New Hampshire has recorded 50 new Covid-19 cases and six new deaths due to the virus, Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette said at a news conference today.
There are now 2,054 people diagnosed with Covid-19 and 66 total deaths in the state, she said. There are 259 people who have been hospitalized in New Hampshire due to coronavirus and more than 19,800 people have been tested.
Shibinette announced that two additional long-term care facilities in the state have reported Covid-19 outbreaks.
One facility is the Hackett Hill Healthcare Center in Manchester, where 22 residents and two staff members tested positive for Covid-19. The other outbreak is at the Mountain Ridge Center in Franklin where 13 residents and two staff members have tested positive for Covid-19.
Gov. Chris Sununu announced the release of funds to assist homeless individuals in New Hampshire during the pandemic.
The Department of Health and Human Services has committed an addition $3 million from the CARES Act to do three things in New Hampshire:
- Provide dollars in the form of staff stipends for eight weeks for the direct care staff working with people experiencing homeless
- Provide additional dollars to shelters
- Provide more dollars to community agencies to support permanent housing for individuals and families experiencing homelessness
Looking to the future: Sununu said the state was looking at ways to “phase in” reopening the economy, and said that on Friday he will be making an announcement regarding the stay-at-home order.
The state is looking to be flexible regarding certain areas of the state where they believe they can open in a smart and responsible phased approach that is “always putting public health first,” Sununu said.
All of this has to be done with increased testing, which the state is constantly working on, Sununu said. There are five new testing sites across New Hampshire for individuals who cannot access hospitals or urgent care locations. These new testing sites are located in Lancaster, Plymouth, Tamworth, Rochester and Claremont and the tests sites are up and running now, Sununu said.