Coronavirus Cases Crack 3,000 In New Hampshire; 10 More Die

CONCORD, NH — The accumulative number of new coronavirus patients in New Hampshire surpassed the 3,000-mark Saturday as state officials also announced the deaths of 10 more people 60 years of age or older.

The 10 people who died, six women and four men, lived in Rockingham, Hillsborough, and Merrimack counties, and brought the fatality count in the state to 131.

Seventy-one new positive test results for COVID-19, including five children, were also reported, for a total of 3,011. Many of the new cases are still being researched but 55 percent were women and 45 percent men with 28 living in Hillsborough County. Another 17 patients reside in Rockingham County while eight live in Merrimack County. The state is still trying to find out where eight other cases reside and will roll that information, as well as other completed investigations, into future updates.

Four of the new patients required hospitalization bringing the number to 313 during the pandemic who have needed treatment. Only 107 are currently hospitalized.

Only two of the new cases had no identified risk factors while most of the remaining have either traveled domestically or internationally or had close contact to a person confirmed to have a COVID-19 diagnosis, the State Joint Information Center said.

About 3,075 people are under public health monitoring while 30,442 have tested negative in both state and commercial labs while 512 patients are waiting for test results. The state is averaging a little less than 1,200 specimens tested per day.

Officials also announced that more than 86 percent of the COVID-19 accumulative cases in New Hampshire were located in Hillsborough, Rockingham, and Merrimack counties.

Other COVID-19 Data

The weekly summary report, due to be released Tuesday, was published by the health department late Thursday — with only data through May 4.

However, the summary contained a few changes and updates based on the release of more completed health investigations.

One of those changes included downgrading the number of health care workers who have died due to COVID-19 from two to one.

Also, five people — one between 20 and 29 years of age and four between 40 and 49 out of the fatalities — have died. They represent 3.8 percent of all deaths in the state. The state also reported 65 percent of the deaths in New Hampshire were 80 years of age or older.

The state knows the race and ethnicity of about 75 percent of patients and 68 percent of deaths in the state and reported that 91.5 percent of deaths were white. Whites make up about 90 percent of the population based on Census data from 2018. Whites make up about 76 percent of infections while Hispanic/Latino are a little more than 7 percent and black or African American were a little more than 5 percent of infections. Hispanic/Latino are 1.4 percent and black or African American are 1.8 percent of the state's population, according to the state.

Learn More About The Spread Of COVID-19

The COVID-19 virus is spread through respiratory droplets, usually through coughing and sneezing, and exposure to others who are sick or might be showing symptoms.

Health officials emphasize residents should follow these recommendations:

• Avoid any domestic and international travel, especially on public transportation such as buses, trains, and airplanes.
• Practice social distancing. Stay at least 6 feet from other people, including distancing while in waiting areas or lines.
• Anybody who is told to self-quarantine and stay at home due to exposure to a person with confirmed or suspect COVID-19 needs to stay home and not go out into public places.
• If you are 60 years or older or have chronic medical conditions, you need to stay home and not go out.
• Avoid gatherings of 10 people or more.
• Employers need to move to telework as much as possible.
• There is increasing evidence that this virus can survive for hours or possibly even a few days on surfaces, so people should clean frequently touched surfaces, including door handles, grocery carts and grocery basket handles, etc.

Take the same precautions as you would if you were sick:

• Stay home and avoid public places when sick (i.e., social distancing).
• Cover mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
• Wash hands frequently.
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

More information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services about coronavirus can be found here on the department's website.

• Guidance to schools can be found can be found here.
• Instructions for returning travelers to self-observe for symptoms of COVID-19 are available are available here.
• For more information on COVID-19 in NH, visit its site here.
• For the latest information from the CDC, visit its site here.

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• Agreement On Initial $1.25B CARES Act Spending Recommendations Illusive
• NH Governor: Dentists Can Open May 11; Antibody Testing Begins

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