infections: Hillsborough County | 5,599 | 7,055 |
Current infections: Merrimack County | 1,791 | 2,234 |
Current infections: Rockingham County | 3,562 | 4,372 |
Covid-19 news
During the state’s weekly public health update on Jan. 12, state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan reported that, on average, New Hampshire reported 2,500 new infections of Covid-19 per day over the previous week. That same day, the number of active infections in the state exceeded 20,000, a new all-time high during the pandemic. “Compared to one to two weeks ago, we are now seeing double the number of new infections identified each day … and we believe that this is likely due to the omicron surge now hitting New Hampshire,” Chan said. When asked later on about how long he expects the current winter surge to last in the state, Chan said that the answer remains unclear. “There’s data coming from other countries that have entered this surge even earlier than we have that are showing … potentially even a more rapid drop-off than what we’ve seen in other surges of the pandemic, but that’s not a sure thing,” he said. “We’re going to know on the backside of this curve, as we’re coming down from it.”
Also on Jan. 12, the New Hampshire Insurance Department issued a statement in response to the Biden administration’s announcement that private insurers will soon have to cover the cost of eight at-home Covid tests per member per month. “We have been proactive in contacting New Hampshire’s health insurers to discuss the implementation of the new mandate,” Commissioner Christopher Nicolopoulos said in the statement. “We encourage consumers to contact their insurance provider to understand any testing arrangements that their provider has put into effect … [and] we urge the federal government to consider how this can be rolled out in a manner which ensures there is a sufficient supply of Covid-19 tests available.” Anyone with questions or concerns regarding their insurance coverage can contact the New Hampshire Insurance Department at 1-800-852-3416 or 271-2261, or via email at [email protected].
On Jan. 13, Gov. Chris Sununu responded to the news earlier that day of the Supreme Court’s vote to block the Biden administration from implementing a vaccine mandate for companies with 100 or more employees. “I am as pro-vaccine as they come, but today’s decision … is good news for employees and the businesses that keep our supply chains running and economy open,” a statement in part reads on Sununu’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
10-year TIP
Recommendations for the 2023-2032 Ten Year Transportation Improvement Plan were presented to the legislature last week by Gov. Chris Sununu. According to the letter that Sununu sent to Rep. John Graham, chairman of the House Public Works and Highways Committee, the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Intermodal Transportation held 21 in-person public hearings and one virtual hearing in the fall, and an online survey was also available. More than 400 comments were made through the hearing process, and more than 750 surveys were completed, according to the letter. Much of the feedback centered around the need to expand travel options (transit, bicycle, pedestrian, etc.) and the need to address infrastructure conditions. “Also, many attending the public hearings advocated for advancing projects or increasing project funding,” the letter read. The new plan expedites and advances 29 municipal bridge projects; it also puts a hold on the statewide exit sign renumbering project. Sununu said in his letter that this plan will fully fund prior Ten Year Plan commitments such as corridor improvements on Route 101, but that “it is important to continue focusing on preservation, maintenance and safety of the existing pavement and bridge infrastructure throughout the state.”
Farm to school
Last week, the New Hampshire Farm to School Reimbursement Policy Bill was presented to the House Education Committee. According to a press release, the bipartisan group of legislators sponsoring the bill is aiming to bring more healthy local food options to New Hampshire schools. “With this policy, … the Department of Education’s Office of Nutrition Programs and Services would provide a monetary incentive to schools who choose to direct more of their ‘per meal’ USDA cash reimbursement funds toward purchases from New Hampshire and New England farmers. The state would encourage this channeling of federal funds into the local economy by awarding schools $1 for every $3 spent on food from New Hampshire and $1 for every $6 spent on food from the New England region,” the bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. Alexis Simpson (D-Exeter), said in a statement.
All bets are on
Slightly more than two years after the inception of sports betting in New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Lottery and DraftKings — the state’s exclusive sports betting provider — surpassed the $1 billion mark in total sports wagering. According to a press release, during the first week of January, New Hampshire players had placed more than 23 million bets since sports betting launched in the Granite State on Dec. 30, 2019. “We are pleased with what we have accomplished and we are excited to continue growing sports betting as a revenue driver supporting our schools,” Charlie McIntyre, executive director of the New Hampshire Lottery, said in the release. Over the past two years, the top five sports betting drivers have been the NFL, NBA, college basketball, college football and table tennis, the release said.
Choose Love
Sixteen residents at the New Hampshire Correctional Facility for Women recently graduated from the Corrections Choose Love 12-week pilot program, which teaches adults how to respond with kindness in any situation by using courage, gratitude, forgiveness and compassion-in-action, according to a press release. The program teaches skills like handling adversity and responding with love while promoting self-empowerment, resilience, connection and optimism. “By acknowledging that adults in our state prisons have experienced adverse childhood experiences and have had long-term negative effects on their conduct, the Choose Love program has the power to assist people in adopting lifelong skills focusing on self-regulation and social and emotional learning by creating a common language across our facilities,” New Hampshire Department of Corrections Commissioner Helen Hanks said in the release.
iPlatform
On Tuesday, Jan. 25, at 6 p.m. the New Hampshire Department of Education will host a webinar for the general public to teach people how to use the New Hampshire Department of Education’s iPlatform data portal, which was launched a few years ago but was enhanced and expanded last year. “This tool uses modern technology that allows individuals to easily access key indicators across all school districts in New Hampshire, including enrollment demographics, achievement trends, graduation rates, educator salaries and more,” Frank Edelblut, commissioner of education, said in a press release. “We have harnessed all of the various data and made it transparent in an effort to start real, informed conversations about the state’s education system.” The webinar is free; register at education.nh.gov.
Manchester’s newest solar array at the former Dunbarton Road landfill is up and running after more than two years of preparation and planning. According to a press release, it is the largest municipal solar array in the state, with more than 8,000 panels that will supply 3.8 million kilowatt-hours of clean energy to the power grid annually, enough to power hundreds of homes annually across the city.
Aviation pioneer Bernice Blake Perry has been honored with a historical marker that was recently installed near Milford Rotary Centennial Park on Route 101A in Milford. The marker reads, in part: “In 1929, Manchester native Bernice Blake Perry became the first woman in New Hampshire to pilot a plane and the first female commercial pilot in New England. She spent her adult life in Milford and was a charter member of the Ninety-Nines, a pioneering group of female pilots led by Amelia Earhart,” according to a press release.
The New Hampshire Housing Board of Directors has approved financing for four affordable multi-family rental housing developments, to help meet the needs of the state’s workforce and other residents, in Nashua, Manchester and Conway, according to a press release. Locally, Nashua will see the addition of 43 general occupancy units in the Apartments at 249 Main St., while Manchester’s Kelley Falls project will add two new 24-unit buildings, and its Renew II project will rehabilitate three properties for a total of 101 general occupancy units, the release said.