Daily N.H. Coronavirus Update (Sep 1-30)

Wednesday September 30

On Tuesday, 28 new COVID-19 cases were reported by state health officials along with 1 new hospitalization and no new deaths. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Wednesday.

1. Legislative Advisory Panel Told Hospital Losses ‘Staggering and Unsustainable.” Hospitals are likely to be $300 million in the hole by the end of the year due to COVID-19 and must receive federal help now to keep the doors open, state lawmakers were told on Tuesday. Calling losses “staggering and unsustainable” Steve Ahnen, president of the New Hampshire Hospital Association, gave an update on the financial impact of the pandemic on the state’s hospitals to the Legislative Advisory Board of the Governor’s Office for Emergency Relief and Recovery. Ahnen said, hospitals have seen a $516 million reduction in revenue since March. He said it has been offset with over $300 million in federal and state help, “but we are still looking at $200 million in losses,” and “as we look to the next few months, those losses may amount to another $100 million by the end of the year.” Ahnen also said that one of the most challenging aspects for health-care providers has been cost and access to personal protective equipment. Medical providers need the materials to protect them from contracting the virus. He said while the supply chain has improved, it prices are much higher than they were before the start of the pandemic and more is needed. (Source: InDepthNH )

2. Lawmakers Recommend COVID Relief for Snowmobile Associations; School Funding Gap Still Looms. With priorities piling up, some lawmakers have expressed concerns that the state could have difficulty disbursing the rest of the $1.25 billion in federal CARES Act funds allocated to New Hampshire by Dec. 31 – the deadline before anything unspent is taken back by Washington. While a legislative committee recommended that Gov. Chris Sununu allocate $154,000 to the New Hampshire Snowmobile Association to help recover lost fundraising on Tuesday, the committee has not yet tackled some of the biggest spending issues that continue to loom as the pandemic creeps into fall. At its monthly meeting Tuesday, members opted for an additional meeting Oct. 6 to hear from schools concerned about a reversal by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s on school assistance this month. (Source: Concord Monitor)

3. ConVal School District Appeals to Towns for Help with Reopening Costs After FEMA Shuts Out Schools. Communities across the state continue to scramble to come up with money to pay emergency expenses after FEMA reversed a decision to reimburse schools for those costs earlier in the month. The ConVal school district has spent 3 million dollars in costs directly related to reopening school during the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now turning to its nine constituent towns for help. Currently, ConVal is looking at paying for $2.3 million of the reopening costs through the general fund and trust funds, ConVal business administrator Lori Schmidt said. CARES funds are still an option, she said, and Governor Chris Sununu may have control over some additional funds that could go to municipalities and districts. “We are in constant communication with the state, letting them know the moneys that are available to the School District don’t even come close,” she said. Schmidt is urging the communities in the district to apply for more GOFERR funds from the state prior to the October 31 deadline. If no additional aid is approved, the costs would be passed on to taxpayers in communities with unreimbursed expenses. (Source” Monadnock Ledger-Transcript)

4. Maskless Meetings, Carpooling to Blame for Faculty and Staff COVID Numbers at UNH. After seeing the number of COVID-19 cases among students on its three campuses drop dramatically, the University of New Hampshire is now dealing with a sharp rise in cases involving faculty and staff, at least partly because safety policies weren’t followed, officials said. As of Monday, 34 current COVID-19 cases on the Durham, Manchester and Concord campuses involved faculty and staff members, compared to nine cases among students. Officials blame carpooling and staff meetings where masks haven’t been worn for some of the non-student cases. “Based on contact tracing, we know that some of these came from not following our own policies, like staff meetings without masks and carpooling,” said UNH spokeswoman Erika Mantz. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

5. Behavior of Maskless Legislators Continues to Raise Ire in Durham and at UNH. After a September 16 session at UNH’s Whittemore Center, where 47 GOP legislators refused to wear masks and some were photographed wandering around a campus experiencing active outbreaks, Durham Town Manager Todd Selig says the town has the legal power to enforce its community mask mandate and harshly criticized the behavior of the offending legislators. Meanwhile, legislator Rep. William Fowler (R-Seabrook) said the ordinance has “zero legal standing” and John Burt (R-Goffstown) said “legislators aren’t required to follow Durham’s rules.” Selig hopes that should legislators return to UNH for another session they will change their behavior. “This is an exceptionally difficult time for our country, our state, and our local citizens and businesses. Residents of the Durham community are legitimately concerned about their health and the health and safety of their loved ones during the worst pandemic in a century. Based upon the best public health guidance available from the NH Division of Public Health, the CDC, and others, the Durham community has exercised local control and implemented a mandatory facial coverings ordinance. The ordinance is in place to protect the health and safety of our collective community, including University of New Hampshire students, staff, and faculty — as well as all who come to visit. To the extent state legislators were intentionally disregarding the best practice public health measures the Durham and UNH community have painstakingly put in place either to be obstinate or to make some kind of political statement, shame on them. Nobody likes to wear a mask. I certainly don’t. But we wear masks in Durham and at UNH in order to protect those around us from us in case we have the Covid-19 virus and don’t know it. It’s a pandemic; wearing masks in public is the responsible thing to do and it’s the law in Durham. It conveys the clear message: “I care about your health, in addition to my own,” said Selig. (Source: The New Hampshire) Note: Rep Burt’s claim in the article that there were Democratic legislators who also refused to wear masks is false. While all legislators were able to remove their masks to eat lunch while maintaining physical distance, all 47 legislators seated in the maskless section were Republicans. (Source: InDepthNH)

6. Officials at Portsmouth Church Assure Community that State Guidelines Will Be Followed During October Wedding of Son of COVID-Denying Maine Pastor. Trustees of the city’s South Church were unaware, until recently, that the October wedding scheduled for their sanctuary – the only one not canceled because of COVID-19 – is linked to the family of pastor Todd Bell. Bell, who leads Calvary Baptist Church in Sanford, Maine, has become widely known for defying coronavirus safety protocols and regulations after an Aug. 7 wedding he officiated in small town Millinocket, Maine. Public health officials have traced several COVID-19 outbreak investigations back to that wedding’s events, which are now associated with at least 177 cases and eight deaths across the state, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. While expressing concern over the news, South Church is planning to move forward in allowing its facilities to be used for the October wedding, they said, “that will be in compliance with the governor’s guidance for communities of faith and the recent Portsmouth face covering/mask ordinance.” The trustees said the rental party is “receptive and cooperative about the church’s efforts to safeguard the safety and well-being of their wedding party and guests on this very special day in their lives.” South Church has not convened for in-person services since the onset of the pandemic in March, and instead has been offering virtual services. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Child Abuse Reports Plummet As Worries Mount About Undetected Cases. With many schools continuing to operate partially or completely on remote learning models, worries remain that cases of child abuse may be going undetected. In the first week after Gov. Sununu issued an emergency order to close schools and move to remote learning, reports of child abuse decreased by almost 50%, according to data from the New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF). Six months after the initial drop in reports, New Hampshire’s numbers have been back on the rise, and doubled from one week to the next as schools began to reopen, but there is one significant change. Most reports in August 2020 came from law enforcement, not educators. The number of reports from school/childcare workers was down 49% from August 2019. “We knew very well that reports of incidents of child abuse and neglect were not down because kids were not being hurt,” said Joy Barrett, executive director of the Granite State Children’s Alliance. “We knew this was because kids were not in safe places where there were no people who could identify and report abuse.” Barrett said educators play a vital role in recognizing the warning signs that may indicate abuse. (Source: Concord Monitor)

8. Visitors to N.H. State Parks Reminded to Use Online Reservation System. New Hampshire State Park officials are reminding people planning to head to a recreation area to make reservations online ahead of time. The state’s reservation system was created in March at the height of the pandemic to help control crowds at New Hampshire’s state parks. In many state parks visitors must reserve a parking spot. Officials also ask that while you enjoy the foliage and the outdoors, you stay a safe distance away from others. “When you are entering our restroom facilities, please wear a face covering, we have signage around the park to remind people to wear face coverings, maintain distance, wash your hands,” Hamilton said. You can get more information and make a reservation here. (Source: WMUR)

9. Laconia to Offer “Hybrid Halloween”. While many N.H. communities are still formulating plans for how to safely allow children to celebrate Halloween, Laconia has announced it will take an approach that offers a choice between traditional trick-or-treating in individual neighborhoods along with a specially arranged, COVID-safe event in a city park. Under the plan, children who wish to do the traditional door-to-door trick-or-treating are being encouraged to do so only at the homes in their own neighborhood, homes of other family members, or homes of other people they know. Residents who do not want youngsters coming to their doors should simply switch off their porch lights, Myers advised. The city’s Parks and Recreation Department, meanwhile, is working on plans for a specially organized event in Opechee Park, with a one-way path for trick-or-treaters on the grounds, with tables containing candy and other treats spaced 6 feet apart. In addition there will be a costume contest. Cloth or disposable masks covering the mouth and nose are recommended for children taking part. Later today, the N.H. Municipal Association will conduct a conference call with representatives of N.H. cities and towns to share ideas and facilitate planning. (Source: Laconia Daily Sun)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 29, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Tuesday September 29

On Monday, state health officials announced 36 new positive test results for COVID-19, one new hospitalization, and no new deaths. Here is the other pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Tuesday.

1. Concord, Hopkinton Schools Announce More Positive Cases of COVID-19. Hopkinton Middle High School is transitioning to remote learning this week, due to an in-person staff shortage after two students tested positive for COVID-19. There has also been one new case confirmed at Concord High School. (Source: Concord Monitor)

2. The ABCs of HVAC in Schools. Since schools reopened earlier this month, many have kept students outdoors as much as possible. But as it gets colder, indoor classes seem inevitable, and school officials have been racing to make sure the ventilation systems in school buildings are working properly. “My understanding of the whole thing is that you need to try to make your airflow as good as possible,” said Brendan Minnihan, superintendent of SAU 43 in Newport. That can mean making improvements to a school’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system, or opening windows at regular intervals. Newport has spent around $60,000 on HVAC system upgrades, mainly to make sure the system was working as it should, Minnihan said. The state has not set standards for how HVAC systems operate, he said. “The standard was, ‘Do the best you can,’ ” Minnihan said. Federal guidelines put out in June by the EPA are no more specific than the state guidelines. (Source: Concord Monitor)

3. COVID-19 Cases Soar in Maine and Massachusetts. Maine's top health official says the number of new cases of the coronavirus is growing and he's warning about a "geometric surge." Dr. Nirav Shah, the director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that with community transmission cases can keep doubling rapidly. "I am extremely, extremely concerned," Shah told the Portland Press Herald. On Friday, York County's seven-day average of new cases hit an all-time high of 15.7 per day, nearly double the previous peak of 8.7 set on July 2. Case numbers are also climbing in Oxford County. (Source: NECN). Meanwhile in Massachusetts, there has been an uptick in the daily reported cases. Over the weekend alone, more than 1,100 COVID-19 cases were reported, including 515 on Saturday and another 594 on Sunday. That brings the state's cumulative caseload to 128,426. The state Department of Public Health also announced the recent deaths of 18 people Saturday and 13 people Sunday, increasing the confirmed death toll to 9,191, or 9,404 when counting people who died with probable cases. (Source: NECN)

4. UNH Active Case Numbers Fall, Faculty Cases Now Outnumber Student Cases. The University of New Hampshire continues to report low positivity rates for the new coronavirus with most positive tests coming among faculty and staff and very few among students. UNH’s latest numbers, updated Monday morning, show 55 active cases with 46 among faculty and staff and nine students. From Sept. 21 to 27, UNH reported conducting 22,802 tests and getting 36 positive results for a positivity rate of 0.16%. The campus community is being tested twice per week. (Source: Seacoast Online)

5. To Ease Election Day Crowding, UNH And Durham Will Offer 'Early Voting' On Campus. University of New Hampshire students will have access to several "early voting" sessions on campus in October. It's part of a strategy to cut down on crowding and long lines at Durham's polling place, which is often one of the busiest in the state during high-turnout elections. Since any eligible New Hampshire voter can cast an absentee ballot early this year, Durham and UNH officials have come up with a plan to allow students to take care of the whole process — from registration to returning their absentee ballot — on the spot, if they choose. Get news about politics and voting in N.H. in your inbox - sign up for NHPR's Primarily Politics newsletter today. According to Ann Shump, a Durham voter checklist supervisor who's working with the university to coordinate the early voting sessions, "Students can come, register to vote and actually fill out a request for an absentee ballot, get that absentee ballot, sit down at another table and vote, and turn in their absentee ballot right there, all rolled into one." (Source: NHPR)

6. N.H. Grocery Stores Stock Up to Avoid Shortages In Preparation for Second Surge. New Hampshire grocery stores are stocking up to avoid a situation like the struggle of finding toilet paper and other essential items at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Grocery stores have seen the panic situation that happened in the past and the need for being there,” President and CEO of the NH Grocer’s Association John Dumais said. “So, they’re being proactive as much as they can be in trying to stock what they have.” Officials said the run on grocery stores at the beginning of the pandemic was a learning experience for everyone. Stores will be more prepared if there ever is a second surge and consumers should realize hoarding is not necessary. “If everybody just buys what they need for a week’s worth of inventory, nobody will go without anything,” Dumais said. (Source: WMUR)

7. New Shipment of Test Kits to Help NH Ramp Up Rapid COVID-19 Testing. New Hampshire will soon have the ability to conduct an additional 25,000 COVID-19 rapid antigen tests per week, after receiving a new shipment of Abbott BinaxNOW Rapid-Antigen COVID-19 tests as part of an effort by federal officials to increase rapid testing across the country. The rapid antigen test cards will be placed in community testing sites around New Hampshire to support symptomatic individuals in need of a quick test, including in-person school settings, frontline healthcare workers, emergency responders and other high-risk populations, state health officials said. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

8. N.H. Hospitals Report Losses in the Hundreds of Millions. The president of the New Hampshire Hospital Association says hospitals across the state will lose $500 million by September, with more by the end of the year. Today at 1 p.m., Steve Ahnen will go before a state board to provide a status update on Granite State hospitals, which continue to struggle financially after shutting down elective procedures earlier in the year to gear up for COVID-19 patients. Ahnen said losses could hit $600 million by the end of the year. (Source: WMUR)

9. Recovery Houses Across N.H. Are Shutting Down. Recovery houses, faced with unemployed residents and restricted capacity due to COVID-19, are closing across New Hampshire. For those leaving addiction treatment centers, the houses offer affordable housing and peer support to aid them in their recovery. However, as unemployment has risen in the state, so too have unemployment rates in the houses. Recovery homes in the state received $1.8 million in funding from the CARES Act. Still, Kim Bock, the executive director of the N.H. Coalition of Recovery Residents, said it will be incredibly difficult to recover the lost beds because of the federal restrictions on the money. The restrictions stipulate the money must be spent by Dec. 30. That means, if a new home wants to use this money to build new beds, everything — from acquiring land to doling out contracts to builders — has to be done in the next three months. (Source: Keene Sentinel)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 27, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Monday September 28

N.H. DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard—September 27, 2020.

State health officials announced N.H’s first COVID-19-related death in nearly two weeks on Sunday along with 53 new cases and two new hospitalizations. Here are the other N.H. coronavirus stories in the news for Monday.

1. COVID Tracker: Aside from ‘Outliers’, Numbers Look Mostly Good. In its weekly analysis of 5 key metrics in N.H.’s battle against the coronavirus, the Concord Monitor puts a small spike in hospitalizations last week into perspective. Although State epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan has mentioned hospitalizations as an important measure of whether we were seeing a new surge, hospitalizations are what is called a ‘lagging indicator’, meaning that its ups and downs lag behind the ups and downs of another indicator – in this case, the number of new COVID-19 cases. The question is whether the hospitalization spike was the start of surge in seriousness, lagging behind the increase in new cases that we’ve been seeing for weeks. The answer, according to the Monitor, is it’s too soon to tell. But although the two week running average of new cases has not dropped, it looks like recent outbreaks at schools and colleges have been contained and have not spread outside those institutions. COVID-related deaths and hospitalizations also remain extremely low in N.H.—especially when compared to other states. (Source: Concord Monitor)

2. N.H. HR Worker Fired After Recommending Two Coworkers Quarantine for Virus. When Debra Di Nola said two employees returning to the United States from Asia need to quarantine, she was fired from her job as a human resources manager for “exaggerating the ‘China Virus,’” according to a lawsuit Di Nola filed in the United States District Court in Concord. Di Nola filed the lawsuit against her former employer, German manufacturer Freudenberg NOK Sealing Technologies in June. The company has operations in the United States including Manchester. Di Nola claims that leaders at the Manchester offices were unhappy she told two employees to stay home. The company said in its response filed in court that Di Nola has a history of making exaggerated claims. (Source: Keene Sentinel )

3. Nursing Homes to Organize Their Own COVID Testing as State Focuses on Testing in Jails, Homeless Shelters. The state Department of Health and Human Services has been negotiating with COVID-19 testing labs to run the state’s regular testing of nursing home staff, but announced last week that nursing homes will soon have to organize those tests themselves. Each facility will make its own contracts with testing labs, Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette told nursing home administrators in a phone conference last week, and the state will reimburse up to $100 per test. Some nursing home administrators, like Tom Argue of the Webster at Rye, said they worry about getting the tests for $100 — particularly because smaller nursing homes do not have the same kind of bargaining power as the state. Argue said Webster at Rye has paid $175 for tests through providers like Convenient MD. The $75 difference between what some providers charge for tests and the reimbursement amount could cost Webster at Rye about $188,000 per year. “Where we’re supposed to come up with that money, I have no idea,” Argue said. He guessed the shortfall for bigger county nursing homes could be $400,000 or more. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

4. Waiting List Data Points to Growing Mental Health Issues for NH Children. Children comprised a large portion of the waiting lists for psychiatric treatment in August, raising concerns about the effect the pandemic has had on the mental health of the state’s youth. For the last eight years, the state has struggled with a psychiatric boarding crisis. Faced with a shortage of beds in psychiatric facilities, those struggling with mental illness stayed instead in emergency departments of hospitals – sometimes for weeks at the peak of the crisis— as they waited for their names to be moved off a waiting list. In late August, there was a spike in the number of people waiting for psychiatric beds. That led to 71 people, the second-highest number in over eight years, waiting in emergency rooms or prisons for a bed to open up. However, mental health advocates have noticed a disturbing new trend – children made up a large portion of the waiting list. During the last peak in 2017, there was only one child on a 72-person list. However, on Aug. 14, there were 26 children waiting for a bed in a psychiatric facility, about 65% of the total number. (Source: Concord Monitor)

5. NH Hospitals Get Ready as Flu and COVID Converge. Healthcare officials in New Hampshire are expecting a resurgence of Covid-19 moving into flu season. In response, some hospitals will be testing for a range of respiratory viruses in patients who are presenting symptoms, meaning an individual could be tested for influenza, Covid-19 and other respiratory viruses simultaneously. At Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, officials are setting up a protocol to immediately test people for all of these viruses. Dr. Joseph Pepe, president and CEO of the hospital, said will basically be one test that looks for all of them. He believes a lot of people are going to want to get tested because they will want to distinguish themselves between the flu and Covid-19. “This is one of the most important years in our lifetime for people to get vaccinated with the flu because if the flu is bad this year in the midst of Covid, or even another Covid surge, then the hospitals will fill up and this could make March, April and May look like it was nothing at all,” Pepe said. (Source: NH Business Review)

6. Students in Sanford, Maine Receive Free Testing After Outbreak. Just over the border, students and staff at Sanford High School waited in their cars on Friday and over the weekend for free testing after school officials reported 13 positive COVID-19 cases associated with the campus. The tests are being processed at the Maine Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory, with results expected in about three days. Since Monday, SHS and SRTC students have been learning remotely full-time. The first COVID case at the school was announced a week ago last Friday. Elaina Hanselmann, a student, said she appreciated the opportunity she and her classmates had to get free tests at the school they attend, especially considering some families may not be able to afford the procedure or know where to go elsewhere to have it done. Ayn Hanselmann, who, as a city councilor, has voted on health and safety measures for the community in the past two weeks, agreed. “We did it not because we have any concerns about our kids, per se, but in the hopes that we can get enough negatives to get a sense of where we’re at,” she said. “Kids who do get positives can quarantine, and we can get back to school.” The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention arranged for and coordinated the testing.(Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Sunapee Middle High School Closed by COVID Case. School officials at SAU 85 closed Sunapee Middle High School for the day on Friday after learning of a “confirmed case” of COVID-19 in a student at the school. The school, which includes about 250 students in grades 6 to 12, was closed on Friday both to staff and students, and no remote instruction occurred. School officials are working with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services to contact students and teachers who may have had close contact with the student. (Source: The Valley News)

8. COVID-19, Mortgage Rates Create N.H. Housing Market 'Feeding Frenzy'. In the current home real estate market, even the North Country, which has seen a tepid housing market persist for decades, is seeing strong demand. Twice as many homes sold in Coos County this August than compared to last year. A letter left at homes in Concord described a 'desperate' situation shared by many home buyers. Even homes needing some work are moving. The market is good for contractors, good for sellers, and of course, good for realtors. But the tight market isn’t good for everyone. Lower and moderate income families, especially those trying to buy their first homes, are getting squeezed. The pressure is even greater on Black and hispanic households, where median income is historically lower in the state. Statewide, the median home price in August reached $350,000, up 15% from last year, according data from New Hampshire Realtors. (Source: NHPR) Meanwhile the pandemic is also driving up rental costs across the state. Property management companies are reporting that not a lot of people are moving, causing a shortage in available apartments. (Source: WMUR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 27, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Sunday September 27

DHHS Interactive active case map for south eastern N.H. for September 26.

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services on Saturday announced a COVID-19-related death, the state’s first since Sept. 15. DHHS also announced 38 new positive test results—but no new hospitalizations. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Sunday.

1. COVID Cases on the Rise in Rochester. The city of Rochester continues to see a rising number of active COVID-19 cases as the state Department of Health and Human Services on Friday reported 22 cases there, third most in the state. Rochester had 14 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the number of active cases in Durham, home of the University of New Hampshire, dropped to 12 on Friday from 13 on Wednesday and from numbers in the low 20s a week ago. The number of tests ramped up as students and faculty returned to campus. UNH reported conducting 20,744 tests at the Durham campus Sept. 18-24. There were 24 cases identified, a positivity rate of .12%. Overall, UNH reports 64 current active cases, 15 students and 49 faculty and staff members. (Source: Seacoast Online)

2. No Signs of Tourist-Caused COVID Spike in North Country. The Mt. Washington Valley was flooded with tourists this summer and now that many have left, the question remains, did they leave behind a trail of COVID-19?The answer, generally, is no, though there has been a small increase, with Memorial Hospital recording one new case over the weekend, though no one currently hospitalized with the virus. The rest of Carroll County has seen eight new cases in the past two weeks. “We are cautiously optimistic, and continue to watch very closely. We are pleased we didn’t have a spike,” said Will Owen, the hospital’s emergency management coordinator. (Source: Conway Daily Sun)

3. Pandemic Reduces Concord Homeless Shelters’ Capacity Heading Into Winter Months. Due to social distancing requirements, the capacity at Concord’s homeless shelters will be reduced this year. Experts fear that decreased capacity coupled with an increased need for beds and services could ultimately affect Concord’s ability to keep the virus at bay. Recognizing that additional financial resources will be needed to respond, the city is moving forward with an application to the New Hampshire Community Development Finance Authority in hopes of securing up to $500,000 under the Community Development Block Grant program. CCEH, Family Promise and The Friends Program are together seeking between $203,065 and $252,205 of the up to $500,000 to provide additional shelter for people who are homeless. New statistics released by the National Alliance to End Homelessness reveal that an estimated $11.5 billion is needed for 400,000 new shelter beds nationwide to accommodate everyone who is unsheltered and to ensure shelters adhere to social distancing requirements, while also creating space for those who need to quarantine. A report prepared this summer by Concord’s Director of Human Services Karen Emis-Williams estimated that approximately 150 to 170 individuals are currently experiencing homelessness in Concord. It found that 95 percent of the city’s homeless population are from Concord or its village of Penacook, despite the popular belief that many individuals travel from other parts of the state to the Capital Region to obtain services. (Source: Concord Monitor)

4. CDC Order to Stop Evictions Raises More Questions Than Answers. The latest moratorium aimed at preventing residential evictions, this one from the federal government, is legally dubious and comes at a time when New Hampshire evictions are at their lowest rate in six years, yet landlords who defy it could end up paying a $100,000 fine and go to jail. Tenants could also go to jail if they lie and say they can’t pay the rent when they can, or say they are making their best effort when they are not, but there is no mechanism in place for that to happen. The order, issued by the Centers for Disease Control, is confusing to both landlords and tenant advocates, who aren’t sure how it will be enforced. And the very uncertainty – and the severe penalties – could prevent tenants from using it and landlords from testing it. (Source: NH Business Review)

5. UNH Cancels 2021 Spring Study Abroad Program. On Tuesday Sept. 22 Associate Vice Provost for International Programs Kerryellen Vroman announced via email to University of New Hampshire (UNH) students the official cancellation of J-term and spring 2021 education abroad programming. The J-term study abroad programs are typically one to three weeks of international travel led by UNH faculty, but have been deemed unsafe by UNH for the upcoming winter, as international travel is not expected to become safer for students by then. (Source: The New Hampshire https://tnhdigital.com/2020/09/25/unh-cancels-20201-j-term-spring-study-abroad/ ) The cancellations are part of a broad effort by the university to avoid a campus shutdown like the one that occurred in the spring. UNH has already announced the cancellation of Homecoming and fall sports, leaving a social void for many students. (Source: The New Hampshire)

6. Dartmouth Suspends Recycling Program in Residence Halls. In an effort to reduce contamination, recycling has been suspended indefinitely in residence halls on campus, according to Facilities, Operations and Management associate vice president Frank Roberts. Although campus officials from the Sustainability Office and FO&M hope the service will start again soon, recycling has been complicated this term by the high potential for non-recyclable materials to contaminate recycling. The College has produced a record amount of daily paper, plastic and food waste due to quarantine meal measures, Roberts said. (Source: The Dartmouth)

7. Halloween Attractions in NH Make Changes Due to COVID-19. Fresh off opening night, Spooky World in Litchfield is coming up with new ways to make the haunted attraction work under COVID-19 guidelines. “The good thing is we're still scary, but now we've added safe to the park. So we're a scary, safe park,” said the park’s co-owner. (Source: WMUR) Meanwhile, even traditional fall events like apple-picking come with mandatory safety precautions designed to protect pickers and operators alike. (Source: Seacoast Online)

8. Retailers, Restaurateurs Learn to Adapt Amid Pandemic Changes. New Hampshire retailers have had to adapt not only to social-distancing guidelines but the ripple effect of the pandemic: changes in social behavior that impact consumer habits and shopping patterns. “It’s a new world for retail,” said Marylou Blaisdell, owner of Designwares on Main Street in Nashua, who still has spring seasonal items that did not sell during the lockdown. Meanwhile, with social distancing restrictions remaining on indoor dining, city governments in Nashua, Manchester, Portsmouth, Concord and Keene moved quickly to permit expanded outdoor dining on sidewalks and in parking spots into the fall. “Given all that was going on with Covid, we know that our downtown and small businesses were going through a very difficult time and from the city’s perspective, we wanted to do everything possible within our power to help them get back to where they were,” said Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig. In Portsmouth, a variety of stakeholders in transformed the Bridge Street parking lot into PopUp NH—an outdoor restaurant and performing arts venue that opened in the summer. With funding from the city and donations, the space features five sheds hooked up to city water and generators, allowing restaurants that were not granted sidewalk access — Black Trumpet, Vida Cantina, Dos Amigos, The Wilder, Stoneface Brewing and Liar’s Bench Beer Co. — to get “much needed financial relief as they had their season wiped out,” said PopUp NH organizer Tristan Law, who had been working as a concert promoter prior to the pandemic. “Amongst the restaurant and performance space, we’ve grossed over $25,000 which was great, but to put that in context, that’s what certain restaurants will do in a month.” (Source: NH Business Review)

9. STEM Educators See Opportunity Among Pandemic’s Challenges. While COVID-19 brought an abrupt halt to the Discovery Lab at the University of New Hampshire in Manchester and other STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) learning centers across the state, instructors and teachers have worked hard to convert their programs so they can be delivered online. “We’ve converted most of our traditional programs,” said SEE Science Center Executive Director Shana Hawrylchak. But bringing hands-on programs and field trips to students through video conferences and kits of materials has been a challenge. Only small groups are coming into the science center this fall, Hawrylchak said, and the focus is on giving those opportunities to at-risk children. Staff run some activities, and the students get time to explore the science center. For older children, the return of STEM-focused programs like FIRST Robotics has varied depending on local rules and what students and mentors are comfortable with. FIRST groups might meet at school, outdoors or virtually. “For right now, the kids are not all touching the same robot,” Bishop Brady Hough School teacher Kavita Whitney said. Source: Manchester Union Leader)

10. Portsmouth Chamber Presents Pandemic-Inspired Business Awards. This year, the focus of the annual Chamber Collaborative of Greater Portsmouth awards dinner was recognizing local business leaders for the key leadership roles they have played during the pandemic. Live portions of the event were held at The Loft in Portsmouth and were co-hosted by Valerie Rochon, president and chief collaborator of the chamber, and Julie Cutting, executive chef and owner of Cure Restaurant. The evening culminated in the Pandemic Powerhouse Award, given to the person or business that the chamber says “faced the pandemic with the hell or high water attitude to make it their business to help other businesses — they won’t let the pandemic get them down.” This year’s ‘Pandemic Powerhouse award’ winner? Not a business—but the city staff of Portsmouth. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 26, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Saturday September 26

Friday September 25

44 new cases and two new COVID-19 hospitalizations were reported on Friday. For the 10th consecutive day, no new deaths were reported. Here is the other pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Saturday.

1. N.H. Gubernatorial Candidates Talk COVID Response. If elected governor, N.H. Senate Majority Leader Dan Feltes knows he would inherit the state’s COVID-19 struggles, and he has a lot of ideas about how to approach the challenge. From reopening guidance for schools to additional provisions for people who are struggling to pay their bills due to the pandemic-related economic downturn, Feltes says he would take New Hampshire’s coronavirus response in a new direction. He said he would support measures to help prevent people from losing their homes, along with aid funding more narrowly focused on small businesses. He also emphasized the importance of paid family and medical leave legislation. (Source: Keene Sentinel) Meanwhile the man currently holding the governor’s office met with a group of restaurant owners yesterday in Dover. Gov. Sununu told them he understands “restaurants have had it hard, really hard, especially early on” because of COVID. He also said he knows that this week’s decision to allow higher restaurant capacity in restaurants that install barriers between booths “helps some but not others.” Jay McSharry, owner of Jumpin’ Jay’s Fish Cafe and other restaurants in Portsmouth and the Seacoast, said “we’ve had a good summer thankfully with the outdoor” seating. Evan Mallet, owner of The Black Trumpet in Portsmouth, told Sununu “we were early on asking for outdoor dining and didn’t get it.” Eventually they were able to offer indoor dining with social distancing, which got the restaurant to “about 45% of our original capacity,” he said. “And we were able to augment outside eventually ... with 12 more seats,” Mallet said. (Source: Seacoast Online) Sununu said he expects the pandemic to go on past the time when a vaccine may be announced and noted that he felt restaurants should prepare for such disruption in their normal business until at least next spring. He said state revenues are improving and with the legislature’s help, would be willing to consider a reduction in the state’s rooms and meals tax to help. (Source: InDepthNH)

2. As N.H. COVID Metrics Remain Steady, Outbreaks Mount in Surrounding States. In Maine, there are 16 active outbreaks in York County alone. (Source: Seacoast Online) Meanwhile, state officials in Massachusetts are struggling to contain an outbreak at Merrimack College where 47 students in a single residence facility have tested positive. (Source: NECN). On the national scene, the number of novel coronavirus cases in the United States topped 7 million on Friday—more than 20% of the world’s total—as Midwest states reported spikes in COVID-19 infections in September. (Source: Reuters) Also on Friday, the director of the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation says the US could see an explosion of COVID-19 cases as fall and winter set in, joining a chorus of health officials who have warned about the challenges of the coming months. IHME Director Dr. Chris Murray said the IHME model shows a "huge surge" expected to take off in October "and accelerate in November and December." Murray said there's a real risk that winter surge has already started in Europe. "Cases are exploding there,” he said. “So we know it's coming and we expect it to hit the US pretty soon." (Source: CNN)

3. Manchester Schools to Bring More Students Back Part-Time in October, Despite Two New COVID Cases in School Staff. Manchester has given the go-ahead to bring all grade levels back into school buildings part-time in October. Superintendent John Goldhardt said the school district has met the requirements developed with the city health department to go to the next step of re-opening. But to keep classrooms and hallways from becoming too crowded, there will not be an option to send children to in-person school full-time yet. The reopening is moving forward even though the district announced two COVID-19 cases in people who have been in school buildings, a first for city schools. One person who tested positive works at Memorial High School and the other works at Beech Street Elementary and McDonough Elementary. Goldhardt said he still thinks it is safe to begin bringing more children back to school. But he added that students may need to return to all-remote classes if too many more cases come up. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

4. Hybrid Fatigue: Hampton Parents Call for More In-Person Learning at Schools. SAU 90′s hybrid approach to reopening Hampton’s schools has some parents frustrated their kids are still spending too many days at home with remote learning. Abbey Marceau said it was a last straw for her when she learned teachers had a professional development day scheduled for this Friday. The school district’s hybrid plan sends students to school two days a week, and Friday’s workshop meant her first- and fourth-grader would only get one day of in-person learning in five days. “Everyone needs to go back,” Marceau said. Students returned to in-person learning at Hampton Academy, Centre School and Marston School Sept. 8 under the hybrid learning schedule approved by the School Board in July. Each student has the option to learn in person two days a week – one half of the student body going to school Monday and Tuesday, the other half Thursday and Friday. Students learn remotely when not in the building, and all students have a half-day Wednesday of online class time to check in for social and emotional well-being. (Source: Seacoast Online)

5. Pandemic Fundraiser for Haven Slated For Wednesday. Haven is the largest domestic violence and sexual violence support and prevention agency in the Granite State, serving 48 communities in southeastern New Hampshire. Haven’s annual fall fundraiser—Ending Violence, Changing Lives—will be a virtual event on Wednesday, Sept. 30. Victims need help now more than ever. In the pandemic, “safe at home” is not safe for survivors quarantined with their abusers. Every day, Haven sees the need increasing while survivors are facing greater barriers than ever before. There will be live music by local artists and an online auction for registered participants through 5:30 p.m. Sept. 30. VIP ticket holders who live within 25 miles from Portsmouth will receive a party pack of goodies and Haven swag to make the event even more special. For more information, visit https://havennh.org/virtual-event-faq/. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 25, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

State health officials reported 37 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday along with 4 hospitalizations and no new deaths. Here is the other coronavirus-related N.H news you need to know to start your Friday.

1. NH Contact Tracing Shows Community Spread of COVID-19 Continuing. New Hampshire health officials said Thursday their contact tracing efforts have shown that the average number of close contacts is increasing. The state has more than 100 contact tracers who track every case of COVID-19 in New Hampshire. They found that 25-30% of people with the virus have no identified risk factor, showing that community transmission is still a threat and the main risk factor for the virus is close contact with a confirmed case. The state said the average number of close contacts to each case is increasing and spiked around the Fourth of July and Labor Day. Health officials are concerned people might be letting their guard down at backyard barbecues or birthday parties. (Source: WMUR)

2. Indoor Dining Restrictions to be Eased in New Hampshire. New Hampshire restaurants will be allowed to move tables closer together starting Oct. 1 if they install barriers between them, Gov. Sununu said on Thursday. Currently, tables must be placed at least 6 feet apart to reduce the risk of the coronavirus. With the weather getting colder, restaurants have been asking the state to loosen restrictions for indoor dining. Sununu said he rejected requests to allow bars and restaurants to resume the use of dart boards and other games as unsafe, given that they would put players in close proximity to each other. But he believes increasing the number of tables will be ok, with barriers installed.(Source: Associated Press)

3. Sununu Leaves Halloween Decisions Up to Cities and Towns. At his Thursday media event, Sununu also announced the state won’t placing restrictions on trick-or-treating, because those decisions are made at the local level. Instead, he and other officials offered tips aligned with standard CDC recommendations to help children and adults avoid spreading COVID-19. (Source: WMUR)

4. COVID Reopening Group OKs New Policies For N.H. Ski Areas and Retailers. On Thursday, governor’s economic reopening task force unanimously approved a recommendation to give New Hampshire retail stores the option to operate at full capacity, as well as new guidelines for the state's ski areas. Retailers across the state have been operating at half capacity since Gov. Sununu began reversing some of the economic restrictions put in place in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nancy Kyle, who leads the state’s retail association, said this would be a boost for many local retailers that are struggling under the current occupancy cap. “We’re heading into the Christmas season, and we need to do everything to support our local retailers, the ones that have invested in our community, the ones that have storefronts in our community and pay taxes,” Kyle told task force members. The task force also approved new safety guidelines for New Hampshire’s ski industry. Those include social distancing and a mask requirement at ski resorts which plan to operate at a limited capacity. (Source: NHPR)

5. N.H. Hospitals Prepare for Flu, COVID Convergence. Health care officials in New Hampshire are expecting a resurgence of COVID-19 moving into flu season. In response, some hospitals will be testing for a range of respiratory viruses in patients who are presenting symptoms, meaning an individual could be tested for influenza, COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and other respiratory viruses simultaneously. “This is one of the most important years in our lifetime for people to get vaccinated with the flu because if the flu is bad this year in the midst of COVID, or even another COVID surge, then the hospitals will fill up and this could make March, April and May look like it was nothing at all,” said Dr. Joseph Pepe, president and CEO of Catholic Medical Center. (Source:Concord Monitor)

6. New Visitation Guidelines Seek to Relieve Debilitating Loneliness, Safety Concerns Remain. As some N.H. long-term care facilities slowly reopen under revised state and federal guidelines to allow visits from family members, it means dealing with a balancing act between the need to preserve the mental health of residents and risking the introduction of the virus. “We're always going to be worried about COVID and the spread of COVID and opening to visitors. But there is a balance that needs to be met,” said Melissa St. Cyr, chief legal officer for NH DHHS. A single positive case is all it takes, according to the CDC, to require a drastic reversal, St. Cyr said. The disease has had catastrophic effects in these settings, as has been the case in New Hampshire for months, accounting for about 80% of COVID-19 related deaths at one time. A big boost to ensuring safety would be more testing. “I think the rapid testing would really be the biggest bang for the buck. If we could test and test almost every day with a quick answer, that that would be a huge, huge change," said Dr. Daniel Stadler, director of geriatrics at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and medical director at several skilled nursing facilities in the Upper Valley. Douglas McNutt, associate state director for advocacy with the NH office of the AARP and former director of the NH Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services, says the state ombudsman should also resume on-site oversight, which ended at the start of the pandemic and has not resumed. (Source: NHPR)

7. Nursing Home Advocate Warns Against ‘Hoarding’ CARES Act Funds. The Committee to Study the Safety of Residents and Employees in Long-Term Care Facilities heard concerns Thursday about continuing funding woes and staff shortages in New Hampshire. Brendan Williams, president and CEO of New Hampshire Health Care Association, which represents many of the state’s nursing homes, told the committee of the impact of COVID-19: “It’s just been a shattering experience for everyone.” Williams said he is concerned that the state is holding back $200 million to $250 million of the $1.25 billion it received from the federal CARES Act when many nursing homes are experiencing serious financial problems now and some are still operating at only 50 percent capacity. Williams said he suspects Sununu may be “hoarding CARES Act funds in hopes of using them to backfill the state budget.” (Source: InDepthNH)

8. SAU 16 Unveils Plan to Bring Students Back into School Buildings. SAU 16 Superintendent David Ryan presented the preliminary framework for students to return to in-person learning throughout the district, which includes Exeter and 5 surrounding towns. The plan includes random testing of students and will eventually have 10% of students tested through rapid testing at each school to determine, “the percent positive within the school community,” to ensure the schools remain under the 5% positive case threshold. “We also know, and have to accept the reality, that the best we can do is reduce and minimize the risk of transmission, but everything we do combined is still not going to guarantee that somebody is not going to get sick,” Ryan said. “As long as everyone continues to do what they need to do: wear masks, socially distance, wash hands, be smart, we’ll be able to keep our schools open for in-person learning... That’s the contract we’re all going to enter into.” (Source: Seacoast Online) Meanwhile, SAU 21 has developed a decision-making matrix on what it will take to bring back middle school and high school students for in-person instruction. The biggest hurdle to bringing them back right now is not the number of coronavirus cases within the five SAU 21 towns. The most pressing challenges at the moment are the availability of staff at Seabrook Middle School and Winnacunnet High School and physical space constraints at North Hampton School. A number of staff members are on leave to care for their own children. (Source: Seacoast Online)

9. Wildlife Photographer Tells What It Was Like to Battle COVID-19. For almost two weeks, 76-year-old John Sullivan was on a ventilator at Anna Jaques Hospital fighting COVID-19. Four months later, he is grateful to be breathing on his own again. “Thank you to all the great doctors and amazing nurses at Anna Jaques Hospital,” read a message written on a framed photo of a bald eagle Sullivan had taken three years prior. The note was signed “with gratitude,” presented earlier this month to the hospital in Newburyport, Massachusetts, as a token of appreciation. Sullivan recalled the day he woke up from his coma to find he was connected to the ventilator with a tube in his mouth. The next day, he said he was taken off the ventilator, and at that point nurses began working with him on improving his physical strength and getting out of bed. He said walking became central to his recovery as he worked to regain strength. “I’m not a religious person myself,” Sullivan said. “I’d have to think that all them prayers had to help.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 24, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Thursday September 24

Note: Today’s photo shows today’s N.H. COVID-19 risk level as determined by CovidActNow, a group that has partnered with Georgetown, Stanford, and Harvard universities to create a visual risk model that allows you to easily compare N.H. with other states.

On a Wednesday when the number of cumulative COVID-19 cases in N.H. topped 8,000 , state officials announced 25 new cases, one new hospitalization, and no new deaths. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Thursday.

1. Nashua Businesses Banned from Serving People Without Masks. Nashua officials have adopted a revised mask mandate that prohibits businesses from serving patrons who are not wearing face masks. Aldermen voted 13-2 Tuesday to support the proposal, which has drawn praise and criticism from the community. “We are extremely disappointed,” Nancy Kyle of the New Hampshire Retail Association said Wednesday. While the New Hampshire Retail Association has no issue with mask mandates, she said, the organization does not believe that employees who are not trained to defuse conflict should be put in a position to enforce the ordinance. According to Police Chief Mike Carignan, the revised ordinance is necessary to help police enforce the mandate. “We are not looking to penalize businesses,” said Carignan. Still, he said there are some businesses that are defying the mask mandate, and the police department receives repeated complaints. The ordinance allows police to assist businesses if they have customers not abiding by the face mask rules, Carignan said. “They should call us — that is what we are there for,” he said. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

2. Durham Extends Mask Mandate, Reports No Conflicts. The Durham Town Council voted unanimously Monday to add 61 days to the town ordinance requiring face coverings due to the coronavirius pandemic. The ordinance, enacted in August before University of New Hampshire students returned to campus, carries fines of $100 for a first time offense, $200 for a second offense and $500 for subsequent offenses. No fines or summonses have been issued so far, according to Durham Police Chief Rene Kelley. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. 3 Charged With Violating Concord Playground Closure During Pandemic Restrictions. Five months after the incident took place, Concord police have arrested three people for disorderly conduct in connection with an incident at a playground that was shut down because of COVID-19 this spring. Investigators said the people wouldn't leave the area initially after being told it was closed. The playground at Rollins Park in Concord was closed as part of a plan to stop the spread of COVID-19. "Unfortunately, there were a select few people who decided not to adhere to the city's shutdown of the playgrounds," said deputy police Chief John Thomas. The three parents—whose children were playing on playground equipment—were asked by police to leave the playground several times but refused. "It was very sad to see how these folks carried themselves in front of their children and how they treated the officers that day," Thomas said. One of the accused is a member of the school board in Weare. (Source: WMUR)

4. As COVID-19 Cases Rise In N.H. Schools, District Plans Are Put To The Test. As of Wednesday, the state’s COVID-19 Schools Dashboard listed 11 elementary or high schools with at least one active coronavirus case, but that doesn't include cases currently under investigation. The state’s largest K-12 outbreak so far has occurred in Windham, where a party that included members of the high school's sports teams led to the infection of 10 students. By the end of the state’s contact investigation, 20 students had tested positive for COVID-19. Family members also tested positive, and all household contacts were told to quarantine for two weeks. For many educators and students, the Windham outbreak confirmed fears about reopening high schools: even if you control school buildings, not everyone will follow public health protocols in their free time. Another challenge for districts experiencing outbreaks are staffing shortages. In Bedford, the likelihood of quarantining staff and the arrival of flu season prompted the district to hire permanent substitute teachers. (Source: NPPR)

5. Portsmouth Schools Hope to Increase In-Person Learning Time. Superintendent Stephen Zadravec told the Portsmouth School Board Tuesday city schools may be “looking to make some kind of shift” in October to increased in-person learning and live instruction. While several other Seacoast schools districts have already seen positive COVID-19 cases among students and staff, Portsmouth has yet to, Zadravec has confirmed. In preparation, the district has reestablished its reopening task force, which this summer created the four-phase reopening plan. The district is currently operating in a modified phase two – a mix of in-person and remote learning. Zadravec said the reopening task force has already met twice and is “getting to productive conversations on where we can make some adjustments to the phases with the goal of more in-person time and more live instruction time.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. N.H. Veterans' Groups Split $3 Million in CARES Act Funding. New Hampshire Veterans Service Organizations and other agencies that serve veterans are splitting $3 million dollars in CARES Act funding. Many of the state's VFW and American Legion Posts have lost money during coronavirus-related shutdowns. Posts often rely on drink sales and event hosting fees. The VSOs had requested $5.1 million dollars to cover COVID-19 related losses, which means some of their losses will go uncovered. (Source: NHPR )

7. Right-to-Know Request Details Incidents and Complaints at Polling Places During Primary Election. InDepthNH.org has received a redacted copy of complaints and questions from officials to the 2020 State Primary Call log after filing a right-to-know request under RSA 91a to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office. The complaints included a gun being brought into a polling place in Manchester, an unattended ballot box in an outdoor voting area set up for voters refusing to wear masks in New Boston, and a pollworker in Alton wearing a Black Lives Matter t-shirt. (Spoiler alert: the state’s response on the t-shirt was that this is allowed under the law because RSA 659:44 only prohibits election workers from ‘electioneering’ which means acting in a way ‘specifically designed to influence the vote of a voter on any question or office’. ) The article contains a link to all 354 pages of complaints and responses from the state. (Source: InDepthNH)

8. N.H. Communities Explore COVID Safety Measures for Halloween. The Centers for Disease Control said Tuesday that Halloween should look different this year, as should other autumn celebrations where people traditionally congregate or go house to house. Notably, it urged people to avoid the tradition of giving out candy to whoever shows up at the front door. Among the suggested alternatives: “Doing a Halloween scavenger hunt where children are given lists of Halloween-themed things to look for while they walk outdoors from house to house admiring Halloween decorations at a distance.” The CDC’s guidance hasn’t stopped stores from laying out piles and piles of Halloween candy for sale six weeks before the holiday. A query to some Concord-area towns found that many are waiting for guidance from officials with the state Department of Health and Human Services, who will be part of a Sept. 30 webinar on the topic hosted by the N.H. Municipal Association. Source: Concord Monitor)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 23, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA/METRICS SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Wednesday September 23

On Tuesday, N.H. state officials announced 38 new infections, one new hospitalization and no new deaths. They also revealed that Monday’s low new case total (only 7) was impacted by a reporting issue with a major lab and additional cases will be added later in the week. Here is the other pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Wednesday.

1. White House Praises N.H. COVID-19 Response As Teacher’s Union Questions Timing of Rapid Test Recommendation. According to a report from the White House Coronavirus Task Force obtained by ABC News, New Hampshire is leading the nation in terms of the lowest rates of positive COVID-19 cases. The report also includes several recommendations, including increasing community coronavirus surveillance using rapid tests. But the state teachers' union questioned the timing of the White House's recommendation for broad-based testing. "If they are recommending we do testing, why are we waiting until now?" said Megan Tuttle, president of the NEA-New Hampshire. "Why didn't we start doing this testing if it was available before school started, when we would have had a better chance of warding off the cases that have happened since school has started?" State Epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan said the state doesn't possess the rapid tests to do community surveillance. He said they have been promised to states by the federal government but have not yet been delivered. (Source: WMUR)

2. Some Parents Push Full Return to Schools As School Boards Push Back. While K-12 schooling has resumed across the state, classes in many areas are being conducted remotely or in a hybrid model featuring a combination of remote and in-person learning. Because remote learning generally takes place at home—and many families rely on two incomes—working parents are forced to make daily choices between job obligations and helping their children with home learning. As the stress and frustrations mount, an increasing number of parents in many communities are calling for a complete return to the classroom. While some school boards have been able to accommodate a cautious return to full in-person learning, others have pushed back saying their first responsibility is to create and environment where education can take place safely—something that is not easily accomplished in many communities during the pandemic for a variety of reasons. They range from higher levels of active community transmission of the virus (and higher risk levels for students and staff) in certain cities and towns to an inability to meet physical distancing requirements in schools with smaller classrooms and limited capacity. (Source: Concord Monitor) Meanwhile, as parents struggle in their role as part-time teachers, many of our state’s professional teachers are also struggling. According to a new independent survey, New Hampshire’s relatively low teacher salaries, meager pension benefits and its declining school enrollment made it the worst state in the nation for teachers. Among 25 different metrics on educator opportunity and competition along with academic and work environment, New Hampshire finished 51st behind all other states and the District of Columbia, WalletHub found. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

3. Keene State Athlete Tests Positive for COVID-19, Over Two Dozen Quarantined. An athlete at Keene State College has tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in more than two dozen others affiliated with the college being quarantined. The student tested positive during the latest round of weekly, college-wide testing on Thursday and Friday, according to spokeswoman Kelly Ricaurte. As a precaution, 28 other people — four staff members and 24 students — who came in contact with the student are quarantining, Ricaurte said. (Source: onadnock Ledger-Transcript) Nationally, there are now more than 40,000 cases of Covid-19 among students, faculty and staff at colleges and universities nationwide. (Source: CNN)

4. Cedarcrest Center in Keene Breaths Sigh of Relief as No Children Test Positive. All of the children at Cedarcrest Center for Children with Disabilities in Keene have tested negative for COVID-19, after the center announced last week an employee had tested positive, according to spokeswoman Patty Farmer. The staff member — the second to test positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic — was tested for the viral disease Sept. 14 and received results that same day, Farmer said Monday. (Source: Keene Sentinel)

5. Durham Extends Mask Mandate, Reports No Conflicts. The Durham Town Council voted unanimously Monday to add 61 days to the town ordinance requiring face coverings due to the coronavirius pandemic. The ordinance, enacted in August before University of New Hampshire students returned to campus, carries fines of $100 for a first time offense, $200 for a second offense and $500 for subsequent offenses. No fines or summonses have been issued so far, according to Durham Police Chief Rene Kelley. The goal, according to Town Administrator Todd Selig, is to educate the public and keep people safe, not issue fines. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. Pandemic Impacting Mental Health Among College Students. According to a survey conducted by the American College Health Association, 30.5% of college students reported that their mental health negatively affected their academic performance on a least six days during the past four weeks; an 8.6% increase from the prior fall. Will Lusenhop, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Social Work at the UNH, said increased feelings of anxiety and depression caused by COVID-19 can aggravate pre-existing mental illnesses which then cause additional anxiety and depression. This can trap people into feedback loops of mental distress. “You’re going to have some people for whom depression and anxiety never have exhibited but the stress of [the pandemic] will essentially activate what may never have shown up,” said Lusenhop. (Source: The New Hampshire)

7. N.H. Fall Festivals Adjust Pandemic Plans. The Milford Pumpkin Festival, the Goffstown Giant Pumpkin Weigh-off & Regatta, the Keene Pumpkin Festival, the Monadnock Pumpkin Festival, Laconia’s New Hampshire Pumpkin Festival, and the Warner Fall Foliage Festival have all either cancelled public events or will go virtual this fall. past. “We are not having public events this year,” said Zoë Lantaff, Vice President/Entertainment Coordinator of Granite Town Festivities Committee, which organizes The Milford Pumpkin Festival. “We decided it wouldn’t be a responsible thing to do, cause there is no way to keep crowds down.” The Milford Pumpkin Festival in recent years has drawn between 46,000 to 50,000 people, she said, to the town’s downtown Oval over the Columbus Day Weekend, the weekend it is traditionally held. (Source: Manchester Ink Link)

8. Telehealth Settles In for the Long Haul In N.H. Although remote visits have dropped off since the start of the pandemic, changes to New Hampshire law and to insurance coverage ensure that the practice of seeing patients online or by phone—versus in-person only—is here to stay. In New Hampshire, the legislature passed, and the governor signed, House Bill 1623 which became law on July 21. The law requires telehealth parity, meaning that Medicaid and private insurers need to pay the same for telehealth services as they would for in-person services. In addition, the law allows for phone-based (rather than video) telehealth appointments, and expands the role of telehealth in treating substance use disorder. In addition to limiting the potential spread of the coronavirus, some patients simply find telehealth to be more convenient. They include people living long distances from their doctor as well as workers who find it easier to duck into a conference room for a 15-30 minute call than to take a morning or afternoon off. (Source: NH Business Review)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 22, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

OTHER DATA SOURCES WITH N.H. DATA

• NHPR Interactive Charts: COVID-19 in NH

• John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center—NH Page

• CovidActNow NH Outbreak Risk Level

Tuesday September 22

Only 7 new COVID-19 cases were reported by N.H. DHHS on Monday—and no new deaths. Here is the rest of the news you need to know about the state and local response to the coronavirus crisis to start your Tuesday.

1. Eleven Saint Anselm College Students Test Positive. Eleven Saint Anslem College students have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus and have moved into isolation housing, college officials said Monday. Ten were identified in testing last week and disclosed in a website post on Friday. The 11th tested positive on Monday. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

2. Newmarket Junior Senior High School Switching to Remote Learning Due to COVID-19 Case. Superintendent Dr. Susan Givens said the district was informed Monday of the confirmed COVID-19 case at the school. The district is working with the town of Newmarket’s Emergency Management team and New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. “We learned a member of our staff tested positive for COVID-19 this afternoon,” Givens said. “Though there was limited contact with staff and students, those required to quarantine are essential employees who are needed for the day-to-day functioning of the school. For this reason, we will shift the Newmarket Junior Senior High School to remote learning on Wednesday, September 23.” Givens said classes at the junior senior high school is canceled Tuesday to allow teachers to prepare for the transition to remote learning. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. Nashua Aldermen to Vote Tonight on Stricter Mask Ordinance as Anti-Maskers Plan Protest. Nashua Aldermen will vote tonight on a proposed change to the city’s mask ordinance that would require business owners to refuse service to people who refuse to wear masks. Prior to the meeting, anti-mask protesters will gather outside City Hall. Frank Staples, organizer of the “Absolute Defiance” group on Facebook, said, “These are illegal mandates. You can’t suspend the constitution — you just can’t do it. It is extortion.” Alderwoman June Caron said the proposed change to the mask mandate will not infringe on a person’s rights, explaining businesses already refuse service if a person isn’t wearing a shirt or shoes. Under the change, businesses could face fines as high as $1,000 for serving a maskless customer. (Source: Manchester Union Leader) Worth noting is that Nashua shares a border with Tyngsborough, Massachusetts which has one of the highest infection rates in that state. (Source: Boston Globe https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/08/11/nation/heres-look-new-state-map-high-moderate-low-risk-communities-covid-19-mass/ ) On Monday, Nashua officials also decided to close the doors to Nashua City Hall for the next two weeks after a total of six city employees tested positive for COVID-19, including Mayor Jim Donchess.

4. Shaheen Tours UNH Testing Lab As School Nears 100,000 Completed COVID Tests. The University of New Hampshire has processed more than 99,000 COVID-19 tests since July. The high volume, which school officials say school officials say gives UNH one of the highest testing rates in the country, is allowing the school to identify and isolate positive cases rapidly before they can spread. The school’s model is drawing praise from state and local officials, including Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who toured the school’s testing center on Monday. UNH is requiring students to get tested at least twice a week. Students are provided with saline solution and nasal swabs, and perform the tests on themselves. Ten drop off boxes are been placed around the campus in Durham. (Source: NHPR)

5. UNH Graduate Assistants Chafe Over Lack of COVID Protections. Closely-spaced lab benches, rooms designed to accommodate social interaction but not physical distancing, and too-close contact with students are leading graduate assistants working at UNH to question the university’s commitment to their health. While undergraduate students and professors at the university were given the option to stay at home if they felt safer doing so, many graduate students were not afforded that same luxury. Instead, many felt as though they have been forced to teach classes that put them in dangerously close proximity to students. Erika Mantz, a spokesperson for UNH said the university has made PPE available to teaching assistants and have increased air handling in campus buildings. But Taylir Bullick, a graduate student at UNH, is working as a teaching assistant in an organic chemistry course said, “Illusion of choice has been the general theme in all of this,” Bullick said. “Nothing about this is consensual.” Running in-person classes has felt especially hypocritical to Bullick, as she noticed most of the professors in her department taught their classes remotely, while many of her fellow graduate students were doing the face-to-face instruction. “All of us are doing it for $20,000 a year and (bad) health insurance,” Bullick said. (Source: Concord Monitor)

6. Local Officials Respond After FEMA Backs Out of Refunding PPE Costs to School Districts. Late last week, New Hampshire school districts learned that federal monies they were previously relying on are no longer available to cover costs associated with their response to COVID-19. Many school districts in the state had intentions of seeking reimbursement from FEMA for additional costs for facemasks, extra desks or chairs, cleaning supplies, and the purchase and installment of physical barriers, such as plexiglas. The situation is especially dire for larger school districts where additional costs have added up to hundreds of thousands and—in some cases—millions of dollars. However, with millions of dollars in CARES Act emergency money received by the state yet to be allocated, school districts that previously planned on seeking FEMA reimbursement are being urged by Gov. Sununu to request reimbursement for these expenses from the Governor’s Office For Economic Relief and Recovery (GOFERR). Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig says her city’s cost for COVID-related expenditures exceeds the funds that have been allocated. While the Manchester School District did receive $5.8 million in CARES Act funding, its estimated cost for COVID-related school expenditures is nearly double that figure, coming in at about $11.3 million. “They more than exceed what we got in CARES funding,” Craig said. “If FEMA won’t reimburse for those, we’re going to have to take the money for PPE and other things out of the CARES funding.” Manchester’s original application for CARES Act funding did not include money for PPE and safety changes to schools because at the time FEMA had indicated these expenses would be covered. (Source: Concord Monitor)

7. As Deadline Nears, Close to 30,000 N.H. Residents Have Yet to Claim Federal Stimulus Checks. Nearly 30,000 Granite Staters will be getting alert letters from the IRS notifying them that their $1,200 stimulus payments are still unclaimed, and the October 15 deadline is looming to get that done. Barbara Heggie, a staff attorney at a legal aid clinic for people with IRS problems, says she is trying to connect Granite Staters with federal coronavirus relief bill money. “Unfortunately, a lot of people who fall into this category who are not on the IRS radar to get the stimulus payment don’t have access to the internet,” Heggie said. People who do not receive any kind of federal income benefits and did not file a 2018 or 2019 tax return because they did not have to are prime candidates to fall through the cracks. Heggie said the best way to receive your money is to go to the IRS.gov website and use the non-filer tool to claim it. More help is available from the Low-Income Taxpayer Project at 603-715-3288. (Source: WMUR)

8. State Begins Delivering Absentee Ballots to City and Town Clerk Offices. After state voters set a record two weeks ago with more than 90,000 absentee ballots cast in a state primary election, officials are expecting the number to be much larger in the Nov. 3 general election – and they are moving quickly to get ready. Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan said on Monday that about 250,000 absentee ballots for the general election were shipped earlier in the day to city and town clerks throughout the state in three truckloads. The office said the shipments will continue, with all absentee ballots to be delivered to the clerks by Friday. Scanlan said as the clerks receive the absentee ballots from the Secretary of State’s Office, they can immediately begin sending them to voters who requested them. He advised the voters to then fill out and return the ballots as early as possible. (Source: WMUR) If you would like to vote absentee in the November 3 election, you can:

   • Download an application, complete both pages, and mail it to your city or town clerk.

   • Phone your city of town clerk and request an application be mailed to you or

   • (Starting next week) walk in to your city or town clerk’s office, complete your application, and get your absentee ballot.

   If you have questions contact your city or town clerk, visit the N.H. Secretary of State’s website, or see NHPR’s 2020 Elections Guide—which includes answers to dozens of frequently asked questions.

9. Portsmouth Mom Kicked Off American Airlines Flight After Toddler Refuses to Wear Mask. A Portsmouth woman is demanding an apology from American Airlines after she said she was forced off her flight home because her 2-year-old son would not wear his mask. Rachel Starr Davis said she was in tears as she tried to get her son Lyon to wear a mask while the airline staff threatened to remove her from her flight to Manchester from Charlotte, North Carolina last week. She said airline staff and the captain had passengers get off the plane and then re-board without Davis, her son and her mother April when Lyon would not wear the mask. All major U.S. airlines require any child age 2 and over to wear a mask in order to fly. Monday, the airline said it was reaching out to Davis’s family about the complaint. (Source: Seacoast Online) For others who will be traveling by air with a small child soon and who are worried about mask-wearing requirements, tips include preparing your child in advance by normalizing mask-wearing and trying to make it fun. Posing together in the mirror with your masks on, drawing pictures of each other in your masks, and even decorating your masks can help get your child comfortable wearing a mask so you’re both better prepared when you’re in a situation where masks are required. (Sources: Kid’s Health and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)

10. Doctors Pivot to Drive-in Office Visits and Telehealth During Pandemic. Doctors and nurses around the state are practicing medicine outside, in cars and over the internet, and the pace is intensifying as children get back to school. In Amherst, a tent has been set up for health care workers behind Wright & Associates Family Practice. Patients never leave their cars as they're seen by health providers."We are drawing blood out here," said nurse practitioner Wendy Wright. "We are doing breathing tests. We are testing for flu, and we are giving flu shots, as well." (Source: WMUR)

11. 102-Year-Old New Hampshire Woman Survives Both COVID-19 and the 1918 Spanish Flu. Most people would consider themselves fortunate to survive after contracting the deadly virus from one pandemic. Mildred Geraldine “Gerri” Schappals has survived two of them, more than a century apart. The 102-year-old Schappals was infected with the Spanish flu in 1918 in Worcester and she tested positive last May for COVID-19 at her assisted living facility in Nashua, New Hampshire, but she overcame both illnesses and is feeling fine. She also fought off breast cancer in the late 1980s and colon cancer in the mid-1990s, but her daughter doesn’t remember her ever having a cold or the flu. Julia Schappals said her mother believes surviving her bout with the Spanish flu fortified her immune system. “Maybe she’s right,” Julia said. “Maybe whoever this master of death is has forgot about her.” (Source: USA Today)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 21, 2020

NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Monday September 21 and Sunday September 20

61 new infections were announced on Saturday and 29 on Sunday. But no new deaths were reported on either day this weekend. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Monday.

1. State Officials Say Saturday Spike in Infections Linked to Expanded Testing on College Campuses. New Hampshire recorded 61 new infections Saturday, bringing the state's total confirmed coronavirus cases to 7,920. This is the most new daily cases the state has announced since June 17. Dr. Benjamin Chan, the state epidemiologist, said earlier this week that an uptick in cases is linked to expanded testing on college campuses. 16 of the cases had no identified risk factors. Merrimack, Rockingham, and Strafford counties had 12 new apiece. No new deaths, nor hospitalizations, were announced. (Source: NHPR)

2. Maine CDC Reports 8th COVID-19 Death Linked to Wedding. An eighth death has been linked to a coronavirus outbreak stemming from a wedding and reception in the northern part of Maine. The man who died was in his 80s and from Somerset County, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Saturday. The wedding and reception in the Millinocket area on Aug. 7 has been linked to more than 270 cases of COVID-19, including in an outbreak at a nursing home in Madison and the York County jail. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. Massachusetts Data Shows Risk of COVID-19 Infection ‘Moderate’ to ‘High” in 8 Communities Bordering N.H. A band of Massachusetts communities stretching from Haverhill to Tyngsborough continues to show elevated levels of community transmission. Several are reporting a daily rate of new cases of 4-8 per 100,000—a rate that indicates there is a moderate risk of infection. However, Tyngsborough and Lawrence are reporting 8+ cases per 100,000—a rate that based on national and global health standards means the community is at extremely high risk for COVID-19 infection. (Source: Boston Globe) In N.H., no county or community has reached the “high” level in September. However, Strafford Country, Manchester, and Nashua are reporting infection levels in the “moderate” range. (Source: N.H. DHHS)

4. As Colder Weather Starts to Impact Outdoor Dining, Hospitality Industry Lobbies for More Funding and New Guidelines. Restaurants in New Hampshire have begun to see fewer outdoor diners and are hoping to see some changes to the indoor guidelines. The president of New Hampshire’s Lodging and Restaurant Association, Mike Somers, said he believes more financial aid will be needed for restaurants to get to the spring. He said the association is working with state and health officials for options when the weather makes outdoor dining impossible. Among the options being considered are adding barriers between tables inside and reducing the distance between them. (Source: WMUR)

5. Pandemic Adds Uncertainty to Leaf-Peeping Season. As the air turns crisp and New England’s characteristic fall colors begin to emerge, New Hampshire businesses aren’t sure what to expect in what has already been a challenging year. Travelers will encounter some noticeable changes this year, including the requirement that visitors from outside New England quarantine for 14 days before their arrival. But the number of visitors planning to come to the state, and their impact on a hard-hit tourism industry, remains to be seen. According to Lori Harnois, tourism director for the N.H. Division of Tourism and Travel Development, New Hampshire’s tourism industry appeared to perform strongly in July and August, based on collection of state meals and rooms tax and feedback from businesses. It’s less clear what autumn will look like, and with all the variables in light of COVID-19, she said the division isn’t attempting to forecast the number of visitors. “It’s really extremely difficult this year to predict what will happen for visitation in the season ahead,” Harnois said. “But obviously we’re hopeful for a safe and successful fall foliage season.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. Tracing COVID Connections Through Contact Tracing. While it might be the first time most people have heard of contact tracing, the process is not new, not something created to track COVID-19 cases. It is sort of like investigative work for the medical community. “Contact tracing has been in place for a number of diseases,” said Dr. David Itkin, infectious disease expert at Portsmouth Regional Hospital. “It’s a part of health care epidemiology, trying to determine where an illness has arisen, how it appears to spread, and who might be exposed.” During the coronavirus pandemic, Itkin said contact tracing is being used to help define the illness, to determine how long a person is contagious and what the incubation period is. “When a diagnosis is made, we look back at who the person has been in contact with for 48 hours prior to their symptoms, to getting ill,” said Itkin. “It gets complicated if the person has been sick longer, say a week. Then we’d look at 48 hours prior, but also at the entirety of their illness. What is the nature of the contact this person has had during that time? Who might they have passed in a hall, which is low risk? Who might they have been within 6 feet of for 15 minutes or longer, a substantial risk for exposure?” (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 20, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 19, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Saturday September 19

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services on Friday announced 48 new positive test results for COVID-19, but no additional COVID-19-related deaths. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Saturday.

1. COVID Tracker: New Case Counts Keep Rising but Clusters Seem to be Contained, So Far. In its weekly tracking report of key N.H. coronavirus metrics, the Concord Monitor reports the despite the recent increase in cases, outbreaks have remained small and have generally been contained. Dr. Benjamin Chan, state epidemiologist, has argued that the rise in cases is a reflection of much increased testing at schools and colleges. This week report adds a new metric—sustained increases in hospitalizations—and found the state’s number of new hospitalizations holding steady at a low level despite a two-week average of daily new cases that had doubled from 18 on Aug. 28 to 37 new cases a day by Sept. 18. (Source: Concord Monitor)

2. Fall Sports a ‘Go’ for Portsmouth High School. Portsmouth Superintendent of Schools Steve Zadravec has given the OK for student athletics teams to proceed with their fall schedules. “Our Athletic Department is working with coaches to implement the plan,” Zadravec stated. “The committee did a great deal of work with the assistance of two doctors from Wentworth Douglas and a Research Scientist and Infectious Disease Expert. I am comfortable with the cautious approach outlined in this plan, including the use of phases tied to risk factors and disease transmission. I find the protocols outlined in the document to be the strictest I’ve seen and feel confident our athletic department and athletes can adhere to them. Portsmouth teams had already been approved to compete against area schools in the lower-risk sports of golf and cross country. The medium- and higher-risk sports had not been approved for interscholastic play prior to Friday; however, those teams were given the OK to practice and hold tryouts as the school board, administration and city health office worked through the decision-making process. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. School Cancels DeVos Visit After Staffer Tests Positive. A Bedford public school canceled a scheduled visit Friday by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos after a staff member tested positive for the coronavirus, a spokesperson for the New Hampshire Department of Education said. “They had informed us this morning that they had a positive test and obviously wanted to cancel the visit” at McKelvie Intermediate School in Bedford, spokesperson Grant Bosse said. DeVos did go on to visit another elementary school in Bedford, he said. (Source: Associated Press) Meanwhile in Rochester, all Spaulding High School students will learn remotely next week after school officials learned of a positive COVID-19 test, officials announced Friday. (Source: WMUR)

4. Nashua Bumps Hybrid Learning to January. Nashua schools have delayed the start of their hybrid learning until January, opting for remote learning only this fall. “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,” Superintendent Jahmal Mosley said in a letter sent to families and staff Friday. The school district is currently operating under a fully remote model, and was initially set to roll out its hybrid plan Oct. 5 and just this week had decided to delay it to November. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

5. Manchester Shelter Workers Encourage Homeless to Get Inside. Outreach workers are trying to encourage residents of a growing number of large homeless encampments across the city to get inside as the weather turns colder. Manchester has two emergency shelters open with more than 100 beds available. Staff members said the shelters allow residents to socially distance, but some people are still refusing to come inside because of COVID-19. "I think there are definitely some individuals out in the encampments who are making that decision because of the fear of COVID and because of the complexity of their medical needs," said Meghan Shea of Families in Transition. (Source: WMUR)

6. Rising Youth Homelessness and Remote Learning Present Seacoast Shelters with New Challenges. Seacoast homeless shelters are stepping up to help keep homeless children from falling behind. Data from the New Hampshire Department of Education shows that while the Seacoast region may have an affluent reputation, there are hundreds of homeless students attending area schools at any given time. During the 2018-2019 school year, the Rochester School District had 132 homeless students, Dover 109, Somersworth 46, Hampton 46, Portsmouth 39 and Seabrook 31. And state officials say the numbers have likely grown since. Martha Stone, executive director at Cross Roads House, said the school district liaisons who work with homeless students and families – mandated by the federal McKinney-Vento Act – helped the shelter with technology needs when schools went remote in March. The shelter’s donors have also stepped in to help homeless students navigate the new schooling environment, Stone said. “It’s not just about providing technology, it’s meeting all of the needs of that child or youth experiencing homelessness,” said Adams. “Like continuing to bus food to remote learners, for example.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Local Pollworkers Plead With State to Adjust Absentee Process Before November. Looking ahead to November, some New Hampshire pollworkers are warning that delays are in store if the state doesn’t grant them more leeway in processing absentee ballots before Election Day. Nearly 50 local election officials sent a letter to Gov. Chris Sununu this week requesting the ability to more clearly mark the voter checklist to show that someone's absentee ballot has been inspected before Election Day. The changes outlined in the letter also have the support of the New Hampshire City and Town Clerks Association.Without changes to the current process, the election officials told Sununu, “voters should expect longer wait times at the polls and we may not see election results in a timely manner.” The poll workers are seeking changes to the steps required to pre-process absentee ballots. They say that if absentee ballots can be processed faster, more people who make mistakes—such as forgetting to sign the affidavit on the envelope—can be contacted to make corrections before time runs out. (Source: NHPR)

8. Pappas Co-Sponsoring Legislation to Return FEMA Assistance to School Districts. On Thursday, Congressman Chris Pappas (D-NH) announced that he has co-sponsored legislation that would reverse a recent decision by FEMA to halt reimbursements for personal protective equipment (PPE) and other COVID-related responses by local school districts. On Sept. 11, the state was informed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that they will not be covering reimbursements for face masks and other supplies to be used by teachers, staff and students. Additional supplies not covered include any extra desks or chairs, cleaning supplies and the purchase and installments of physical barriers, such as Plexiglas. Manchester Assistant Superintendent Karen DeFrancis she had been expecting a 75 percent reimbursement for $10.9 million in PPE items already purchased by the Manchester School District to prepare for the school year. The legislation, if passed, would increase the FEMA reimbursement rate from 75 percent to 90 percent for non-COVID related requests and 100 percent for all COVID requests. (Sources: Manchester Ink Link and NH Business Review)

9. Portsmouth Halloween Trick-Or-Treat Plans Still Taking Shape. City Manager Karen Conard said the Portsmouth police, fire, health and recreation/senior services departments met last week to discuss logistics for coordinating possible Halloween options. “We talked about wanting to allow for safe trick-or-treating so that our kids can enjoy something,” she said. The New Hampshire Municipal Association will host a Zoom webinar Sept. 30 to give cities and towns guidance on safe Halloween options, Conard said, and Portsmouth staff will be participating. (Source: Seacoast Online)

10. 'Transsexual Satanist Anarchist,' Who's Also A GOP Nominee for Sheriff, Joins Mask Lawsuit. Aria DiMezzo, a self-described transsexual anarchist Satanist recently nominated by the Republican Party to be on the ballot for Cheshire County Sheriff while running on a “F_ck the Police” platform, along with a minister who also serves as a Bitcoin ambassador, and the owner of the Pho Keene Great restaurant in Keene, have joined together to sue Gov. Chris Sununu and the City of Keene over its mask ordinance and other emergency measures related to the ongoing global pandemic. The federal lawsuit filed Friday accuses the governor of “invoking a feigned public health crisis” to limit the Constitutional rights of residents of the state and “regulate nearly every instance of individuals’ daily lives.” The parties are represented by Robert Fojo, a Bedford-based lawyer who filed a similar lawsuit challenging Nashua’s mask ordinance. (Source: NHPR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 18, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Friday September 18

On Thursday, state health officials announced 35 new COVID-19 cases but no new deaths. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Friday.

1. Increased Testing at NH Colleges Has Led to Daily Uptick in Cases, But It Isn’t ‘Surge,’ Officials Say. On Thursday, state health officials said the number of cases of COVID-19 remains low, even as the number of new cases each day has ticked up from an average of about 20 per day to closer to 35. State Epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan said the increased number of daily cases does not represent a new surge in COVID-19, but just reflects an increase in testing. Chan said about 1% or less of COVID-19 tests have been coming back positive, which shows the coronavirus is being kept mostly in check. When the UNH tests are added to the test total, the percentage will drop below 1%, he said. (Source: WMUR)

2. Portsmouth Naval Shipyard virus outbreak investigated by Maine CDC. The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said it has launched an investigation into a coronavirus outbreak at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Maine CDC Director Dr. Nirav Shah said Thursday that there are 18 confirmed cases associated with the shipyard. Shah said 13 cases are among Mainers, four are among New Hampshire residents and one case involves a Massachusetts resident. Since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, the Navy has not been releasing virus numbers for specific bases, but rather a daily – and now weekly – total for the entire Navy including military, civilian employees, contractors and its Delayed Entry Program. As of Sept. 9, the Navy had seen a cumulative total of 13,823 COVID-19 cases and 26 related deaths. (Sources: WMUR and Seacoast Online)

3. State Reps Draw Criticism For Drinking Beer, Not Wearing Masks On UNH Campus. During Wednesday’s legislative session at the University of New Hampshire's Whittemore Center, a handful of state representatives drank beer and did not wear masks outside of the center, despite the town of Durham’s mask mandate. At a meeting Thursday with the executive committee of the University System's board of trustees, UNH President Jim Dean said he’s aware that the legislature may want to use the Whittemore Center down the line. “I don’t think we can have that same behavior in the future,” he said. House Speaker Steve Shurtleff sent a letter to Dean and other UNH administrators Thursday apologizing for the members’ actions. “Please know the House takes decorum very seriously, and the actions of a few do not represent the New Hampshire House of Representatives as a whole,” he wrote. (Source: NHPR) Although Shurtleff did not specify names or party affiliations, 47 state reps—all Republicans— refused to wear masks during the session itself. They were relegated to a section of the stands away from the floor of the arena, which was only open to reps wearing masks. (Source: InDepthNH) Note: Beer cans were found by UNH Security staff in trash containers near the maskless section and several reps were seen drinking beer in the corridor.

4. County Worker Says Caring for Family During COVID-19 Cost Her a Job. Last week Rockingham County Commissioners voted 2-1 to terminate the employment of Marynia Page, a recording clerk at the Rockingham County Register of Deeds. Page had taken a leave in April to care for her husband’s brother Larry, who has Downs Syndrome, until Great Bay Services was able to reopen. She hoped her absence would be temporary, but she was told her options were to return to work, resign, or face possible termination. The termination was made at the recommendation of Register of Deeds Cathy Stacey, who wrote Page on Sept. 3 that she was seeking her removal “due to your incapacity to perform your essential job functions and for the good of the county institution(s) to which you are assigned.” County Commissioner Kevin Coyle voted against the termination. “We have almost 600 employees at the county with over 50 positions open. Holding this position open for a valuable employee would not have impacted us. It was heartless to terminate her with all she is doing for her family,” he said. Page’s situation is not unique. While Page has no plans to fight the decision in court, lawsuits from other workers facing termination over the need to extend leaves to care for family members are becoming increasingly common as the pandemic continues. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

5. Seabrook Elementary Student Tests Positive for COVID-19. A Seabrook Elementary School student has tested positive for COVID-19, requiring more than a dozen students and their families to self-quarantine this week, according to school officials. SAU 21 Superintendent William Lupini sent a letter to parents this week saying a confirmed COVID-19 case was reported to school officials and the Department of Health and Human Services was notified. Lupini estimated Thursday 15 students are in quarantine after being exposed to the classmate who tested positive. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. Concord School District Confirms First Positive Case of COVID-19. A Concord High School student who is a member of the high school marching band has tested positive for COVID-19, and now the district is working to get in touch with members of the school community who may have had contact with the student. (Source: Concord Monitor)

7. N.H. Jobs Picture Improves. The job situation continues to improve in New Hampshire, as reflected in the unemployment rate as well as a continuing drop in initial unemployment claims. But the Granite State economy is still in much worse shape than it was before the pandemic. And people who are laid off now won’t be receiving any enhanced unemployment benefits – the $300 extra per week from the federal government, which has ended after it replaced the $600 extra that expired earlier this summer. To give you an idea on how much they will be receiving, the average state unemployment check benefits in August was $260.53. Some 2,072 Granite Staters were laid off in the week ending Sept. 12, a 16.5% drop from the previous week, but still more about four times the number laid off on a weekly basis before the pandemic began. (Source: N.H. Business Review)

8. Winter is Coming: Restaurants Fearful Business Will Suffer Once Outdoor Dining Ends. Seacoast area restaurants are preparing to struggle when outdoor dining is no longer an option. Indoor dining at full capacity has been allowed since August, but restaurant owners say state social distancing guidelines make it impossible. Joe Higgins, owner of the Old Salt restaurant in Hampton, said cold weather will be a new challenge for restaurants with strict social-distancing rules in place for indoor dining. “I’m nervous about after October with what’s going to go on,” Higgins said. Mike Somers, president of the New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association, said industry members are asking the state to approve barriers to be placed between tables so more seats can be filled. The New Hampshire Liquor Commission, which is charged with enforcing COVID-19 guidelines in restaurant, plans to work with restaurant owners on following social distancing guidelines as the weather cools. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 17, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Thursday September 17

The N.H. House of Representatives meets to consider the governor’s vetoes at Whittemore Center on the University of N.H. campus in Durham.

33 news cases and no new deaths reported for Wednesday. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to start your Thursday.

1. Pandemic-Interrupted Legislative Session Ends With None of Sununu’s Vetoes Overridden. New Hampshire lawmakers on Wednesday failed to override more than 20 bills vetoed by Republican Gov. Chris Sununu. The House and Senate are controlled by Democrats, but needed help from Republicans to override bills by a two-thirds majority. Both chambers’ efforts came up short Wednesday. Bills that won’t become law because the governor’s vetoes were sustained include legislation that would have created a protective order guarding against financial abuse for vulnerable adults and set up an independent redistributing program to eliminate partisan gerrymandering. Other bills would have set a state minimum wage; created a paid family medical leave program; allowed relatives or police to petition a court to temporarily remove firearms from persons presenting an immediate threat to themselves or others; required insurance plans that cover maternity benefits to also provide coverage for abortions; and added an adult dental benefit to the state’s Medicaid health insurance. (Source: Associated Press). Once again, a large group of Republican legislators refused to wear masks and were relegated to the stands of the Whittemore Center to separate them from other legislators. (Source: InDepthNH) Prior to the last vote of the day, a visibly angry House Speaker Steve Shurtleff announced UNH security staff had found at least a dozen empty beer cans in trash receptacles in the maskless section. He expressed shock and outrage that members of the House would drink at any time during a House session. Meanwhile in Concord, the state Senate also met to consider the governor’s vetoes. Senate Republicans managed to preserve all of the governor’s vetoes there too. (Source: InDepthNH) Prior to the Senate session, activists set up a “Sununu graveyard” outside the State House depicting each of the 79 bills vetoed by the governor over the past two years. (Source: InDepthNH)

2. UNH Reports Second Coronavirus Cluster. The cluster originated from a five-building on-campus apartment complex called Gables that houses nearly 1,000 students. There have been 20 new cases of COVID-19 detected through the university’s testing and tracing program involved in the cluster. Any students who tested positive were required to isolate immediately for at least 10 days and close contacts were notified and placed in quarantine for 14 days, according to the school. Only 10 of the positive cases remain active. (Source: WMUR)

3. One Virus Case Puts 12 Exeter High Students, 1 Teacher in Quarantine. SAU 16 Superintendent David Ryan notified the community Wednesday the district was contacted by the state Department of Health and Human Services and informed that a person at Exeter High School has tested positive for COVID-19. The individual was taking part in the school’s freshmen orientation as part of a group of 12 students and one teacher, according to a district press release. DHHS staff have reached out to these individuals and they have been instructed to quarantine and be tested. (Source: Seacoast Online)

4. AG Investigating Violations of COVID-19 Emergency Orders. The state has about a dozen investigations open into possible COVID-19 order violations, including a youth hockey camp in Nashua linked to a cluster of cases. "We have received more than 200 complaints since we opened the hotline in May, and we probably have 12 active investigations that we are looking into," said Associate Attorney General Anne Edwards. Violators could receive a written warning or be fined, but officials with the attorney general's office said they prefer education over punitive action. Edwards said the attorney general's office will also be looking at road races, such as Tough Mudder, with guidance on mud and obstacles forthcoming. (Source: WMUR)

5. N.H. Schools Won't Get FEMA Aid For COVID Expenses. School districts will be getting less money from the federal government than they expected this fall to cover COVID-related expenses. In a letter to New Hampshire state officials, FEMA said even during the pandemic, schools did not qualify for financial assistance “because the education of children is not an immediate action necessary to protect public health, life, and safety.” Officials in Salem and Londonderry say FEMA's decision leaves them each scrambling for around $350,000 to cover COVID-related expenses. The state says there are still ways to foot the bill, including nearly half of the $34 million made available to New Hampshire schools through the CARES Act. According to the N.H. DOE, many districts have yet to tap into these funds. (Source: NHPR)

6. Innis Resigns as Portsmouth Chamber Board Chair After Anti-Mask and Anti-BLM Tweets Cause Stir. Three months after being named chair of the Board of Directors for the Chamber Collaborative of Greater Portsmouth, former state senator Dan Innis announced his resignation amid backlash for his social media posts. Innis announced his resignation Tuesday on Twitter, a day after he was called to resign from the chamber board for his tweets in opposition to Portsmouth’s new face-mask ordinance and his retweet of someone else’s post calling Black Lives Matter “trash.” In a press statement Wednesday afternoon, the chamber announced Monte Bohanan of The Music Hall will assume the position of acting chair. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Six Months of COVID: Where New England States Stand Half-a-Year Into the Pandemic. While every New England state has been greatly impacted by the virus, not every state is in the same place when it comes to reopening. This article takes a comparative look back at how the pandemic began in each state, as well as where they are all now with restrictions and reopening as of mid-September. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 16, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Wednesday September 16

State officials reported 34 new COVID-19 cases and 2 new deaths on Tuesday. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. News you need to know to start your Wednesday.

1. Policing Portsmouth’s Mask Mandate to Be ‘Hot Topic’, Chief Says. Portsmouth police officers will be briefed during regular roll call meetings about how to enforce the city’s mask ordinance, enacted by the City Council Monday, said Police Chief Robert Merner. “It was a hot topic of discussion this morning,” the police chief said Tuesday, explaining his department will educate, intervene if necessary, then enforce if warranted. The ordinance imposes a $25 fine for the violation-level civil offense, comparable to having an off-leash dog, or driving with a phone to an ear. Merner said his officers will not be asking people for proof of medical conditions, and he anticipates the new ordinance will create some police problems. (Source: Seacoast Online)

2. COVID Concerns Temporarily Close 4th Manchester Restaurant Since Saturday. The Puritan Backroom restaurant became the latest Manchester restaurant to shut down for coronavirus-related reasons when it announced Tuesday it is temporarily closing after an employee tested positive for COVID-19. Management at Cafe La Reine on Elm Street also announced Tuesday that the popular coffee house would close “out of an abundance of caution” to allow staff to be tested for COVID-19, though no employees had tested positive as of Tuesday morning. Campo Enoteca and bluAqua Restrobar, both on Elm Street, announced over the weekend they would temporarily close after staff at both eateries tested positive for the virus. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

3. $300/Week Federal Unemployment Benefit Ends for Granite Staters. New Hampshire's latest unemployment numbers show improvement, but for those still collecting benefits, the checks are getting smaller. Richard Lavers, deputy commissioner of New Hampshire Employment Security, said the $300 federal enhancement has come to a close. "We've been told by (the Federal Emergency Management Agency that those weeks are done. There aren't going to be any additional weeks." Meanwhile, many are waiting for Congress to provide additional relief. "We don't know what will come of the current round of negotiations, but we stand ready to continue to deliver benefits to people in New Hampshire as quickly as we can like we have done throughout the pandemic," Lavers said. (Source: WMUR)

4. New England Flag Football League Faces $2,000 Penalty For Violating N.H. COVID Emergency Order. A Massachusetts-based flag football league is facing $2,000 fine for violating a New Hampshire emergency order issued as part of the state's response to COVID-19. The New England Flag Football League hosted a tournament in Epping, N.H., toward the end of August, with teams from Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin participating. But under Emergency Order 52 and the state’s guidance for amateur and youth sports, teams from outside of the New England region aren’t allowed at competitive sporting events in New Hampshire. In a letter laying out the penalty, the AG’s office called the league’s actions “reckless and intentional.” Under an emergency order issued by the governor, the attorney general can seek a civil penalty against anyone who violates any coronavirus-related order. (Source: NHPR)

5. Portsmouth High School Sports Decision Coming Friday. The Portsmouth School Board’s athletics subcommittee of Tara Kennedy and Margaux Peabody have submitted a 71-page document with sport-by-sport COVID-19 policies and procedures to Superintendent Steve Zadravec. The plan will be reviewed in the coming days by Zadravec, along with city health officer Kim McNamara and acting athletic director Tom Kozikowski. Zadravec hopes to announce those decisions to the school board by Friday, which is the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association’s first date to play “medium-risk” sports like soccer, field hockey and volleyball. “Higher-risk” sports such as football and spirit are permitted to begin playing games on Sept. 25 (Source: Fosters Daily Democrat)

6. State Lawmakers Float One Proposal to Fill COVID-19 Budget Gaps: Marijuana Sales. Precisely how much New Hampshire stands to lose in business and meals and room tax revenue as a result of the coronavirus remains unknown but estimates range in the hundreds of millions of dollars. But some state lawmakers are already looking to a new approach to make up the difference: marijuana. At a House committee session Tuesday, some Democrats on the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee expressed support for legalizing cannabis, creating a retail framework to sell it to consumers, and taxing the profit. The Committee voted to recommend the Legislature consider the cannabis legalization bill in the next session. “Going forward next year it looks like we’re going to have a huge hole in the state budget,” said Rep. David Meuse, a Portsmouth Democrat. “We’re going to need to get creative when it comes to filling that hole. So far it doesn’t look like we’re going to be able to fill it with any money coming from the federal government. And some of the projections that I’ve seen are pretty terrifying.” With tourism dollars plummeting and winter threatening outdoor restaurant operations, leaders in both parties are warning of diminished state coffers ahead of the two-year budget process next year. “This is an area that I think we need to seriously look at,” Meuse said of cannabis taxation. (Source: Concord Monitor) Note: Tuesday the committee voted on recommendations for 5 separate bills that had been sent to interim study by the full legislature. But because of the pandemic, the committee was unable to conduct the studies. However, it was still responsible for recommending—or not recommending—the bills for future legislation. Committee recommendations on bills sent to interim study are purely advisory and are not binding on the next legislature.

7. COVID-19 Concerns Will Keep Some Away When Legislature Meets Today at UNH to Vote on Sununu Vetoes. Some state representatives won’t be attending today’s distanced session at the University of New Hampshire campus, where they will on campus for the first time with college students since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The previous two times the House gathered at Whittemore Center, students were not on campus. But this time campus life will be close to full swing with the Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 dashboard showing 30 active cases at UNH. Despite the importance of today’s vote, House Speaker Steve Shurtleff says that for legislators who have health issues or vulnerable family members it’s OK to stay home. “If you have any questions at all, stay home," said Shurtleff. "As much as we'd like to have everyone there, we understand there are some circumstances in which it's not in their best interest to show up in Durham." The House and Senate will vote today on whether to sustain or override vetoes by Gov. Sununu on 22 bills, including bills to establish an independent districting commission, a state minimum wage, and a state-run paid family leave program. (Source: WMUR)

8. School Nurses Uncomfortable Diagnosing Children’s COVID Symptoms. School nurses are telling parents that students with even the smallest unexplained symptoms should probably stay home as they try to keep classrooms safe from COVID-19. New COVID-19 health protocols mean students with even the slightest case of the sniffles are sent to the school nurse. Paula MacKinnon, President of the NH School Nurses Association says it’s putting nurses in a tough spot. “Who wants to take on the responsibility of saying ‘Yes—it’s allergies, they can go back to class’ versus they are not sure?’ said MacKinnon. (Source: WMUR)

9. Primary Postscript: How Absentee Ballots Reshaped N.H.'s Voting Landscape. Until this spring, when the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a change in the state’s election policies, New Hampshire voters could only request absentee ballots in limited circumstances: If they had religious, professional or caregiving obligations, for example, or if they had plans to be out of town on Election Day. This year, however, state officials granted absentee eligibility to any New Hampshire voter concerned about COVID-19. That policy change, we now know, helped to drive record turnout in the September state primary: 304,671 ballots were cast statewide, and just shy of 30 percent of those were absentee. But a recent Granite State Poll from the University of New Hampshire Survey Center also found that a growing number of voters from both parties support offering absentee voting as an option during the pandemic, though most respondents in the same poll — Republicans and Democrats — said they planned to vote in-person for the general election. One safe conclusion to draw in all of this, perhaps: Even when it comes to how they cast a ballot, New Hampshire voters like to keep their options open. (Source: NHPR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 15, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Tuesday September 15

18 new COVID-19 cases in N.H. on Monday with no new deaths. Here is the other pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Tuesday.

1. Portsmouth Enacts Mask Ordinance. The Portsmouth City Council voted 7-2 on Monday night to approve a formal face mask ordinance with potential fines for violations. In effect immediately, the mandate is in place until Jan. 4, 2021. Mayor Rick Becksted proposed an amendment to shelve the ordinance unless a local or state-level emergency is declared. Opposing Becksted’s motion, Councilor Deaglan McEachern said it is “the council’s job to lead on this and not pass the buck.” Becksted’s motion failed 3-6. “We’ve taken a long time to get to this point,” said Assistant Mayor Jim Splaine. “It seems to me we must do this.....we know it’s a serious disease, it’s not a hoax.” Becksted and Councilor Petra Huda were the two votes against the ordinance. Portsmouth joins Exeter, Newmarket, Durham, Concord, Nashua, Keene and Plymouth in having mask mandates. (Source: Seacoast Online) During the public comment session, Portsmouth Chamber Collaborative Executive Director Valerie Rochon told the council that a clear citywide mandate combined with positive reinforcement will go a long way towards helping local businesses survive the crisis. As for people who don’t want to wear masks, Rochon said, “The can exercise their right to go maskless. But not in our hotels, shops, restaurants and other businesses.” You can view a recording of the meeting here. (The bulk of Council debate on the Becksted amendment and the final ordinance vote itself takes place between the 2:40:00 and 3:05:00 marks.)

2. Barrington Elementary School Zones Sent Home After Positive COVID Tests. Students at Barrington Elementary School were sent home Monday and the school is switching to remote learning after cases of COVID-19 at the school were confirmed. The decision to make the switch happened quickly. "We received notification this morning that we have a few positive cases at the elementary school," said Superintendent Daniel Moulis. "Out of an abundance of caution, we've notified all of our families and all of our staff." State epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan confirmed that the Department of Health and Human Services is investigating the cases. Barrington Elementary School is expected to return to in-person classes Sept. 21. "During that time, we will complete a deep cleaning process to that school facility," Moulis said.(Source: WMUR)

3. 14 Manchester Students Test Positive. Fourteen students in the Manchester school district have tested positive for COVID-19 since classes began last week, school officials said in a district-wide email Monday. All 14 positive confirmed cases involve students in remote learning status, not in-person learning. Of the 14 cases, only 10 are considered active cases, school officials said. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

4. N.H. Eviction Cases Continue Steady Increase In August. In the months following the end of state and federal eviction moratoriums, evictions in New Hampshire have been on the rise. Since the end of June, New Hampshire courts have approved 673 orders to evict tenants. Nearly half of those are just from the month of August. Marta Hurgin, a staff attorney at the New Hampshire Legal Advice and Referral Center, said the end of a federal $600 unemployment benefit in July affected many of her clients. Hurgin said she’s also been getting questions from clients about the CDC’s new eviction moratorium, and is advising them on how to best use it. Another resource for tenants affected by COVID-19 is the New Hampshire’s Housing Relief Program. Earlier this summer, Gov. Sununu set aside $35 million of federal relief money for that program. But as of Sept. 3, about $2.2 million of that money had been distributed to roughly 900 people in the state. A complex form that is 7 pages long combined with lack of internet access for many of the people affected have slowed the application and distribution process to a crawl. (Source: NHPR)

5. Legislature to Vote on Sununu Vetoes Tomorrow at UNH. From increasing the minimum wage to allowing more small, renewable energy producers to sell electricity to utilities, lawmakers will have a final chance Wednesday to put their stamp on the tumultuous 2020 legislative session. The House meets at 10 a.m. at the Whittemore Center on the University of New Hampshire’s Durham campus, while the Senate meets in Representatives Hall at noon to attempt to override Gov. Chris Sununu’s 22 vetoes, or more than a third of the legislation sent to his desk in the truncated session impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Sununu vetoed a record 57 bills last session, and the 22 vetoes this session is the second highest number ever. Most—if not all—of the vetoes are expected to be sustained because while House Democrats hold the majority, a 2/3 vote is necessary to override a veto. Once again, physical distancing measures will be in place and any legislators refusing to wear masks will be seated in the stands away from other legislators and will use different rest rooms. (Source: InDepthNH) The session will be live-streamed starting at 10 a.m. on the General Court website.

6. New Data Shows Food Insecurity Was on the Decline in N.H. Prior to the Pandemic. According to data released Sept. 9 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, food insecurity levels in New Hampshire continued to decline during 2019, prior to the onset of the Covid-19 crisis. Overall improvements to the state economy through 2019, along with the effectiveness of key nutritional aid programs, contributed to lower levels of food insecurity, although the benefits of the economic recovery did not reach all Granite Staters in an equal or timely manner. Although the current crisis facing Granite Staters is not reflected in the data, it provides a baseline for the state to analyze the extend to which food insecurity increased as the state experienced record unemployment during the pandemic. (Source: N.H. Business Review)

7. Halloween Presents a Tricky Dilemma for N.H. Communities. Wearing a mask this Halloween is taking on a whole new meaning. Conway Town Manager Tom Holmes said Monday that Recreation Department staff have developed guidelines for selectmen to consider at their meeting today regarding recommended Halloween practices in light of the pandemic. The recommendations may include encouraging small groups of trick-or-treaters, avoiding larger parties, wearing masks and—pending selectmen’s permission—a drive-thru Halloween party in late October. (Source: Conway Daily Sun) How to safely conduct traditional trick-or-treat activities—or whether to even allow them—will likely be a topic other local boards will take up over the next few weeks. While the organizers of Portsmouth’s Halloween Parade have already decided to cancel the popular event, no guidelines have yet been announced by the city for trick-or-treating.

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 14, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Monday September 14

44 new COVID-19 cases were reported by N.H. Health officials on Sunday along with one new death. Here is the other pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Monday.

1. DHHS Elevates COVID-19 Alert Level for Strafford County. On Sunday, the status of community level transmission in Strafford Country was raised from “minimal” to “moderate”. State officials had already raised the alert level to moderate last week in Manchester. The move is likely due to the number of cases at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, which currently lists 36 active cases Sunday and 45 recovered. (Source: InDepthNH)

2. Portsmouth City Council to Vote on Mask Mandate Tonight. After the sudden postponement of an August 31 meeting, the Portsmouth City Council will hold a public hearing on the third reading of a proposed mask mandate at 7 p.m. on Zoom followed by a final vote. The council last met to consider the ordinance on August 18th. At the time, several amendments were offered and approved and councilors may offer additional amendments tonight. As currently written, the ordinance would take effect on passage. But Mayor Rick Becksted has repeatedly floated the idea of passing the ordinance and immediately shelving it until a public health emergency has been declared. You can find an agenda, a copy of the proposed ordinance, and instructions on how to join the meeting on Zoom here.

3. Nashua Panel Supports Beefing Up Mask Mandate to Ban Businesses from Serving Maskless Customers. An aldermanic committee in Nashua is recommending that the city implement stricter mask requirements — a change that has stoked both support and opposition. After hearing residents speak out against and in favor of the more stringent mask ordinance, the personnel and administrative affairs committee voted 4-1 in support of the change. The full Board of Aldermen must still vote on the measure. The new proposal states that “no business and no employee of any business shall provide goods or services to any person not complying with face covering requirements … no business and no employee of any business shall permit a person to remain on its premises in violation of these requirements.” (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

4. School Nurses on the Front Lines As Classes Begin. The state’s public, private and charter schools all have their own plans for reopening, but they have one thing in common: When children get sick, they go to the nurse’s office. Paula MacKinnon, president of the New Hampshire School Nurses’ Association, says kids have always come to school with coughs and colds, MacKinnon. “But if the child is complaining to the teacher that they don’t feel well, or is excessively coughing or sneezing, those are the ones we’re going to be more concerned about,” she said. School nurses will have to assess each child’s symptoms in light of any chronic conditions the child may have — a history of allergies or migraine headaches, for example — and then make a clinical decision, MacKinnon said. “And it’s not an easy one to make,” she said. “It requires a lot more phone calls and conversations with parents, so that’s how we’re trying to do it.” Now as the front lines of the crisis have moved to the schools, she feels an obligation to do her part. “This is just so important that nurses are here,” she said. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

5. Manchester Spends $1.8 Million on COVID-Related Cleaning and Ventilation Upgrades. Before school started in Manchester last week, the district adapted classes, meals and recess to minimize the spread of COVID-19, and even the school buildings got a few pandemic-era upgrades. More than $500,000 is going toward upgrades to the ventilation system, including replacing air filters with MERV-13 and HEPA filters. Another $300,000 will be spent on higher energy costs required to circulate building air with outside air more frequently. Around $1.3 million was budgeted for cleaning supplies, protective gear like masks and face shields, and no-touch thermometers. The school district used CARES Act money to help pay for the upgrades and may pursue a grant from FEMA to cover the cost of cleaning and stepped-up ventilation through the year. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

6. Dartmouth Students in Quarantine After Social Gathering, Fraternity Suspended. More disappointing news from another N.H. college. Twenty-three students at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth were placed into quarantine after Dartmouth Safety and Security officers were called in to stop a social gathering on Sept. 4. Meanwhile, Phi Delta Alpha fraternity has been temporarily suspended following possible health violations in an incident at its house on Sept. 5. (Source: The Dartmouth)

7. Health Experts Say Quick COVID Tests Used by Colleges Are Effective—But Timing is Critical. To detect and track cases among students and staff, N.H. colleges are using self-administered tests and are testing students often. Dr. David Itkin, an infectious disease expert at Portsmouth Regional Hospital, says that all three types of rapid COVID tests—antigen, PCR, and antibody—have their pluses and minuses. “Their sensitivity varies. The PCR test accuracy tends to be in the high 90s, while some tests can go as low as the 80s. There are four antigen tests listed and their results tend to be in the mid-to high 90s. There are advantages and disadvantages of the antigen tests. For one thing, they may stay positive for a shorter period of time, within 5-7 days. If you test on the eighth day, it might come out negative. A PCR test holds the positive for weeks. So diagnostically, we use the PCR because of increased sensitivity.” Itkin said the antigen test is easier to collect, requiring only a nasal swab instead of the deep nasopharyngeal swab used for the PCR test. “The PCR requires a lab to run the test,” said Itkin. “The antigen test is useful for schools wanting to screen individuals. The downside is the limited timeframe of a positive. The student might have been exposed prior to arriving at the college. They might test negative because they already cleared the antigen. One-time testing is not enough. It needs to be done on a repeated basis.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

8. Concord Company Rolls Out Kiosk That Conducts Temperature Checks and Scans for a Mask. Advanced Kiosks in Concord has developed an automated solution that reduces the need for person-to-person interaction in situations where it’s important to confirm people are wearing masks and are not symptomatic before admitting them to a building or venue. The kiosks uses thermal scanning technology to measure a person’s temperature and recognize if that person is wearing a mask. If a person fails either of those conditions, it will send an alert and notify someone in the building that a person is trying to gain entry without meeting established protocols. While temperature check is not medical grade, the company says it is accurate enough to determine if a person needs additional screening. The cost runs between $2,000 and $2,500. (Source: WMUR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 13, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Sunday September 13

37 new COVID-19 cases in N.H. for Saturday and one new death. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Sunday.

1. 26th Annual Portsmouth Halloween Parade Cancelled. Parade Marshall Monte Bohanon announced the cancellation of the beloved event after PHP organizers twisted ideas “every which way,” but just couldn’t come up with a doable solution. Organizers considered the effect a parade and its aftermath might have on a downtown dealing with COVID-19 restrictions as well as the possible impact on police and safety services. “We didn’t want to be the super-spreader event. ... Those are not the headlines we want,” Bohanan said. “And with so many people cooped up, we don’t want to be the release value.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

2. COVID-19 Outbreak Linked to Party Keeps Windham High School Temporarily Remote. A coronavirus outbreak among students at Windham High School will force that school to remain remote for at least the next week. The school was supposed to reopen with a hybrid model on Wednesday, but news that sixteen students had tested positive for COVID-19 prompted the school to change its plans last minute and reopen with a remote model. According to people in the district, the outbreak is linked to at least one party, largely among student athletes. Students from other districts and Massachusetts were also in attendance, sources say. All high school sports and the career and technology program were also suspended. (Source: NHPR)

3. Women Workers in N.H. Hurt Most By Economic Fallout of Pandemic. Women workers of the Granite State have been most affected by the COVID-19 economic fallout, a new report released this month by the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute shows. The share of unemployment attributed to women in New Hampshire is estimated to be higher than any other time within the last 20 years. Data from state Employment Security shows that from April to June 2020, about 58% of the people unemployed in New Hampshire were women – equating to nearly six out of every 10 people. Nationally, Black and Hispanic women are the hardest hit, as many of the industries most affected by COVID-19 employ disproportionate numbers of non-white individuals. The industries most immediately impacted by COVID-19, such as retail and restaurants, also rank in the top 10 occupations employing the largest number of women, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau. (Source: Seacoast Online)

4. Flu Shots Save Lives During COVID. This season health care workers and the public will battle viruses on two fronts - trying to ward off COVID-19 and the flu, which typically peaks from December through March. “Anything we can do to avoid any infectious respiratory illness, colds and especially influenza becomes really important,” said Dr. Nora Janeway, medical director of Health First Family Care. According to CDC data, flu vaccination rates in N.H. hover at 52 percent, according to CDC data from 2018-2019. Vaccination rates in New Hampshire range from 37 percent of younger adults, to 72 percent of kids under 5 and adults 65 and older – the age groups most vulnerable. “I am struck by how many of my older patients,” including those who smoke or have diabetes, “say, ‘I don’t usually get sick, so I don’t want a flu shot,’ or ‘I got a flu shot once and got a cold two weeks later,’” Janeway said. “I appreciate all those folks who are rugged individualists and want to manage their own health care. But when it comes to getting a flu shot, I wish I could move the bar a bit.” Tammy Charmichael, executive director of the Partnership for Public Health for the Winnipesaukee region, says flu vaccination will help take the stress off local healthcare systems by thwarting a simultaneous spike of COVID and flu during winter. (Source: Laconia Daily Sun)

5. Second Annual Pride Festival Held in Manchester. On Saturday, close to 1,000 people gathered in Arms Park in Manchester to celebrate the Queen City Pride Festival amid frequently reminders to mask-up and maintain physical distancing. Some members of the Manchester Board of Aldermen felt it was inappropriate to hold the event this year after safety concerns cancelled events earlier this year, including Manchester’s Fourth of July festivities. But Congressman Chris Pappas (D-NH), one of the speakers at the event and New Hampshire’s first LGBTQ+ member of Congress, said he feels that outdoor events can now be done safely given current COVID-19 statistics as long as mask wearing and proper social distancing is followed. Pappas also reported that he is seeing more tolerance during his travels on the campaign trail. “New Hampshire has seen a lot of changes over the last few decades and we’ve led the nation in those changes,” Pappas said. “I think people are hungry for a future that includes everyone no matter who you are or who you love, and that’s a message we can send to the rest of the country.” (Source: Manchester Ink Link)

6. Altered By Pandemic, End of Life Rituals Have Changed the Way We Grieve. Chaplains in hospitals across New Hampshire are grappling with how to comfort and pray with sick patients and their families and perform end of life rituals. Kate Morse, Chaplain for Concord Hospital, worries that without shared rituals, families aren’t able to properly recover from a loved one’s death. “I think of this as a second pandemic in our country,” she said. Natalia Skritskaya, the head of the Complicated Grief Center at Columbia University, said it’s important to lean on friends and family members for emotional support, even if social distancing guidelines prevent you from doing it in person. “We don’t grieve well alone,” she said. “We need people.” (Source: Concord Monitor) Meanwhile in Portsmouth on Saturday, hundreds of mask-wearing friends and family members gathered in a physically distanced memorial service on the Portsmouth High School Athletic Field to celebrate the life of Portsmouth Attorney Paul McEachern. Donations in memory of McEachern may be sent to Advocates for the North Mill Pond, at 111 Sparhawk St., Portsmouth to be used in the creation of the Paul McEachern Park. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Record Turnout Other Key Takeaways from Last’s Week’s Pandemic Primary Election. As the dust settles on the New Hampshire state primary Sept. 8 – the first test of voting in the time of the pandemic – the Secretary of State’s office has released data on how the Granite State’s COVID-19 voting trial turned out. According to veteran State House reporter Ethan Dewitt, key takeaways include: 1) the college town vote remains strong despite the virus, 3) Republicans strongly favored in-person voting as only 16% cast absentee ballots vs. 42.6% for Democrats, and 3) a small but surprising 3% of Democrats cast write in votes for Governor Sununu instead of for Democratic candidates Sen. Dan Feltes or Andru Volinsky—an indicator that Feltes and other Democrats still have some work to do to shore up support in their own party as well as with independents. (Source: Concord Monitor) Meanwhile Gary Rayno, another veteran N.H. reporter, notes that 2 years ago Democrats were more enthusiastic than Republicans and took control of the N.H. House, Senate and Executive Council in the general election. But comparing increases in Tuesday’s record turnout by parties, Republicans saw an increase of 47,105 primary ballots cast and Democrats saw a smaller 30,502 increase. Rayno concludes that if both parties continue to be fired up for the next two months, it will be more difficult for N.H. Democrats to repeat the same level of success in legislative and executive council races they had in 2018. (Source: InDepthNH)

8. Pandemic Life: UNH Student Offers Tips for Making it Through Quarantine. Being one of close to 300 students in quarantine is not what UNH student Bella Dziak signed up for in her first year of college. In her first-person account in the UNH student newspaper, she describes her experience and provides tips to help other students prepare for the news that too may have been exposed to someone with the virus and will need to quarantine for two weeks. Dziak writes, “Despite wearing a mask, testing negative, and doing everything ‘right,’ with a little bit of bad luck, quarantine can easily become a reality. Make sure you’re being socially responsible, taking care of yourself, and considering others. If you’re experiencing symptoms get tested and wear your mask so that less people will miss out on the college experience.” (Source: The New Hampshire)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 12, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Saturday September 12

On Friday, the state reported 48 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Saturday.

1. COVID Tracker: Worrisome Start to Autumn as Case Numbers Rise. In its weekly tracking report on N.H.’s progress toward meeting goals for 4 key coronavirus metrics, the Concord Monitor reports the state continues to meet 3 of the goals, but is failing on the 4th. Since Aug. 30, the 14-day average of new cases has risen by more than 50%. If that pattern continues, the Monitor reports that we could soon see the state failing to meet another goal—keeping new cases under 100,000 people each day, or 54 new cases a day statewide. (Source: Concord Monitor)

2. Durham Active Case Total Rises, Hundreds of Students Now in Quarantine. Durham’s number of active coronavirus cases increased to 32, according to numbers reported Friday by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. The town’s total was 28 the previous day. Durham, where University of New Hampshire students returned to campus last month, has the second highest total of cases in the state, behind only Manchester’s 46. (Source: Seacoast Online) After the first two weeks of the fall semester, 66 University of New Hampshire students are in isolation and another 257 students are being quarantined at the school’s three campuses, officials reported. While the university is providing alternate living space for students in quarantine, UNH officials are encouraging them to quarantine at their “permanent home”. Yesterday, the deadline passed for UNH students who want to avoid the possibility of an early return to remote learning to withdraw or drop courses and receive a 100% refund of tuition and fees. The last day students can withdraw or drop courses and receive a 50% refund on tuition and fees is Oct. 2. After that, no tuition and fees will be reimbursed. (Source: Manchester Union Leader) Meanwhile, UNH’s testing facility, which opened Aug. 31 on the school’s first day of classes, has proved to be a source of frustration for some students throughout the first few weeks of the semester. Due to twice weekly testing overflow and newer, unfamiliar technology, the school been slow in getting out test results to students. But UNH spokesperson Erika Mantz said the testing program is now on track to have results posted on students’ individual profiles less than 48 hours after submission. She also said that all positive cases would be notified in under 24 hours. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. Clock Ticking on Spending $1.25B Federal COVID Funds. With a use-it-or-lose-it deadline to spend federal CARES Act money coming at the end of December, Gov. Sununu says he “made a pitch” to President Trump for an extension so any remaining funds can be used in 2021. The state received $1.25 billion in pandemic relief assistance and has created more than 20 funds to help various sectors of the economy. Between $200 and $250 million in money received by the state has yet to be allocated. (Source: InDepthNH) Any CARES Act funds unspent before the end of the year, must be returned to the U.S. Treasury. (Source: U.S. Department of the Treasury https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Coronavirus-Relief-Fund-Frequently-Asked-Questions.pdf ) There was no word on whether the Sununu asked the president to ease restrictions on states and communities using unallocated aid to help make up for large revenue shortfalls that are anticipated at both the state and local level.

4. Homeless Shelters Face Dec. 30 Deadline to Complete Improvements Funded By CARES Act. With high unemployment and the lingering coronavirus, homeless shelters across the state are bracing what could be an especially challenging winter. And their preparations are overshadowed by the federal CARES Act, which requires that funds used to provide space and take steps needed to house individuals and families safely must be spent by year’s end. Many shelters are in the process of making modifications that will bring their facilities within CDC guidelines for coronavirus safety as part of the Shelter Modification Program. But federal emergency money for nonprofit organizations and those dedicated to homeless shelters must be spent and projects completed by Dec. 30, otherwise any outstanding balance must be refunded to the federal government. Martha Stone, executive director of Cross Roads House, a shelter in Portsmouth, noted that the shelters, like most nonprofits, were crippled by the virus, which swelled expenses and shrunk revenues. “We have a number of projects,” said Stone, explaining “we’re working to increase our capacity, make improvements to the kitchen and bathrooms along with the air purification system. And we’re still working with a general contractor and have yet to get a bid.” In the meantime, she said the shelter has arranged for space in a motel, which despite reduced rates, remains very expensive. “It’s a huge challenge,” Stone said, adding that the year-end deadline “could become a liability.” (Source: NH Business Review)

5. Concord Police Investigate Multiple Incidents of Zoom Intruder in Online Classrooms. Concord Police computer crimes experts are looking deeper into several online incidents that subjected middle and high school students to sexually explicit images and racial slurs over Zoom this week. The school district identified five separate incidents of “an unidentified intruder impersonated a student to join Zoom meetings,” according to Director of Technology Pam McLeod. Four incidents were reported in classes at Concord High and one was reported at Rundlett Middle School. “We believe these incidents are related.,” McLeod wrote in a letter to families, students and teachers Friday morning. (Source: Concord Monitor)

6. Shaheen Tours Manchester Postal Facility. On Friday, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen made a trip to the U.S. Post Office on Goffs Falls Road to obtain more information after a sorting machine was recently removed under what many Democrats believed to be a dubious process. Shaheen took the tour of the facility after 5,500 New Hampshire residents expressed their concerns about mail delivery in recent weeks, specifically in regard delivering crucial medicine such as insulin to Granite Staters. Several weeks earlier, GOP Senate Candidate and Shaheen’s opponent Corky Messner stated that concerns about the U.S. Postal Service from Democrats are little more than political distractions and no attempts were made to address structural issues within the U.S. Postal Service during the Obama Administration. Later in the day, Shaheen was endorsed by the American Postal Workers Union Local 230. (Source: Manchester Ink Link)

7. Portsmouth City Councilor Calls for PopUp NH to Be Shuttered or Moved by Oct. 18. Saying that PopUp New Hampshire has cost thousands of dollars in lost parking revenue, Council Paige Trace says the venue should either close next month as originally scheduled or, if it continues, should move to an alternative location. Earlier this summer, PopUp NH was granted city authority and a liquor license to remake the Bridge Street parking lot as a food and entertainment venue as a way to help businesses struggling because of the pandemic reach customers in a new way. Trace said the city needs to resume collecting parking revenue from the lot which she said is $50,000 a year, per parking space. Josh Denton, chair of the PopUp NH board, said he’s seeking an extension for the venue to operate until Oct. 31, to coincide with equipment rental agreements that expire on that date. He said that request goes to the City Council Monday. (Source: Seacoast Online) The operators of the Pop Up, which has been a shining example of grassroots community innovation during the COVID-19 crisis, have also floated the idea of transitioning it to a European-style downtown Christmas fair later in the fall.

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 11, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Friday September 11

One new death and 56 new COVID-19 cases, including 15 in children under age 18, were announced by N.H. health officials on Thursday. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Friday.

1. COVID-19 Cases on the Rise. Cases of COVID-19 have been increasing throughout the state with 37 cases now at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, a state official said. Patricia Tilley, deputy director for the New Hampshire Division of Public Health, said UNH continues to be the most active campus for COVID-19 cases, jumping from 10 cases last week to 37 active cases. Another 25 have recovered, according to the state’s website. She gave an update to the Governor’s Economic Reopening Task Force Thursday. Tilley stressed that the number of cases is going up across the state, particularly among a younger set of people and that the percentage of positive cases in COVID-19 PCR tests is now at 1.10, up from below 1 percent for the past few weeks. (Source: InDepthNH) At his Thursday media briefing, Gov. Sununu said that despite the recent uptick in cases across the state, there is no cause for concern at this point. He said that more cases were expected because the number of tests has increased for returning college students. Sununu said the positive case rate for testing would have to be in the 4% to 6% range before the state would look to take any additional steps. (Source: NECN) At the same press conference, DHHS Commissioner Lori Shibinette reported that no cases of the coronavirus have been linked to President Trump’s rally in New Hampshire two weeks ago, and only one person who attended Motorcycle Week in Laconia has since tested positive. (Source: Associated Press)

2. College Presidents Provide COVID-19 Updates to USNH Board of Trustees. Also on Thursday, N.H. college presidents updated the University System of New Hampshire board of trustees on how reopening is going. Jim Dean, president of the University of New Hampshire, said the university is still weighing additional action against the already-suspended Theta Chi fraternity, the source of an outbreak after a party involving 100 students. Dean says most of the 80 active cases of COVID-19 on campus are asymptomatic students. At Keene State, where there are 4 active cases, college president Melinda Treadwell says she’s “feeling very impressed by the low incidence rates. I have confidence. I’m cautiously optimistic that we’ll continue to be able to operate.” (Source: NHPR)

3. UNH Students Turn to Instagram to Air Grievances and Share Information. During a time when some students are complaining that university-sponsored town halls are contrived and unhelpful events where administrators are “only picking the easy questions that would paint them in a favorable light”, the @covidatunh Instagram page is offering students something new – an almost completely unfiltered forum to air concerns and grievances about UNH’s handling of COVID-19. Students are also using the student-moderated page to ask practical questions, like how to get more test kits and how to access test results. Some are also asking for advice navigating the complicated social dynamics the pandemic is creating in cramped dorm rooms. (Source: Concord Monitor)

4. Nashua Mayor One of Three City Hall Staff Diagnosed with COVID-19. The mayor of Nashua announced Wednesday he has COVID-19. His wife is also experiencing symptoms but has not yet received test results. Mayor Jim Donchess told the Board of Aldermen he was tested last week and again over the weekend. Donchess said he learned last week that a family member of someone he met with last week tested positive for COVID-19. He said he hasn't been feeling extremely sick, but he knows he has a virus. Donchess is one of three positive cases of COVID-19 identified at City Hall. (Source: WMUR)

5. Governor Dishes Out More Federal Money to Charter Schools, Healthcare Providers, Businesses and Non-Profits. At his Thursday press conference, Gov. Sununu announced he has allocated $7 million in emergency funding that will allow the Virtual Learning Academy Charter School (VLACS), an online charter school, to hire more teachers and expand its capacity to serve more students. The governor, a long-time proponent of charter schools, said the state is now facing a capacity demand issue with charter schools. “We are looking at ways to make more investment,” in charter schools, he said, without providing specifics. When asked for comment after Sununu’s announcement, NEA-NH president Megan Tuttle said: “I am just hearing this for first time – initial thought is that $7 million could help out traditional public schools in so many ways right now.” At the same press conference, Sununu also urged parents of students with special needs who may have an individual education plan and those who are students learning English as a second language to give the state Department of Education a call to help work with the schools on “accountability” for remote learning and other needs. Sununu also announced another $10 million will be distributed to long-term care facilities, another $13 million will go to over 300 healthcare providers across the state, and $20 million has been allocated for 300 businesses and non-profits in a “GAP Fund” who missed out on the first round of coronavirus aid because they “fell through the cracks.” (Source: InDepthNH)

6. Masked and Ready to Learn: Portsmouth Students Return to School Buildings. On Thursday, in-person learning made its first return to Portsmouth schools since March. However, a distinct difference from the last time school hallways were filled with shuffling students and clattering lockers, all kids and staff wore face coverings – required by the school district as it navigates a return to in-person instruction amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Thursday was the first day of in-person school for second through 12th-graders whose last names begin with letters A-K. On Friday, the second cohort – students with last names L-Z – will have their first in-person day. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Portsmouth Schools to Open Shuttered Senior Center for Supervised Remote Learning Support Space. The city’s brand new senior activity center – currently closed to its target population because of COVID-19 risks – will soon become a remote learning base for students needing support, structure and supervision as Portsmouth schools open with 4 days of remote learning and only 1 day of in-person learning for grades 2-12. Scheduled to be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., the facility on Cottage Street can accommodate between 30 and 40 students. It is one of 3 facilities created by the department to provide working parents with a safe place for their children to go during remote learning days designed to provide the structure and support that a student may not have at home. Families with outlying childcare questions or concerns are encouraged to contact Cindy Bishop-Alex, the district’s family outreach specialist, at cbishop-alex@sau52.org or visit the district’s parent resource page. (Source: Seacoast Online)

8. Concord Students Exposed to Lewd Images During Remote Learning. The Concord School District is investigating multiple reports of high school students being subjected to inappropriate content during remote classes, and officials say they don’t yet know whether the activity was from an outside hacker. In one case, officials believe a student impersonated someone else and logged into class with a nude photo as the account holder’s profile picture. The district has also received reports that another group of high school students may have been exposed to a sexually explicit video and/or images. (Source: Concord Monitor)

9. Checks Go Out for $300 Weekly Jobless Benefit But Federal Money Has Already Run Out. Unemployment payments, including extra $300-a-week federal enhancements went out on Wednesday, according to Employment Security Deputy Commissioner Richard Lavers. But there is a chance that they might be the last federally enhanced checks unemployed workers will receive for a while. Only five weeks of funding for the Low Wage Assistance Program were approved for New Hampshire, but Lavers said he is hoping to get word about a possible sixth week. (Source: NH Business Review). The $300 benefit replaced an earlier $600 weekly benefit after it expired at the end of July and Republican members of the U.S. Senate refused to sign on to a House stimulus package approved in May that would have expended the benefit at the $600 level. Meanwhile, a much smaller Republican package voted down yesterday would have extended the $300 benefit through December 27. But although the package also included some additional money for schools, it left out elements considered essential by Senate Democrats, including relief for state and local governments, food assistance for children, families evicted from their homes, relief for the travel industry and broadband in rural areas. (Source: CNN) Note: Federal relief for state and local governments is essential for the state of N.H. and many cities and towns to avoid drastic budget and service cuts as a result of large revenue shortfalls caused by the pandemic. The non-partisan N.H. Fiscal Policy Institute has created an easy-to-read report that shows where state revenues come from and where the pandemic has created large shortfalls. The report concludes that these shortfalls “may have significant impacts on the State’s ability to provide the services Granite Stater’s need during this pandemic and its aftermath.” (Source: NHFPI)

10. USDA Announces Relief Program for Commercial Fishermen. Help is on the way for New Hampshire commercial fishermen who were struggling under trade tariffs from China and Europe before the pandemic dried up local demand for fish and lobster. Officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Wednesday a relief program that will pay out up to $250,000 to help commercial fishermen absorb losses since 2019. The sign-up period begins Sept. 14 and runs through Dec. 14. Applications for the Seafood Trade Relief Program can be found at farmers.gov/seafood. (Source: WMUR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 10, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Thursday September 10

With state health officials reporting 23 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, N.H. has now surpassed 7,500 total cases since the start of the pandemic. No new deaths were announced. Here is the rest of the news you need to know to start your Thursday.

1. Portsmouth Schools Ready to Go with In-Person Learning on a Reduced Scale. Today the Portsmouth School District is set to welcome back its first cohort of students for in-person instruction, and its second cohort on Friday. Orientations for sixth-graders and ninth-graders took place on Wednesday. Parent resources and information on school reopening plans can be found here. (Source: Seacoast Online)

2. Judge Rules Trump, RNC Can Intervene in Lawsuit Challenging N.H.'s COVID-19 Voting Procedures. President Trump's re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee can intervene in a lawsuit challenging New Hampshire's COVID-19 voting procedures, a judge has ruled. The campaigns will join New Hampshire state attorneys who oppose further changes to absentee ballot rules for the November election. The American Federation of Teachers filed the new voting lawsuit in August. It’s wants New Hampshire to offer prepaid postage for absentee ballots, to allow wider use of ballot dropboxes and to force election officials to count absentee ballots as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. (Source: NHPR)

3. Primary Voting Was Pretty Routine... With A Few Exceptions. Absentee ballots flooded in, long-established routines were changed, masks were everywhere and close contact was virtually nowhere. Despite all the changes, the first statewide election in the pandemic was most notable for not being terribly notable. “It went much better than what we expected. Although we didn’t know what to expect, actually,” said Mridula Naik, town clerk in Bow. One big concern was voter protests against mask-wearing mandates, which were instituted by many moderators. [In Portsmouth, at least 4 voters challenged moderators over the mask requirement.] In all, the Attorney General’s office reported 125 calls or e-mails about various issues during the day, compared to 163 during this year’s Presidential Primary. (Source: Concord Monitor) Complaints received by the AG’s Office ranged from mask issues to use of a nickname on the ballot. (Source: InDepthNH). The only clothing-related incident that drew much attention occurred in Exeter. There, a woman was told she couldn’t wear her anti-Trump T-shirt into the polling place because it was political advertising. So she removed it, voted topless, put it back on and left. (Source: USA Today)

4. Sen. Hassan: Public Trust Vital for COVID-19 Vaccine. In a public hearing Wednesday before the U.S. Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., probed U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams about public trust in a COVID-19 vaccine, which she called “critical to achieving the widespread use of a vaccine.” Hassan referenced a recent CBS poll which “found that two-thirds of Americans would think the process had been rushed if we got a vaccine this year.” Adams said he’s been engaged in a “full court press’ to increase public confidence in the vaccine process which he said “has been wavering long before COVID.” Last month, Hassan introduced bipartisan legislation called “The Safe Authorization for Vaccines during Emergencies (SAVE) Act.” The legislation, she said, is aimed at improving public confidence in the vaccine review process by “helping to ensure that these independent FDA and CDC reviews take place in a transparent way, free from political influence, without slowing down the development of safe and effective vaccines.” (Source: Seacoast Online) Earlier this week, drug giant AstraZeneca said it would pause global trials of its coronavirus vaccine because of an unexplained illness in one of the volunteers. On the same day, AstraZeneca also joined eight other companies in signing a pledge promising they would not seek premature government approval for any coronavirus vaccine. They promised they would wait until they had adequate data showing any potential vaccine worked safely. (Source: CNN)

5. Governor Authorizes N.H. Participation in Reduced Federal Unemployment Benefit. After agreeing to participate in the federal Lost Wages Assistance program in August, Governor Sununu finally made it official yesterday by signing an emergency order that formalizes the state’s participation. Residents who are collecting unemployment benefits, who are eligible for at least $100 per week, are eligible for $300 in weekly aid from the Lost Wages program. The assistance is retroactive to August 1 for recipients who were eligible for unemployment assistance in previous weeks. (Source: NHPR) The aid replaces a previous $600 per week federal benefit that expired on July 31. On its website, the N.H. Employment Security Department says it plans to start issuing checks today, September 10. (Source: NH ESD)

6. Tent Inspections Delay Start of Schools in Peterborough. ConVal middle and high school students began the 2020-21 school year remotely due to delays in the safety inspection process for the more than 80 tents set up as outdoor classrooms throughout the district. “There were so many moving pieces to get the school running again,” Peterborough Fire Chief Ed Walker said on Tuesday, “nobody really anticipated how long these little nuances... were going to take.” The “nuances” holding up reopening involve state inspection standards that developed following the deadly 2013 circus tent collapse in Lancaster. (Source: Monadnock Ledger Transcript)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 9, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website at https://www.davidmeuse4nh.com/updates1/2020/9/1/daily-nh-coronavirus-update.

Wednesday September 9

A Portsmouth Ward 5 voter who refused to wear a mask and was denied entry to Little Harbour School takes advantage of voting “al fresco” in a special area outside the building that was set up to accommodate voters refusing to don masks inside the polls.

21 new COVID-19 cases were reported by state health officials on Tuesday and no new deaths. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Wednesday.

1. Primary Election Sees Record Voter Turnout. Predictions of a record turnout by Secretary of State William Gardner appeared to be accurate as competitive races in both parties and well-publicized safety measures taken at polling places combined to bring voters out on a gorgeous late summer day. As many as 100,000 voters used absentee ballots, five to six times the usual number, but about 60 percent still went to the polls to cast their ballots. Incumbents Chris Sununu, Jeanne Shaheen, and Chris Pappas cruised to victories in their primaries, while two Trump-endorsed candidates—Senate hopeful Corky Messner and congressional hopeful Matt Mowers—also appear to have won their races. In the Democratic primary for governor, Andru Volinsky at this writing had yet to concede a tight race where Sen. Dan Feltes has already declared victory after building a lead of five percentage points. (Source: InDepthNH) In the closely-watched District 21 state senate race to replace retiring Sen. Martha Fuller Clark, Portsmouth City Councilor Deaglan McEachern has conceded to Rebecca Perkins Kwoka, who will face Republican Susan Polidura in the general election. (Source: Seacoast Online ) In the District 3 Executive Council race, Mindi Messmer secured the Democratic nomination and Janet Stevens had the lead in a tight Republican race. (Source: The Eagle Tribune) See the results for all state primary races here. (Source: NHPR)

2. Maskless Voters Test Election Workers And Portsmouth Police. While the vast majority of voters complied with the requirement to wear masks inside Portsmouth polling places, police were called to the Portsmouth High School Tuesday when two voters refused to wear face masks to vote at the city’s Ward 4 polls. “There’s no law requiring me to wear a mask in the public high school,” Warren Goddard, 91, said after the commotion died down during state primary voting. He explained he went inside the polls without a face mask, was told he had to wear one or vote outside, and refused to do both. Goddard said after an officer at the polls told him he’d have to leave if he wasn’t wearing a mask, he replied, “I’m not leaving here without a cop taking me out.” Two additional officers arrived on scene and Goddard and Susan Gallagher were allowed to vote, maskless, inside the high school polls. (Source: Seacoast Online) At polling locations across Portsmouth, including Ward 4, alternate outdoor voting arrangements were available for voters wanting to vote in-person but who refused to wear masks. In Ward 5 (Little Harbour School), two voters who refused to wear masks and demanded to be able to vote inside were told by the moderator that they would not be able to enter the building without masks, but that they could vote without masks in the alternate area outside. One eventually chose to vote in the outdoor area and neither was allowed to enter the school without a mask.

3. Two Portsmouth Police Officers Test Positive for COVID-19. Two ranking Portsmouth Police Department officers have tested positive for COVID-19, placing them and others on quarantine, while department-wide testing is ongoing, said Chief Robert Merner. The good news, the chief said, is that one of the positive officers is asymptomatic, the other has just a “scratchy throat” and both work inside the police station, not in public-facing roles. Merner said both of those officers are in quarantine and that every other police employee who has been tested in the past few days has tested negative.(Source: Seacoast Online)

4. Positive Tests Prompt Sudden Switch to Remote Learning at Windham High School. High school students in Windham won’t be able to for in-person classes for at least three days after an unspecified number of students tested positive for the coronavirus, the school district confirmed Tuesday evening, the day before classes were to begin. Superintendent Richard Langlois of SAU 95 in Windham had initially announced in a letter to the school community that athletic activities were being suspended at Windham High School because some students had tested positive for the virus. But after more students tested positive, he sent a second letter announcing the school would be moving to remote learning through the end of the week. (Source: NBC Boston) Meanwhile in Raymond, students will be returning to classes today after fears that 6 staff members may have been exposed to the virus proved to be unfounded after all 6 tested negative. (Source: WMUR)

5. New COVID Testing Lab Opens at UNH to Process Student’s Self-Collected Samples. The University of New Hampshire announced it will test students for COVID-19 in a newly created lab, which was established especially to quickly process virus results. The center will use samples from self-swabbing home kits to test students every four days. Students will drop off their self-collected samples at designated sites and at designated times. The lab will employ pool testing, a procedure that combines many individual samples to speed up the rate of testing. If the combined samples test negative, the students can return to classes. If the samples test positive, each individual sample is tested again to determine who needs to be quarantined. UNH developed this lab after watching testing delays across the country that have made it difficult for health officials to trace outbreaks. (Source: Concord Monitor) The program got off to a rocky start when 250 student test samples were lost, forcing UNH to contact the affected students to ask them to get re-tested. (Source: The New Hampshire) UNH isn’t the only college in New England having problems as some students fail to abide by COVID-19 restrictions put in place by administrators. Similar issues—and outbreaks—have cropped up on campuses in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. (Source: NECN)

6. Portsmouth Business Owners Hopeful As Fall Looms. After COVID-19 arrived, many Seacoast businesses were forced to temporarily close and others closed for good. Now, as the summer draws to an end, businesspeople interviewed Monday in Portsmouth were cautiously optimistic things are improving. “The city has been very helpful,” said Clipper Tavern Owner Sean Sullivan. “We worked on the outdoor seating and have made it really inviting. We will keep the outdoor section as long as we can through the season. I’d actually like to be able to offer it again next year because it’s really popular.” Creativity and partnerships with the city helped many Portsmouth restaurants make it, according to owners. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Ocean Boulevard Reopens at Hampton Beach. The so-called “walking mall” at Hampton Beach is no longer. Hampton police along with state Department of Transportation crews reopened Ocean Boulevard to traffic early Tuesday morning. The new traffic reconfiguration was put in place to create more room for pedestrian social distancing and outdoor dining over the summer, but received mixed reviews. While restaurants appreciated the outdoor space, other businesses said they saw less foot traffic due to the barricades set up to allow traffic on H and O Street. The arrangement also led to traffic tie-ups as motorists were forced to detour around the closed area. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 8, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Tuesday September 8

State health officials reported 33 new COVID-19 cases for Monday but no new deaths. Here is the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Primary Election Day Tuesday.

1. Ballot Boxes and Masks At The Ready, N.H. Prepares To Vote Amid Coronavirus. Tuesday is going to be a learning experience for voters and election officials alike, as New Hampshire navigates its first election of the COVID-19 era. Heading into the state primary, local pollworkers were briefed on new absentee ballot procedures, outfitted with personal protective equipment and coached on how to achieve safe social distancing while juggling voter registration and other Election Day demands. And last week, New Hampshire’s local election officials also were coached on effective communication and de-escalation techniques from New Hampshire’s Police Standards and Training Council. The Secretary of State’s office organized the class on relatively short notice Friday at the request of local election officials, some of whom have been warning that they feel ill-equipped to respond if voters refuse to comply with mask rules or other new COVID-related procedures. The state has offered guidance on how to handle Election Day mask requirements but has left the responsibility of setting and enforcing those rules up to local officials. (Source: NHPR)

2. When and Where to Vote in Portsmouth. Polling places in Portsmouth will open at 8 a.m. for in-person voting along with same-day new voter registration—and will close tonight at 7 p.m. Absentee ballots will also be received until 5 p.m. This year, two of the city’s polling places have changed. Ward 3 residents will now vote at the Senior Activity Center at 125 Cottage Street (instead of Robert J. Lister Academy). Ward 4 residents will now vote at Portsmouth High School, 50 Andrew Jarvis Drive (instead of the Dondero School). If you don’t know which polling place to go to, you can look look up your ward and polling place by your street name and number here. (Source: Portsmouth City Clerk)

3. Absentee Ballots Expected to Fuel High Turnout in Tuesday's State Primary Election. A relaxing of requirements to request absentee ballots and high voter interest have Secretary of State Bill Gardner expecting a record number of ballots to be cast in the state primary election on Tuesday. As of Monday morning, 100,539 absentee ballots had been requested and 75,287 of those had been returned, Gardner said. He expects that number to rise, since some town and city halls opened to accept ballots late Monday afternoon. More absentee ballots are expected to come in on Tuesday. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

4. Summer Tourism Season Marked By Pandemic Comes to an End. With Labor Day and the end of the summer tourism season, N.H. business owners said they're doing the best they can and trying to hold everything together until next year. Mike Somers, president of the New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association, said he has never seen anything take an economic toll like the coronavirus pandemic has. The vital summer tourism season was cut in half while the number of visitors was limited. Somers estimates the hospitality industry has lost at least 5-10% of its businesses and says it could go as high as 20-30%, depending on how the pandemic plays out over the next two to three months. (Source: WMUR)

5. CDC Eviction Moratorium Could Help Granite State Renters. A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eviction moratorium could help Granite Staters who are unable to pay rent or are at risk for homelessness. The new federal moratorium ensures protections for all types of evictions and tenants of all types of housing, and does not strictly apply to pandemic-related hardships. It expires Dec. 31, when tenants must pay all previously unpaid rent. “In halting evictions, the order will help many people stay in their homes and avoid exposure to COVID-19 in homeless shelters or on the street,” said Elliott Berry, NHLA Housing Justice Project co-director. “However, this does not absolve tenants from paying rent, and does not address what will happen to people on Jan. 1, when their unpaid rent is due. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that tenants who are having trouble paying their rent pay as much as they can afford and apply for rental assistance as soon as possible.” Those unable to afford rent payments can apply for assistance at CAPnh.org or through their local town or city welfare office before signing a declaration form. For legal assistance, visit nhlegalaid.org. (Source: Granite State News Collaborative via Seacoast Online)

6. COAST Perseveres Through Pandemic but Challenges Remain. After shutting down completely in April and the first part of May, weekly ridership on fixed bus routes serviced by the Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation has steadily grown from a low that equaled only 22% of pre-pandemic ridership levels (during the week of May 11) to now equaling nearly 55% of pre-pandemic levels. Over that same time services increased significantly, from a limited restart, to a full launch of COAST’s redesigned public transit system on June 29. “We are very happy with the growth in ridership we have seen over the past 16 weeks,” said COAST Executive Director Rad Nichols. “You have to remember that there are a lot of people who unfortunately do not have jobs to go to. Many with jobs are also working fully remotely now.” Nichols also says that many students will attend their classes remotely and the nearly overnight adoption of telehealth is also impacting ridership. (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 7, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Monday September 7

On a day when the U.S. surpassed 190,000 coronavirus deaths, N.H. public health officials announced 29 new cases and one new death for Sunday. State hotspots include Manchester with 35 current cases and Durham with 29. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Labor Day Monday.

1. Durham COVID-19 Outbreak Linked to UNH Fraternity Party. State health officials are investigating a potential outbreak of COVID-19 tied to a large fraternity party at the University of New Hampshire last weekend. Eleven people diagnosed with COVID-19 have connections to the August 29 party hosted by the Theta Chi fraternity, which drew more than 100 people with few wearing masks. The university is advising anyone who attended the party to self-quarantine and contact the school’s health and wellness office. Students who may have been exposed can access testing through the University of New Hampshire. Persons not associated with the university can access testing at the locations listed here. (Sources: NHPR and DHHS) Meanwhile, in an online statement UNH President James Dean labeled the party as “reprehensible”. “Let me be clear, Dean posted, “This is reckless behavior and the kind of behavior that undermines our planning and will lead to us switching to a fully remote mode.” The statement also announced all fraternity gatherings are barred during an investigation. (Source: Seacoast Online )

2. UNH Loses Hundreds of Tests on First Day of Student Coronavirus Testing. The University of New Hampshire student newspaper is reporting that on the first day of the university’s COVID-19 self-testing program, about 250 student-completed tests were misplaced. The blunder came just days after the arrival of thousands of UNH students to UNH’s Durham campus, and on the day that the university opened its new, fully operational COVID-19 testing lab. University officials have acknowledged the error and apologized to the students involved. All of the students affected have since been retested. (Source: The New Hampshire)

3. COVID Tracker: Reporting of School Cases Lagging. In its weekly report on four key coronavirus metrics, the Concord Monitor reports that data shown on the state’s coronavirus dashboard for schools is 9 days old for at least two schools and data from all the non-colleges is at least 4 days old. Differences were also observed between reports listed on the state’s dashboard and what the University of New Hampshire is reporting. At the time the article was written, the state database said UNH in Durham had 13 confirmed and 16 recovered cases even though Thursday the school reported it was monitoring 26 confirmed cases of COVID-19. UNH also says it has 169 students in quarantine around Durham, including members of a fraternity and a sorority. While reporting lags and discrepancies may decrease with time, the writer notes that this uncertainty makes it harder to judge on a day-to-day basis how the reopening of many schools is affecting the spread of COVID-19 in the state. Meanwhile, the state continues to meet key goals for testing and there are fewer than 4 new cases for every 100,000 people. However, the two week running average for new cases increased last week—an indicator that while the disease is not yet at a dangerous level in N.H., it continues to spread. (Source: Concord Monitor)

4. Reminder: Portsmouth Voting Center Open from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Today to Service Absentee Voters. It may be a holiday, but the Portsmouth City Clerk and election workers will be on the job this afternoon at Portsmouth City Hall to receive applications for absentee ballots, to provide voters the opportunity to complete absentee ballots, and to receive returned ballots for tomorrow’s primary election. (Source: City of Portsmouth) As of Friday, the N.H. Secretary of State’s office said it had only received about 2/3 of the 100,000 ballots that had been applied for. IMPORTANT: If you completed a ballot received by mail and haven’t had a chance to mail it back, you can hand your signed and completed envelope and sealed ballot to the clerk in the Voting Center. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR BALLOT IN THE GREY RECEPTACLE IN THE CITY HALL PARKING LOT.

5. Big Turnout Expected for Tuesday Primary, Especially in Dem Races. Tomorrow, Primary voters in both parties will decide competitive races, picking winners who a short eight weeks later will try to thwart the reelection bids of Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, and U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and U.S. Reps. Chris Pappas and Annie Kuster. Secretary of State Bill Gardner, the longest-serving state elections chief in the country, said Friday he has never been less certain about how many will cast ballots, because of how dramatically COVID-19 has altered the landscape. Among the more competitive races are the Democratic races for governor—where Andru Volinsky and Dan Feltes have been running in a dead heat in recent polls—and the District 2 Executive Council race to replace Volinsky where six Democratic candidates are vying to secure the nomination. Competitive races are also expected in several key Republican contests, including a U.S. Senate primary where Gen. Dan Bolduc is opposing businessman Corky Messner. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

6. Coronavirus Throwing Candidates a Curve. In this commentary, InDepthNH and veteran state house reporter Gary Rayno says that much as campaigns have changed to reflect the times, nothing has changed this election as much as the coronavirus pandemic. We have a steady streaming of Zoom meetings with candidates selling their message to a like-minded group or debating with one another. During debates candidates are not in the same room so watching the facial expressions and body language of your opponent is nearly impossible on the electronic stage. Press conferences have been replaced with the four or five daily press releases. The pandemic has also temporarily changed voting laws to allow people troubled by large crowds and the possibility of infection to vote by absentee ballot. So far about 100,000 people have requested absentee ballots and [as of Friday] two-thirds of them have been returned to local election officials. With five or six times the number of usual absentee ballots to be run through machines or counted by hand, some election results will take additional time to tabulate. The counting process may also be slowed by party representatives challenging ballots. In a close race, like the one expected for the Democratic gubernatorial race between Executive Councilor Andru Volinsky and Senate Majority Leader Dan Feltes, the results may not be known on election night. (Source: InDepthNH)

7. Splaine Proposes Partial Exemption from Proposed Portsmouth Mask Mandate for First Responders. When the Portsmouth City Council next meets on September 14, it will hold a third and final reading for a face-mask ordinance and Assistant Mayor Jim Splaine will propose a partial exemption for first responders. Splaine’s proposed amendment includes the wording, “Exempted from the requirements of the ordinance requiring the wearing of face coverings include law enforcement personnel, first responders, or other workers actively engaged in their tasks if wearing a face covering may hinder their performance.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mask advisory doesn’t include exemptions for first responders, and in neighboring Durham, where the student population could be compared to Portsmouth’s tourist population, there is no exemption. Portsmouth police and fire officials indicated little to nothing would change if the exemption is passed. Portsmouth Police Chief Robert Merner said current protocols require all police personnel to wear a face mask unless they’re driving alone in a police vehicle, or under “exigent circumstances.” Those circumstances, he explained, can include a foot chase, an officer observing an emergency while driving alone and unmasked, then exiting a cruiser, or responding to someone “screaming for help.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 6, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Sunday September 6

The new voting arrangement at Little Harbour School, the polling place for Ward 5 in Portsmouth.

State officials announced 58 new infections and no deaths on Saturday. Here are the top pandemic-related N.H. news stories for Sunday.

1. New Hampshire Records Highest Daily Number of New Positive COVID-19 Cases Since July 28. The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services announced 58 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, making this the highest daily total of new positive cases since July 28th. There are currently 250 active cases of coronavirus in the state according to health officials. Over the course of the pandemic 7,424 Granite Staters have had the virus. Of the new cases, four are in individuals under the age of 18. Several cases remain under investigation. No new deaths were reported Saturday, continuing the weeklong-plus streak since someone has died from COVID-19 in the state. (Source: WMUR) No information was provided on the cause of the spike or specific outbreaks associated with it.

2. COVID-19 Cases Continue to Rise in Durham. The number of new positive tests for the coronavirus continues to grow in Durham, home of the University of New Hampshire. The Department of Health and Human Services on Saturday reported Durham now has 27 active cases, up from the 18 cases reported on Friday. Durham had been in the low single-digits at the end of August but the number of cases has steadily increased since the return of students to the UNH campus. (Source: Seacoast Online)

3. More Than a Dozen Keene State Residence Life Staff Resign Over Reopening Plan. Fourteen residential life employees — three professional staff members, five head resident assistants and six other RAs — have left their positions. Jordan Dawson, a senior a Keene State and an RA, said his peers who have left their roles did so because they were not comfortable with the college’s reopening plan, which Dawson characterized as being “full of holes.” Keene State President Melinda Treadwell said she’s been meeting with the RAs to try to address their concerns. A total of seven students, but no faculty or staff members, tested positive during their pre-arrival screening, according to the Keene State COVID-19 dashboard, which the school launched on its website Friday. Five of those students have not entered campus yet, Treadwell said Friday, while one is in isolation on campus, and the other is in isolation in her off-campus apartment. (Source: Keene Sentinel)

4. Rockingham County Jail COVID Outbreak Under Control. County officials are confident the 11-person COVID-19 outbreak within Rockingham County jail is under control. Neither the 10 inmates nor the nurse who tested positive for COVID-19 had to be hospitalized. All awaiting the results of a second test to determine if they are no longer infected. Since the Aug. 24 announcement reporting the outbreak, no additional staff or inmates have tested positive. (Source: Seacoast Online)

5. COVID Precautions Front-and-Center at the Polls for Tuesday’s Primary Election. Virtually all polling places have changed their layout for this election, creating one-way paths for voters, spreading out booths, installing “sneeze guards” for poll workers, and tweaking sign-up procedures. Voters will usually have to place their own ballot into ballot-counting machines or into ballot boxes for hand-counted towns, rather than handing them to poll workers as has usually been done in the past. Another difference is that each voter will be given a separate pen for one-time use, and a pad to place under their ballot while filling out the little ovals to reduce the chance of a virus spreading from the previous voter in a voting booth. Using federal funds, the state is providing masks, gloves, sanitizer and other PPE, including some gowns, for poll workers who will almost always be using them all. Voters are another matter. “Masks have been the biggest issue of all. There’s a huge divergence of opinion on masks; some moderators think they’re not going to require them and others will,” said Peter Isme, town moderator in Bow. “Based on moderator discussion, it looks like more will be requiring masks in polling places than not.” (Source: Concord Monitor) Note: Today’s photo shows the new voting arrangement at Portsmouth’s Little Harbour School.

6. Coronavirus Pandemic Increasing Depression, Substance Abuse. Mental health experts are concerned about the rise in depression, substance use disorders, and suicidal ideations in adults as they try to cope with the continued isolation and added burdens of COVID-19. Dr. Patrick Ho, a psychiatrist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and president of the New Hampshire Psychiatric Society, said we are seeing almost two pandemics: COVID-19 and the mental health and substance abuse cases. Those who already had an addiction, or other mental health condition are worsening, partly because it may be more difficult to get the help they need. Adults who never had issues with depression or anxiety are struggling as they try to fill the multiple roles of parent, teacher, employee and just maintaining their role in the world they lived in pre-coronavirus. Nationally, suspected overdoses rose this year by 18% in March, 29% in April, and 42% in May compared to those same months in 2019, and increases in visits to emergency rooms for opioid related cases are on the rise, according to New Hampshire health officials. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. Seacoast Schools Expect CARES Act Funds to Go Fast. As school districts throughout the Seacoast advocate for more federal reopening assistance, one of the region’s smallest says it’s preparing for great uncertainty after its $13,353 CARES Act allotment was depleted in less than a week. Rollinsford School Board Chair Judy Nelson said the limited CARES Act funding was exhausted after her district purchased personal protective equipment like face masks and hand sanitizer, leaving many questions about how the coming months could impact the operating budget. Rochester, a 12-school, roughly 4,200-student district, received $1,104,894, which was the most funding allocated to a Seacoast school district, according to a NHDOE spreadsheet. Rochester School Board members have said they anticipate their district will need to spend thousands of dollars in taxpayer funds because the allotment won’t cover all the district’s COVID-19 supplies and expenses. Dover, which is similar in size to Rochester, received $650,543, according to NHDOE data. Somersworth received $549,980, Portsmouth $286,291, Seabrook $205,856, Exeter $106,747, Hampton $88,642, Barrington $66,280, and the Oyster River Cooperative School District $39,496. According to the advocacy group Reaching Higher NH, district allocations are determined by the federal government, and are largely dependent on the number or proportion of students navigating poverty that attend a district’s public schools. (Source: Fosters Daily Democrat)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 5, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

You can also view these daily updates on my website.

Saturday September 5

23 new COVID-19 infections were reported in N.H. on Friday and no new deaths. Here is the pandemic-related news you need to know to start your Saturday.

1. Town and City Clerks’ Offices Will Be Open to Accept Absentee Ballots on Labor Day. You may have Labor Day off, but your town or city clerk will not. That’s because state law requires that clerks’ offices be open the day before any primary or general election in order to receive absentee ballots. Next Tuesday is the state’s primary election and so, despite Monday’s holiday, town and city clerks’ offices will be open from 3 to 5 p.m. During that time people who are voting absentee will be able to drop off their ballots in time to have them counted the following day. (Source: Laconia Daily Sun) In Portsmouth, completed ballots may be hand-delivered to the City Clerk in Portsmouth City Hall from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday.

2. Local Election Officials Gear Up for Tuesday’s Election. In Portsmouth, city workers and election workers were busy Friday setting up polling places for in-person voting for Tuesday’s primary election. In Ward 5, voters will notice a different flow and layout from previous years as a portion of the Little Harbour School cafeteria will be used in addition to the gym to help maintain social distancing. Other pandemic-related changes to expect: poll workers in N95 face masks and face shields, plexiglass windows set up on tables between voters and election workers, voting booths sanitized after each use, and fewer voters being allowed inside the building at any one time. On Saturday, election workers will begin pre-processing absentee ballots by removing the outer envelope and inspecting the inner envelope to make sure required information has been completed. The inner envelopes containing the ballots themselves cannot be opened until the day of the election. (Source: Personal notes) More information is available on the Portsmouth City Clerk’s Voter Information page.

3. What If You Didn’t Get a Primary Absentee Ballot Yet and the Election is Tuesday? According to an update from Assistant Attorney General Anne Edwards, “If an absentee ballot is not received in Saturday’s mail or by Tuesday morning, the primary election day, the voter should go to the polling place on Election Day and vote using the accessible voting process. This voting process will occur outside of the polling place using the absentee voting process.” Information about accessible voting from the NH Secretary of State’s Office is available here. Edwards received an update Friday about what the NH GOP is doing to rectify a situation where unlawful mailers sent by the NH GOP may have confused voters. The update said a warning ad had been run in the Union Leader. The NH GOP also made phone calls to affected voters in cases where phone numbers were available. Some affected voters requested in-person deliveries of their absentee ballot applications, and NH GOP field staff are beginning those deliveries. (Source: InDepthNH)

4. NH Goes Full Week with No COVID-19 Deaths for First Time Since March. For the first time since the death of a Hillsborough County man from COVID-19 in March, New Hampshire has gone a full week with no coronavirus deaths. There were no deaths announced in Friday's COVID-19 update released by the Department of Health and Human Services. The most recent death caused by COVID-19 was announced last Friday. To date, 432 N.H. residents have died as a result of the illness during the pandemic. (Source: WMUR)

5. Just Over the Border: York County Heightens COVID Alert Level. Disturbing news from just over the border in York County, Maine, where active COVID-19 cases are now triple the number in any other Maine County. Some schools are adjusting their reopening plans after York County on Friday became the first and only county in Maine classified as “yellow” in the state’s color-coded system that tracks the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The classification system is designed to guide local school district leaders in their decision-making. The yellow designation means state officials see an elevated risk of the virus spreading in York County. Meanwhile, after an outbreak that as of Friday had spread to infect 72 inmates, workers and family members, the York County Jail is temporarily no longer accepting new prisoners. People under arrest who would normally be booked at the jail are now being diverted to the Cumberland Country lock-up. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. N.H. School COVID-19 Dashboard Shows 25 Active Cases At Colleges In New Hampshire. State health officials are reporting 25 active cases of COVID-19 at five colleges and universities across the state. The cases— at the University of New Hampshire, Keene State, Franklin Pierce University, New England College, and Rivier University—are being reported on the same dashboard being used to report K-12 cases. According to Jake Leon, a spokesperson for DHHS, the cases listed will only include students who spend any time on-campus, including commuters. But if a student who is studying fully remotely tests positive, and does not go to a school or college campus for any reason, he or she would not be included in the dashboard. In addition to the DHHS dashboard, UNH is publishing a weekly update and Plymouth State is publishing a daily update. (Source: NHPR) You can view the NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard here.

7. N.H. Fiscal Policy Institute: Key to Economic Recovery Will be Supporting Those with the Fewest Resources Who Are the Most Impacted. The independent, non-partisan N.H. Fiscal Policy Institute is urging N.H. policy makers to focus economic recovery efforts on reducing the potential for downward economic mobility among low-to-moderate income workers and building a more equitable economy for New Hampshire. In a report titled “Challenges Facing New Hampshire’s Workers and Economy During the COVID-19 Crisis”, NHFPI found a majority of the negative employment impacts of the COVID-19 crisis have fallen on service-based industries that pay lower than average wages. Prior to the pandemic, a large portion of employment in the state had transitioned to service-based jobs. Of the top five largest industries, which comprised nearly 60 percent of employment in the state, only one had an average weekly wage higher than the statewide average. The combination of significant portions of employment in New Hampshire comprising of lower wage service-based industry work, the latent wage recovery and growth for lower- and middle-income workers in the state over the last decade, the increased costs of key goods and services, and concentrated impacts of the crisis on individuals and families who may have the fewest resources highlights the risks to the economic security of many Granite Staters. You can read the full report by following the link. (Source: N.H. Fiscal Policy Institute)

8. Rental Assistance Application Simplified. State and community action agencies have announced that the previous 8-page application for filing for the New Hampshire Housing Relief Program is being shortened to three pages to open access to more state residents. The program is designed to keep people from losing their housing and to help them secure or maintain permanent housing. The program includes one-time assistance grants and a short-term rental assistance program. You can learn more about how the program works and where to apply here: https://www.capnh.org (Source: City of Portsmouth Email Newsletter)

9. $300 Federal Unemployment Payments to Start in N.H. On September 10. According to the N.H. Employment Security Department, the state plans to finally be ready to issue payment checks for the Lost Wafe Assistance (LWA) program on September 10. The Trump administration issued an executive order creating the $300 weekly payment in place of a larger $600 weekly federal payment that expired on July 31 after efforts to extend it at the original level stalled in the Senate. Funding for the payment is being taken from the disaster relief budget of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In order to be eligible for the $300 weekly payment, your unemployment needs to have been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Payments will be retroactive to the week ending August 1st. NHES has set up an informational page with answers to frequently asked questions that you can access here. (Source: NHES) Note: At the root of the delay in issuing checks is NHES’s antiquated and less-than-flexible computerized administration system, which requires time-consuming system and process changes to be patched together in order to process funds from FEMA into payments for unemployed workers.

10. Some N.H. School Districts Having Trouble Finding Substitute Teachers. Officials in some N.H. school districts say they're having trouble attracting substitute teachers because of fears over the COVID-19 pandemic. In SAU 5, Superintendent Jim Morse said there has been a decline in substitute applications. "This issue in New Hampshire is the COVID rates are relatively low, but the anxiety is just as high as any place else in the country," he said. Morse said the district is asking teachers who might need to take an absence but are well enough to teach from home to do so. If that can't happen and there's no substitute available, Morse said people will be pulled from within the district so learning is not disrupted. (Source: WMUR)

11. N.H. Supreme Court to Resume In-Person Arguments. The New Hampshire Supreme Court is resuming in-person oral arguments on Wednesday, Sept. 9, and some criminal trials and some hearings also are going to be conducted in person, according to new orders related to the coronavirus pandemic issued Friday. In-person proceedings in the courts remain limited through Monday, Sept. 28. The court said criminal trials, delinquency/CHINS adjudicatory hearings, child support enforcement hearings, and termination of parental rights hearings will be conducted in person. Additionally, the superior court is conducting some in-person hearings if lawyers show the need for them. (Source: NHPR)

N.H. STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 4, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

Friday September 4

N.H. DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard for September 4, 2020.

41 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths were announced on Thursday. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Friday.

1. Sununu: Nov. 1 Date for Vaccine Unrealistic But N.H. Will Be Ready. New Hampshire would be ready to distribute a vaccine for COVID-19 if it becomes available by Nov. 1, but on Thursday Gov. Sununu said that timeline is unlikely. Federal health officials last week instructed states to be ready to begin distribution by Nov. 1, two days before the presidential election. The timing raised suspicion among public health experts about whether the Trump administration intends to rush approval for political gain. Sununu disagreed. “I don’t see it being politicized at all. They’re just trying to make sure we’re prepared,” he said. Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette said planning began in June for all the various options without yet knowing whether the vaccine would come directly from manufacturers or from the national strategic stockpile. Shibinette said the state is in a good place when it comes to system development for mass vaccination. But she cautioned that it doesn’t mean all residents would be able to get vaccinated at once. “It is not vaccinating 1.3 million people in 30 days. This is going to take multiple months,” she said.. (Source: Associated Press)

2. Evictions in N.H. And Across the Country are Halted: Here's What You Need to Know. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an order earlier this week to temporarily halt evictions through the end of the year. The CDC said evictions threaten to increase the spread of coronavirus because they force people to move -- sometimes from one state to another -- or go into shared living situations or group settings like shelters. The new moratorium protects eligible renters from eviction through December 31. But the requirements for this eviction moratorium are vague and enforcing the order may be complicated, said John Pollock, an attorney and coordinator of the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel. "There will be a lot of confusion," he said. "Tenants will have confusion about how to answer questions of eligibility. Landlords may try to preempt it or get tenants to agree to something worse." (Source: CNN)

3. USPS Changes Cause Delays in Essential Medications. Granite Staters are experiencing delays in getting essential medications, as the U.S Postal Service undergoes national changes. A recent poll found nearly 1 in 5 Americans get their prescription through the mail. This number has been increasing since the beginning of the pandemic. However, as the post office made widespread cuts to overtime, post office hours, and mail sorting machines, some patients in New Hampshire who rely on the mail service to receive their prescriptions are voicing concern. At a hearing with the Postmaster-General, New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan said her office has had a spike in calls from people worried about the delays. (Source: Concord Monitor)

4. Jobless Claims Continue to Fall in N.H. But Many Still Waiting for $300 Federal Supplement. According to the latest data released Thursday morning by the U.S. Labor Department, new claims in New Hampshire for the week ending Aug. 29 fell 17%, to 2,137, after going down 13% the week before. That’s still roughly four times the number of people losing jobs before the pandemic hit. Continuing claims for the week ending Aug. 21 were down 3,371 to 43,967, an 8% decrease, compared to a 6% decline the week before and a 5.5% decrease nationally. Many of those receiving benefits as of Aug. 21 are still waiting for the three weeks of $300 federal enhancements they were scheduled to receive as of Aug. 1. On Tuesday, Gov. Chris Sununu said that the holdup was due to the involvement of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, where the funds are coming from, and that the Department of Employment Security needed to adjust its computer system to accommodate that. (Source: NH Business Review)

5. 169 UNH Students in Quarantine as Semester Starts Up. Four days into the semester, the University of New Hampshire has reported 44 cases of COVID-19 and has 169 students in quarantine on and off its Durham campus, including members of a fraternity and a sorority. Officials are monitoring 26 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and more than a dozen “presumptive” positives, university spokesperson Erika Mantz said Thursday. (Source: Manchester Union Leader) Hoping to quell rising public anxiety, University of New Hampshire officials have sent a letter to Durham residents urging them not to panic after a fraternity and a sorority were placed in a 14-day quarantine because members tested positive for COVID-19. Officials did not name the fraternity or sorority. Town Administrator Todd Selig said that for the most part, UNH students have behaved downtown. “I think the one thing we’re really pleased with is there is a high level of mask-wearing compliance in town. The vast majority of people are wearing masks,” Selig said. UNH students are tested every two weeks, “so you don’t feel like you are at risk at any point,” said Lucie Beau of Brookline, Mass. (Source: Manchester Union Leader) Selig said police have issued about 350 warnings in relation to the town’s face covering ordinance, and handed out 74 masks. Most of those warnings have been given to University of New Hampshire students who recently returned to campus. But despite that, Selig says town officials, police and community members have been pleased with the amount of compliance by students. Selig stressed that the warnings police issued did not come with a fine and were focused on education, rather than punishment. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. COVID-19 Takes Toll on State Revenues. Business taxes and the rooms and meals tax continue to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as state revenues are down about 7 percent over the revenue plan developed by budget officials. While revenues were more than expected for the first month of the 2021 fiscal year, they were $8.4 million below estimates for August due largely to deficits in business and rooms and meals taxes. State revenues were $120.9 million for August, while the budget writers’ plan called for $129.3 million. Unaudited figures released at the end of July indicate the revenue deficit for the 2020 fiscal year is $144 million. (Source: InDepthNH)

7. Hampton Beach Celebrates Surviving COVID Summer. The beach community gave a ceremonial goodbye this week to a challenging 2020 season, celebrating the summer they salvaged in the face of COVID-19. Gov. Chris Sununu joined a party in the parking lot of the Main Sail Motel and Cottages on Ashworth Avenue Wednesday night, when town officials, restaurant and hotel owners, New Hampshire State Parks staff, police and firefighters gathered to toast the end of summer. “This is the year of death, but we are not dead,” said Sununu, who credited Hampton community members with their collaboration to make the beach season work while trying to limit the spread of COVID-19. The season saw no fireworks, Seafood Festival or Casino Ballroom concerts, but business owners said mere survival was an accomplishment in which they take pride. State Sen. Tom Sherman, D-Rye, a medical doctor who worked with officials on reopening the beach safely, credited decisions like limiting parking and closing the boulevard to traffic for keeping numbers down. “My hats off to all of you as a doc, you did it,” Sherman said to the group Tuesday. “You are doing it, and we know from the numbers we’re doing it safely.” (Source: Seacoast Online)

8. As Students Return, Philips Exeter Temporarily Closes Campus to Exeter Residents. As Phillips Exeter Academy students prepare to return to campus beginning Monday, the school is closing its campus to members of the public, including its expansive trails popular among residents. Principal William Rawson said because testing requirements and restrictions on students remaining on campus until the ninth- and 10-graders clear protocol, the school made the decision to close its campus to the public for the time being. ″(We’re not making the decision) lightly, we like having the town use our trails and feel comfortable coming on our campus,” Rawson said. ”(But) while we’re in this quarantine period with very tight restrictions, we also think it’s prudent to not have the town come on campus.” Rawson said students will be required to wear masks at all times when outside their dorm rooms and all staff will be responsible for ensuring students remain at a social distance outside and keep their masks on. (Source: Seacoast Online)

9. High School Athletes Take the Field with Additional Precautions to Preserve a Chance to Play. As of Thursday, more than half of the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association’s 89 schools are moving forward with fall sports, including local high schools Bishop Brady, Merrimack Valley, Bow, Pembroke Academy, Hopkinton, John Stark, Pittsfield, Franklin, Winnisquam, Coe-Brown and Hillsboro-Deering as well as Concord. Of the 58 NHIAA football teams, 50 are planning to play, four have decided against playing (Kearsarge, ConVal, Somersworth and Epping/Newmarket) and four are undecided. With Concord schools going to fully remote learning, some parents have questioned why in-person athletics are allowed to take place at all. It’s a valid point, and a potential spread caused by sports could endanger a potential return to in-person academics. But it seems like student-athletes and their families are willing to shoulder risks when it comes to playing sports. “I’ve heard of some kids not playing because of (coronavirus), I don’t know any of them personally, but everyone can make their own choice and not everyone feels comfortable in this environment right now,” Concord senior Brandon Comire said. “For me, the more I play the better I feel, my mind, my body, everything.” (Source: Concord Monitor)

STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 3, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

Thursday September 3

On Wednesday, DHHS reported 15 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths. Here is the rest of the pandemic-related N.H. news you need to know to start your Thursday.

1. Food Bank Estimates One in Seven Granite Staters Are Food Insecure. The number of families seeking food from the New Hampshire Food Bank has nearly tripled since the Covid-19 pandemic began, increasing from about 200 to 250 families per week to 500 to 650, according to Nancy Mellitt, director of development for New Hampshire Catholic Charities, which runs the food bank. She said one in seven Granite Staters, or 14.2% of the population, are food-insecure, meaning they don’t know where they will get their next meal. “Last year we distributed a little more than 14.2 million pounds of food,” Mellitt said on Aug. 20. “Right now, we have distributed 10,554,610 pounds of food statewide with four months to go.” Mellitt believes more people are coming in because of the lack of another stimulus payment, the federal government eliminating the extra $600 in unemployment insurance and the resumption of evictions in New Hampshire. (Source: Granite State News Collaborative via NH Business Review)

2. UNH Sees Spike in COVID-19 Cases. The University of New Hampshire has experienced a spike in coronavirus cases within the last week. The university reported 23 positive cases on Aug. 23, 30 reported cases as of Aug. 27, and to a new high of 44 cases as of Sunday, Aug. 30. Some of these numbers are result of a positive case in a UNH affiliated fraternity and sorority house, whose live-in members are now in quarantine for 14 days. In addition, a positive test from a non-student patron at a Durham bar the previous weekend has forced multiple students to quarantine. The cases are dispersed between the UNH Durham, Concord, and Manchester campuses. However, Durham is the only campus to experience an uptick in cases. The University of New Hampshire’s main campus has seen positive tests rise from 19 to 37 within a week. (Source: The New Hampshire)

3. Hanover Limits Gatherings to 10 People as Dartmouth Return Approaches. Gatherings held on or in residential properties in Hanover are now limited to 10 or fewer people, not counting the residents themselves, under an emergency ordinance passed Monday night by the town’s select board. The five-member board voted unanimously to adopt new rules, which also require hosts to maintain the names and contact information of guests. They say the ordinance will help to prevent the spread of coronavirus and discourage the large parties reported at rental properties over the summer, many said to involve Dartmouth College students. Classes resume at Dartmouth on September 14. (Source: Concord Monitor)

4. Epping Gets Creative to Keep Teachers in the Classroom. The Epping Recreation Department and school district have joined forces to offer the second floor of Watson Academy as a learning space for the children of Epping teachers who attend other school districts. Several teachers are impacted by the surrounding towns going to a remote option,” Recreation Director Nicole Bizzaro said. “The issue is, they have their own children at home who are doing remote learning.” SAU 14 Superintendent Bill Furbush said teachers whose own children are in remote learning are allowed under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to take family leave. By utilizing Watson Academy, Furbush said it gives those staff members another option. “I want to support my staff, and also keep the many quality teachers we have before our children,” he said. Bizzaro said the remote learning room would be staffed with school district personnel, such as paraprofessionals and long-term substitutes, who would be able to help the children with their online learning. The staff member would be paid by the school district, she said, and the parents’ fee of $25 per day would go to the district. (Source: Seacoast Online )

5. Hampton Schools to Welcome Back Students Sept. 8. The Hampton School District will welcome back students on Sept. 8 for the first day of school. SAU 90 Superintendent Dr. Lois Costa reports the district will follow a hybrid learning model for the start of the 2020-21 academic year. Students will be split up alphabetically into two groups. Children in Group A will attend school in-person on Mondays and Tuesdays, and participate in remote learning on Wednesdays through Fridays. Students in group B will learn remotely Mondays through Wednesdays, and attend school in-person on Thursdays and Fridays. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. Exeter-Based Remote Learning School Sees Surge in Applications. An online charter school based in Exeter is seeing such a big surge in new students that it has had to close some classes. Applications to VLACS, the Virtual Learning Academy Charter School, are at an all-time high. "Right now, we have about 3,300 active students, and we have about 2,400 students who are on a waiting list," said VLACS CEO Steve Kossakoski. In the program, students learn at their own pace, and the instruction is ‘asynchronous’."'Asynchronous' is when we have students learning that does not require them to all be in the same place at the same time," Assistant SAU 21 Superintendent Natasha Kolehmainen said. Kolehmainen has been helping families understand whether VLACS, which is designed to augment a current school district's offerings, is the right option for their child. The program can also be a stopgap for students who have to quarantine. (Source: WMUR)

7. Tents a Part of School Reopening In Some Communities. Tents have sprouted up like mushrooms on school grounds throughout the ConVal School District over the past couple weeks, and safety is on the minds of school officials following a large tent collapsing in New Ipswich during a thunderstorm on Aug. 23, injuring six and hospitalizing four. “Obviously after something like that, there are going to be concerns,” ConVal Superintendent Kimberly Rizzo Saunders said last Friday. The school’s tents are being installed by reputable local vendors, she said, and are being inspected by Facilities Director Tim Grossi and local officials to insure they meet criteria from the state Fire Marshal’s office. At High Mowing School in Wilton, students and staff have nearly completed the construction of eight outdoor learning structures on the Pine Hill of the Wilton school’s campus. The eight A-frame structures are made from wood harvested on the school’s campus and durable agricultural tarp. The structures are designed to shed water as well as snow. (Source: Monadnock Ledger Transcript)

8. Free Meals for Students Can Continue For Rest of Year. New Hampshire schools can continue offering meals to all young people under 18 free of charge for the rest of the calendar year. Schools have had more flexiblity to provide meals and receive reimbursement from the federal government since the USDA issued waivers during remote learning last spring. The program was set to expire later this month, but the USDA announced Monday it will extend these waivers until Dec. 31. (Source: NHPR)

9. Mental Health Resources Available for Anxiety and Depression. Mental health experts say they are seeing increasing fallout from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, with anxiety emergency rooms seeing more people in mental health crisis. Workers at Seacoast Community Mental Health Center said the issue is affecting people of all ages. "We're seeing overwhelmingly a larger number of kids reporting anxiety, depression and this horrible sense of isolation that they've never felt before," said Jodie Lubarsky, of Seacoast Community Mental Health Center. Talking about mental health issues is critical, especially in suicide prevention. There are 10 community mental health centers across the state with 24-hour access to emergency services to anyone, regardless of ability to pay. If you or someone you know may be thinking about suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. (Source: WMUR)

STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 2, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

Wednesday September 2

23 new COVID-19 cases were reported in N.H. On Tuesday, but no new deaths. Here is the news about the state and local response to the pandemic you need to know to start your Wednesday.

1. N.H. Releases Guidance on In-Person, Remote, Hybrid Learning. In a week where classes have already started in many districts, New Hampshire health officials have finally released new guidance to schools on when to transition between in-person, remote and hybrid learning based on levels of COVID-19 cases in communities and schools. The guidance sets specific metrics for when schools should hold in-person classes or teach students remotely or in a hybrid model. A document provided by the N.H. Division of Public Health Service includes a guidance matrix that weighs both the level of community transmission (positive PCR tests over a 7 day average and the relative number of new infections and hospitalizations per 100,000 people over last 14 days) and the level of direct impact on the school (number of cases/clusters, absenteeism, staff capacity). The state is leaving it up to each school district to decide whether to fully return to the classroom, continue with remote learning or develop hybrid models that combine elements of both. Districts also have the option of taking a more restrictive approach than what the guidance suggests. For example, in situations with a “high” level of school impact but “minimal” community transmission, schools can consider a temporary short-term period of remote instruction before moving to a hybrid model of instruction, especially if the school is already conducting operations in a hybrid model of learning. (Source: NECN) Note: Because the current level of community transmission is at a “minimal” level statewide (see article on new dashboard below)—and direct impact on individual schools is also minimal at this point because classes have either just started of have yet to begin in many communities— the guidance would seem to indicate that every N.H. school should start with in-person learning. However, there are additional factors that have steered many districts, including Portsmouth, to start with a hybrid approach or even full remote learning. These factors range from the need to restrict numbers of students in schools due to classroom physical distancing requirements to staffing, ventilation, and PPE issues.

2. New Dashboard Tracks COVID-19 Cases in N.H. Schools. A new dashboard released Tuesday by the Department of Health and Human Services is tracking reports of COVID-19 cases in schools and colleges across the state. Information can be accessed by school, town or grade level. Health officials said the dashboard would be updated as new cases were confirmed, though schools might announce cases before they are included in the tool. (Source: WMUR)

3. Cluster of 12 Cases Tied to Nashua Youth Hockey Camp. Twelve people connected to a youth hockey camp in Nashua have contracted COVID-19, health officials said Tuesday. Eight children participating in the camp and four staff members were infected. Officials with the Department of Health and Human Services said they didn't make a public announcement on the infections because they were able to identify all the close contacts with the people who participated.Bedford's school superintendent also announced Tuesday a third student case of the virus, this time at Peter Woodbury School. The superintendent said the student is asymptomatic. The case is directly related to the hockey camp, which is also associated with cases at Riddle Brook and McKelvie schools in Bedford. (Source: WMUR)

4. First Day of School Means Masks and Temperature Checks for Some, Remote Learning or Homeschooling for Others. In districts across N.H.’s Monadnock region, most students are back to school in-person this week, but other have opted for all remote learning or even homeschooling due to the continued disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. At ConVal High School, more than 72 percent of students are returning in person and more than 20 percent are participating remotely with similar numbers at regional elementary and middle schools. So far, the percentage of families opting for in-person schooling are mostly lining up with the intentions parents expressed earlier in the summer, in a survey conducted by the statewide School Transition, Reopening, and Redesign Task Force (STRRT). (Source: Monadnock Ledger Transcript)

5. Exeter Latest N.H. Community to Pass Mask Mandate. The Exeter Select Board has voted to adopt an ordinance requiring residents and visitors to wear a face-covering in public when social distancing is not possible.The board approved the emergency mask ordinance by a 4 to 1 vote. While coronavirus cases across the state and county have remained steady, Fire Chief Eric Wilking reported to the board that Exeter saw an uptick last week with five new positive cases. Select Board member Julie Gilman said her vote was about “protecting the community.” “People want to see everybody looking out for each other and one of those ways is equally protecting each other from each other,” she said. She pointed to a city that has a mask mandate, which has seen its number of cases go down from 3,000 cases in May to 6. “If you really work at it, you can bring (the number of cases) down,” Gilman said. “I think this ordinance will help us work at that.” (Source: Seacoast Online) Meanwhile, in Manchester a meeting of the Aldermanic Committee on Administration and Information Systems, where details of a new citywide mask ordinance were slated to be debated, was postponed Tuesday after the committee chairman said he was unable to attend due to a work conflict. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

6. 18 Positive COVID-19 Tests Recorded at Plymouth State University. Of 4,262 students, staff and faculty at Plymouth State University, 18 have tested positive for COVID-19, the university said. Of those who tested positive, 17 were students and one was a staff member. Four are from out of state and did not come to New Hampshire based on these results. Another 13 are from New Hampshire, seven of whom reside in Plymouth. None of the positive cases lived on campus. They all went into quarantine after the tests came back positive. Another round of testing is now underway and a third round will be done next week. (Source: Laconia Daily Sun) Meanwhile, 3 additional Franklin Pierce University students have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the school's total to nine known cases as of Tuesday, though only three of those students are currently on campus, a university spokesman said. (Source: Keene Sentinel)

7. New COVID-19 Cases Confirmed in Ossipee Nursing Home. The National Guard has confirmed that Mountain View Community, the Carroll County nursing home in Ossipee, has had its first confirmed cases of COVID-19, affecting both residents and staff. Mountain View is a 103-bed facility serving 19 communities, including Conway and Wolfeboro. The cases were initially found during "surveillance testing" conducted Tuesday on 10 percent of residents and 100 percent of staff. Those tests were administered by staff and then sent to Dartmouth Hitchcock. Then on Friday, the National Guard came back and confirmed there were four staff members and one resident who are positive. (Source: Conway Daily Sun) The outbreak is one of three active institutional outbreaks in the state. The others are at the Rockingham County Jail and the Evergreen Place Nursing Home in Manchester. (Sources : InDepthNH and DHHS)

8. N.H. Performance Venues Tell Shaheen Federal Aid Alone Won’t Help Unless People Feel Safe. U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen met Monday with representatives of New Hampshire’s entertainment venues to learn how another federal relief package could be of assistance. But it quickly became apparent that money alone was not going to save New Hampshire’s arts and culture scene. “I’m so grateful for the size of the NERF [NH Nonprofit Emergency Relief Fund] we got because we can set that aside and pay our bills,” said Nicki Clarke, the Capitol Center for the Art’s executive director, referring to a slice of the $1.25 billion New Hampshire received in federal CARES Act funds. But, she added, unless people are willing to attend events, the business model is not going to work. Kathleen Cavalaro, director of the Seacoast Repertory Theatre in Portsmouth, echoed that sentiment. “All of our shows have been six people to 30 people on a good night. We’re not even close to the 30% [of seating capacity] we’re open to,” said Cavalaro. “We can’t sustain these numbers.” (Source: NH Business Review)

9. Trump, RNC Seek To Intervene In Lawsuit Challenging N.H. COVID-19 Voting Procedures. President Trump's re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee are asking to intervene in a lawsuit challenging New Hampshire’s COVID-19 voting procedures. If their request is approved, they would join a team of state attorneys trying to stave off changes to New Hampshire’s absentee registration and voting rules ahead of the November general election. The American Federation of Teachers brought the lawsuit in an effort to force New Hampshire to extend its deadline for accepting absentee ballots by mail, to cover absentee ballot postage costs, to allow wider use of absentee ballot dropboxes, and to permit third-party groups to return absentee ballots on voters’ behalf. At present, New Hampshire voters who choose to mail back their absentee ballots are responsible for paying their own postage. Also, under New Hampshire’s current voting rules, absentee ballots sent by mail must arrive by 5 p.m. on Election Day in order to be counted. Some other states allow ballots to be counted if they arrive later, as long as they’re postmarked by Election Day. (Source: NHPR)

10. N.H. Interest in Fishing Leaps During Pandemic. Through June, according to New Hampshire Fish and Game, the number of fishing licenses sold to state residents had shot up a full 40% over last year – some 78,879 of them in all, and that doesn’t include 23,893 combination hunting-fishing licenses. Out-of-state fishing licenses are also up quite a bit, rising 20% from last year to 18,584. This is the first increase in many years in New Hampshire, which like much of the U.S. has seen stagnation or decline in traditional outdoor activities as the population becomes more suburban and other forms of entertainment multiply. Sales of hunting licenses have also seen growth this year, although to a lesser extent: According to New Hampshire Fish and Game they are up about 16% from last year, including combination licenses, which are almost always bought to go hunting. (Source: Concord Monitor)

STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 1, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Schools Dashboard

Tuesday September 1

On Monday, DHHS announced 22 new positive test results for COVID-19 but no new deaths. Here is the rest of the news about the local and state response to the pandemic you need to know to start your Tuesday.

1. Concord City Council Approves Face Covering Ordinance. Last night the Concord City Council approved a mandatory mask ordinance by a 14-1 vote. Amendments to allow business to opt out and and to increase the fine from $15 to $50 were rejected. But an amendment that lowered the minimum age a child is required to wear a mask from age 10 to age 5 was approved. (Source: Concord Patch) With the vote, Concord became the ninth N.H. community to approve a local mask mandate with enforcement provisions. (Source: NHPR) Six months into the pandemic, N.H. Governor Chris Sununu remains the only New England governor who has not issued an emergency order that makes mask wearing mandatory for people entering businesses and in other situations where proper physical distancing cannot be maintained. However, in mid-August amid concerns raised by photos of thousands of maskless attendees at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, Sununu issued an order prior to the start of Laconia’s Motorcycle Week requiring masks to be worn at scheduled gatherings of more than 100 people. (Source: NECN)

2. Portsmouth City Council Meeting Postponed. A Monday meeting where the Portsmouth City Council had been scheduled to take a final vote on a mask mandate was suddenly postponed. A new date and time will be announced. (Source: City of Portsmouth)

3. A Second Bedford Student, 1 Derry School Employee Test Positive for COVID-19. After Monday’s announcement that a Riddle Brook Elementary School student had tested positive, Bedford school officials announced Monday that a student at McKelvie Intermediate School has also tested positive. Superintendent Mike Fournier said all necessary protocols are being followed, and the district is working with the state to monitor the situation moving forward. Meanwhile, in the Derry School District, a letter was sent home to families Sunday about an employee who tested positive. The employee was working at the West Running Brook Middle School before students returned. The school was deep-cleaned and the district is working with DHHS officials. (Source: WMUR)

4. More COVID-19 Cases Identified Among Keene State Students Prior to Move-In. Officials say 10 Keene State College students have tested positive so far for COVID-19, but only two were living in the city when they received their results. On Friday, a student living off campus tested positive for the viral disease and is now isolating with her two roommates in their apartment. Late last week, a student resident assistant had tested positive. Before arriving on campus, students of the 3,200 person college were required to show they had tested negative for the coronavirus within the previous seven days. (Source: Keene Sentinel)

5. 66 COVID-19 Cases Now Linked to York County Jail. Just over the N.H. border, 12 more people with ties to the York County Jail building have tested positive for the coronavirus. Officials at the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention have now identified a total of 66 cases at the facility, including 37 inmates, 19 staffers and 10 other cases linked to the COVID-19 outbreak through secondary transmission. Investigators have linked the York County Jail outbreak to a broader outbreak involving a wedding in the Millinocket area. Thirty wedding guests tested positive after attending the Aug. 7 event, including one guest who works at the York County Jail, according to Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah. (Source: Seacoast Online)

6. SAU 21 Reverses Decision to Go All-Remote. SAU 21 (South Hampton, Hampton Falls, North Hampton, Seabrook and Winnacunnet High School) has announced it’s moving forward with a plan to welcome students back Sept. 8 for in-person learning at the pre-kindergarten to elementary level as well as middle schoolers in two of its towns. The announcement came just three days after the Joint Board in a weighted 9-6 vote approved a recommendation by Superintendent Bill Lupini to reverse course and have all of its schools move to enhanced virtual learning. The decision means all SAU 21 elementary school students (except for those who picked the remote learning option) in grades pre-kindergarten through four will return for in-school learning Sept. 8. In North Hampton, the fifth grade is also included in the in-school model. In the two smaller districts – Hampton Falls and South Hampton – in-school learning will be for grades pre-kindergarten through eight. Middle school students in North Hampton and Seabrook as well as high school students at Winnacunnet will engage in enhanced virtual learning. (Source: Seacoast Online)

7. School Districts Assess Ventilation Systems. With improper ventilation suspected in playing a key role in the spread of COVID-19 in indoor environments, school districts across the state are rushing to identify ways to improve ventilation to reduce the risk for students and teachers returning to the classroom. In Nashua, an assessment found that while every city classroom has proper ventilation, it will be difficult in some of the older schools to prevent the use of recycled air. According to the district’s director of plant operations, one of the best ways for public schools to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 is to provide 100% outside air, meaning no used air is recirculated into the classrooms. The systems in many older schools don’t work that way. (Source: Manchester Union Leader) In Keene, an audit conducted by the school system found good airflow in most of the buildings, though it also reported that several classrooms and other spaces in Keene High School, including the nurse’s office, have no air ventilation. The situation is worst at the district’s preschool building, Jonathan Daniels School. Plans are being developed to remedy the situation. (Source: Manchester Union Leader)

8. N.H. AG’s Office Accepts GOP Plan to Correct Unlawful Absentee Ballot Form Mailers. A plan by the New Hampshire Republican State Committee to correct voter confusion caused by improper absentee ballot application mailers has been accepted by the N.H. State Attorney General’s Office. On Friday, Attorney General Gordon MacDonald determined the mailers had violated state election laws. Bryan Gould, the NH GOP’s attorney told MacDonald via email Monday they will use newspaper ads, phone calls and emails to reach voters who received the absentee ballot application form. The communication will inform recipients of the flawed mailer know that they won’t be receiving a ballot for the September primary. It will also let them know that they can download an application from the N.H. Secretary of State’s website, complete it, scan, email or fax it—or return it in-person—to their city or town clerk’s office. However, with the election just one week away, voters will also be told they have the option of voting in-person on Election Day, September 8. Assistant Attorney General Anne Edwards said the GOP’s plan is acceptable. (Source: InDepthNH) With one week to go between today and primary Election Day, the odds increase with every passing day that an absentee ballot returned by mail may not reach your city or town clerk before the 5 p.m. Election Day deadline. If you’re concerned about this, keep in mind you also have the option of returning your completed absentee ballot in-person to your clerk. In Portsmouth, you can hand your completed and sealed ballot to the Clerk at the Voting Center at City Hall today through Friday. City Hall will be closed on Monday for Labor Day. If you haven’t applied for an absentee ballot and you’re concerned about COVID-19 at the polls, you can walk into the Voting Center, apply for a ballot, and and complete your ballot on-site. More information here: https://www.davidmeuse4nh.com/updates1/2020/8/27/a-visual-guide-to-absentee-voting-at-the-voting-center-at-portsmouth-city-hall

9. Facing Court Challenge From Disability Rights Advocates, N.H. Expands Accessible Absentee Voting. With a week to go before the state primary election, New Hampshire is launching a new absentee voting system meant to allow more voters to cast a ballot privately and independently. Until now, New Hampshire did not allow those who are blind or experience other ‘print disabilities’ to request or complete an absentee ballot without assistance. Under the new system, a qualifying New Hampshire voter can request an accessible absentee ballot electronically and fill it out on their own computer. But voters will need to print and return a physical copy of their completed absentee ballot to their town or city clerk. Daniel Frye, one of three voters involved in the lawsuit that forced the change, said he’s “cautiously optimistic” about the potential of the state’s new system. At the same time, he says it came too late to allow him to make full use of it before the state primary. With the clock ticking down ahead of the Sept. 8 primary, Frye, who is blind, said he already secured an absentee ballot (“regrettably, with the assistance of someone”) before the new system was announced. (Source: NHPR)

10. Man's Recovery from COVID-19 Continues After 77 Days in Hospital. After 77 days in the hospital, 57 of them in an induced coma, a COVID-19 survivor and his family say they still have a long journey ahead. In early 2020, Ray Maurier, 58, was in his best shape in years. Now, he's just starting to walk again. The months in between drastically altered and nearly claimed his life. After 57 days in an induced coma and 77 days in the hospital, he was discharged in late June. He was 43 pounds lighter and too weak to walk, but he was motivated by family and friends, who gave him a motorcycle escort home to Manchester. After months of therapy, he’s still fighting to resume all of his former activities. "He's just made great strides, and I want other people to know that there is hope," Pam Maurier said. "Don't give up. Keep your faith." (Source: WMUR)

11. Portsmouth Pop-Up Looks to Pivot to ‘European Christmas Market’ in Winter. During a tour of the outdoor dining and arts venue on Monday, PopUp NH Board Treasurer Joanna Kelley told Congressman Chris Pappas they hope to see their permits extended in order to create a European-style Christmas market for the wintertime. Pappas visited PopUp NH on Monday where he was given a tour by Kelley and General Manager Tristan Law. The trio discussed obstacles the group faced in getting started, as well as possible plans for the future to allow for extended money-making opportunities for participating businesses. This coming weekend, PopUp NH will see the addition of its planned retail component, and the team is working to get its third food shed open and operating. For more information and the pop-up’s weekly schedule, visit https://www.popupnh.org/. (Source: Seacoast Online)

STATE DHHS COVID-19 DATA

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – August 31, 2020

• NH DHHS COVID-19 Overview Dashboard

Previous Posts