Covid-19 update | As of January 18 | As of January 25 |
---|---|---|
Total cases statewide | 57,864 | 62,768 |
Total current infections statewide | 6,444 | 5,627 |
Total deaths statewide | 933 | 990 |
New cases | 5,557 (Jan. 12 to Jan. 18) | 4,904 (Jan. 19 to Jan. 25) |
Current infections: Hillsborough County | 2,262 | 1,994 |
Current infections: Merrimack County | 585 | 420 |
Current infections: Rockingham County | 1,362 | 1,278 |
Covid-19 news
New Hampshire surpassed 60,000 overall cases of Covid-19 with its daily public health update on Jan. 21, according to state officials. Despite numbers continuing to climb, state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan said during a Jan. 21 press conference that overall test-positivity rates have been trending downward. “It’s at 6.8 percent, which is … at the same level that we saw back at the end of November,” he said. Hospitalizations have also been on the decline — 230 people were hospitalized as of Jan. 25, down slightly from the previous week.
With the state moving on to Phase 1B of its vaccine distribution plan on Jan. 22, opening up eligibility for roughly 300,000 Granite Staters to receive their first doses, Gov. Chris Sununu urged people to be patient during the registration process. “We put needles in arms as fast as we get them in … but we’re still only getting about 17,000 [doses] a week,” Sununu said. “As the federal government increases vaccines for the State of New Hampshire, we will add more reservation spots within our system and be able to move people up.” The online registration portal is accessed by visiting vaccines.nh.gov. As of Jan. 25, just under 200,000 Granite Staters have signed up to receive doses as part of Phase 1B, and more than 60 percent of those have already scheduled a location and time for their first shot. The first Phase 1B vaccines were administered Jan. 26. According to a press release issued by the state Department of Health & Human Services, the FAQs on vaccines.nh.gov have also been updated and clarified to note that only residents are eligible to receive the vaccine in New Hampshire.
On Jan. 22, Sununu issued Emergency Order No. 83, an order allowing local officials to postpone their 2021 town meetings and elections and to pre-process their absentee ballots due to Covid-19 concerns. The order, according to the paperwork, serves to “bridge the gap” by responding to timing challenges related to SB 2, which passed in the Senate on Jan. 6 but has an indefinite timeline for passing in the House. “The House of Representatives has scheduled a public hearing on Senate Bill 2 and expects to pass the bill in early February 2021,” the order states. “Some towns in New Hampshire have stated that an early February enactment date … would be too late for these towns to set their schedules.”
Also on Jan. 22, Sununu issued Executive Order 2021-1, extending the state of emergency in New Hampshire due to the pandemic for another three weeks through at least Feb. 12. It’s the 15th extension he has issued since originally declaring a state of emergency last March.
Details of Sununu’s emergency orders, executive orders and other announcements can be found at governor.nh.gov.
Education funding
Sixteen mayors and School Board chairs from cities across New Hampshire sent a letter on Jan. 21 to New Hampshire Department of Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut, Gov. Chris Sununu, Senate President Chuck Morse and House Speaker Sherman Packard regarding concerns over education funding. “Covid-19 has put tremendous strain on school districts across the state … and as districts begin the budgeting process for the next school year, there are three particular areas of concern that we … wanted to bring to your attention,” the letter starts. The first concern is lower enrollment in free and reduced lunch programs due to national expansion of program eligibility during the pandemic, which affects the amount of funding given to school districts. The second is that there has been an “unprecedented decrease” in school enrollment during the pandemic as many parents have chosen to send their children to private school or to home school until public schools are able to return to fully in-person education safely, the letter says. Since
adequacy aid is based on the enrollment of the previous year, districts are concerned that they will end up educating students for whom they did not receive adequacy aid. “For example, Nashua would see a reduction of $1.6M in adequacy aid in the 2022FY budget if enrollment numbers increase close to pre-pandemic levels for the next school year, as districts are anticipating,” the letter reads. The final concern is the rate increases for state retirement contributions. “This downshifting of costs from the State of New Hampshire to local municipalities and school districts will result in considerable budget shortfalls,” the letter says. The letter ends by asking the Department of Education and the state’s government to take the anticipated revenue shortfalls into account as they allocate funding.
Friends funding
On Jan. 24, the New Hampshire delegation — U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan and Reps. Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas — announced that the Friends Program in Concord has been awarded $149,811 in AmeriCorps funding. According to a press release, the funding is specifically in support of the AmeriCorps volunteers in the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, which focuses on volunteers who are 55 and older. “These federal funds make important investments in New Hampshire’s community service programming, bolster volunteer opportunities for seniors and support the Friends Program’s mission to empower Granite Staters with the tools they need to give back to their communities,” Shaheen said in the release.
FIT grant
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health has given a $20,000 grant to Families in Transition in Manchester, to support the nonprofit’s work with people experiencing homelessness, providing funding for its adult emergency shelter program. “More than ever during Covid-19 members of our community are struggling to meet their basic needs for shelter, food and social contact,” Greg Norman, MS, director of Community Health for Dartmouth-Hitchcock, said in a press release. “D-HH can help community-based organizations like Families in Transition continue to meet the safety net needs of our patients and other members of the communities we serve.”
Winter gear
On Jan. 20, Girl Scouts in Manchester placed about 180 scarves, hats, gloves and blankets around Veterans Park. According to a press release, the items were left on trees, fence posts and other places throughout the park with tags to let people know they were free to take.
Two new specialty clinics, NeuroOncology and Gynecologic Oncology, are set to open at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock location at the Catholic Medical Center’s Notre Dame Pavilion in Manchester. According to a press release, the clinics will focus on specific cancer diagnoses, including even the rarest cancers.
OLLI — the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, for people ages 50 and up — at Granite State College in Concord announced in a press release that it will offer 81 non-credit courses via Zoom during the spring term, which starts Monday, Feb. 22. There will be classes on history, politics, arts and literature, computer skills, health and food and more. Visit olli.granite.edu.
Dr. Jahmal Mosley, superintendent of the Nashua School District, has announced his resignation, effective at the end of this school year. According to a joint statement from the District and the Board of Education, Mosley has taken a job as superintendent in South Hadley, Mass. The board thanked him for the services he’s provided since 2017.
The Bedford Police Department recently issued an announcement reminding residents not to leave remote key fobs unattended in their vehicles. According to the announcement, Bedford Police have responded to three incidents in the last month where vehicle owners left key fobs in their vehicles, “allowing criminals to easily steal their vehicles.”