Sept 21 Update – Vaccine Distribution Strategy

Absentee Ballots

Someone asked how voting has changed during COVID. Rather than rely on social media, you can get all the facts you need from the Secretary of State website. If you have not visited the site in a while, you’ll be surprised at the upgrade,

https://sos.nh.gov/elections/voters/voting-during-covid-19-state-of-emergency/

COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Strategy

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Defense (DoD) released two documents on September 16 outlining the Trump Administration’s detailed strategy to deliver safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine doses to the American people as quickly and reliably as possible.

The documents, developed by HHS in coordination with DoD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), provide a strategic distribution overview along with an interim playbook for state, tribal, territorial, and local public health programs and their partners on how to plan and operationalize a vaccination response to COVID-19 within their respective jurisdictions.

@SecAzar: We have been laying the groundwork for months to distribute and administer a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it meets FDA’s gold standard. Today we released the distribution strategy and a planning playbook for jurisdictions from @CDCgov.

The strategic overview lays out four tasks necessary for the COVID-19 vaccine program:

  • Engage with state, tribal, territorial, and local partners, other stakeholders, and the public to communicate public health information around the vaccine and promote vaccine confidence and uptake.
  • Distribute vaccines immediately upon granting of Emergency Use Authorization/ Biologics License Application, using a transparently developed, phased allocation methodology and CDC has made vaccine recommendations.
  • Ensure safe administration of the vaccine and availability of administration supplies.
  • Monitor necessary data from the vaccination program through an information technology (IT) system capable of supporting and tracking distribution, administration, and other necessary data.

On August 14, CDC executed an existing contract option with McKesson Corporation to support vaccine distribution. The company also distributed the H1N1 vaccine during the H1N1 pandemic in 2009-2010. The current contract with McKesson, awarded as part of a competitive bidding process in 2016, includes an option for the distribution of vaccines in the event of a pandemic.

“CDC is drawing on its years of planning and cooperation with state and local public health partners to ensure a safe, effective, and life-saving COVID-19 vaccine is ready to be distributed following FDA approval. Through the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, CDC will play a vital role in deciding, based on input from experts and stakeholders, how initial, limited vaccine doses will be allocated and distributed while reliably producing more than 100 million doses by January 2021.”
– 
Dr. Robert Redfield, CDC Director

Detailed planning is ongoing to ensure rapid distribution as soon as the FDA authorizes or approves a COVID-19 vaccine and CDC makes recommendations for who should receive initial doses. Once these decisions are made, McKesson will work under CDC’s guidance, with logistical support from DoD, to ship COVID-19 vaccines to administration sites.

New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report

(data updated as of September 20, 2020, 9:00 AM)

Number of Persons with COVID-19 1 7,947
Recovered 7,201 (91%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19 438 (6%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases 308
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19 725 (9%)
Current Hospitalizations 10
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)2 240,401
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests2 30,737
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL 45,489
Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL3 768
Persons Being Monitored in NH (approximate point in time) 2,000

1 Includes specimens positive at any laboratory and those confirmed by CDC confirmatory testing.
2 Includes specimens tested at the NH Public Health Laboratories (PHL), LabCorp, Quest, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and those sent to CDC prior to NH PHL testing capacity.
3 Includes specimens received and awaiting testing at NH PHL. Does not include tests pending at commercial laboratories.

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Sept 18 Update

Increased testing at NH colleges has led to daily uptick in cases, but it isn’t ‘surge,’ officials say

https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-coronavirus-update-september-17-2020/34055415

UNH COVID-19 cluster linked to student apartment complex

https://www.wmur.com/article/unh-covid-19-cluster-linked-to-student-apartment-complex/34063521

Area experiencing severe drought in NH jumps from 28% to 72% of state

https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-drought-update-september-17-2020/34054866

4 from NH among those connected to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard to test positive for COVID-19

https://www.wmur.com/article/portsmouth-naval-shipyard-coronavirus-outbreak/34060705

Second UNH cluster not tied to any one event, health official says

https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/coronavirus/second-unh-cluster-not-tied-to-any-one-event-health-official-says/article_fe48e935-459f-5b23-bad2-708e5832eabe.html?block_id=664693

New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report

(data updated as of September 17, 2020, 9:00 AM)

Number of Persons with COVID-19 1 7,814
Recovered 7,104 (91%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19 438 (6%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases 272
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19 725 (9%)
Current Hospitalizations 7
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)2 235,510
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests2 30,576
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL 44,674
Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL3 873
Persons Being Monitored in NH (approximate point in time) 2,000

1 Includes specimens positive at any laboratory and those confirmed by CDC confirmatory testing.
2 Includes specimens tested at the NH Public Health Laboratories (PHL), LabCorp, Quest, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and those sent to CDC prior to NH PHL testing capacity.
3 Includes specimens received and awaiting testing at NH PHL. Does not include tests pending at commercial laboratories.

Cumulative Cases Dashboard  |  Cumulative Cases Map pdf file

NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – September 17, 2020

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has issued the following update on the new coronavirus, COVID-19.
On Thursday, September 17, 2020, DHHS announced 35 new positive test results for COVID-19. There have now been 7,814 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in New Hampshire. Several cases are still under investigation. Additional information from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates. Of those with complete information, there are three individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with
60% being female and 40% being male.

The new cases reside in Rockingham (9), Strafford (6), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (4), Belknap (2), Grafton (1), Merrimack (1), and Sullivan (1)
counties, and in the cities of Manchester (6) and Nashua (5).

Two new hospitalized cases were identified for a total of 725 (9%) of 7,814 cases. Ten of the new cases had no identified risk factors. Community-based transmission continues to occur in the State and has been identified in all counties. Of those with complete risk information, most of the cases have either had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis or have recently traveled.

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Sept. 17 Update

33 new cases, 1 new hospitalization from COVID-19 in NH

https://www.wmur.com/article/33-new-cases-1-new-hospitalization-from-covid-19-in-nh/34046258

State’s unemployment rate down a bit more for August

https://apnews.com/2aa98c7de17007c8e6e207e50313a74a

Second cluster of COVID-19 cases announced at the University of New Hampshire, 20 cases reported

https://www.wmur.com/article/second-cluster-of-covid-19-cases-announced-at-the-university-of-new-hampshire-20-cases-reported/34046593

AG’s Office investigates several possible violations of COVID-19 orders

https://www.wmur.com/article/ags-office-investigates-several-possible-violations-of-covid-19-orders/34045842

Second COVID-19 cluster identified at UNH in Durham

https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/coronavirus/second-covid-19-cluster-identified-at-unh-in-durham/article_e92cd998-1a79-5cbc-852d-3db9f9ef9e48.html?block_id=664693

New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report

(data updated as of September 16, 2020, 9:00 AM)

Number of Persons with COVID-19 1 7,780
Recovered 7,083 (91%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19 438 (6%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases 259
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19 723 (9%)
Current Hospitalizations 8
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)2 233,731
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests2 30,515
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL 44,486
Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL3 485
Persons Being Monitored in NH (approximate point in time) 1,925

1 Includes specimens positive at any laboratory and those confirmed by CDC confirmatory testing.
2 Includes specimens tested at the NH Public Health Laboratories (PHL), LabCorp, Quest, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and those sent to CDC prior to NH PHL testing capacity.
3 Includes specimens received and awaiting testing at NH PHL. Does not include tests pending at commercial laboratories.

Cumulative Positive Tests by County

  • Belknap 135
  • Carroll 118
  • Cheshire 142
  • Coos 21
  • Grafton 130
  • Hillsborough – Other 1,378
  • Hillsborough – Manchester 2004
  • Hillsborough – Nashua 852
  • Merrimack 541
  • Rockingham 1940
  • Strafford 470
  • Sullivan 49

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

On Wednesday, September 16, 2020, DHHS announced 33 new positive test results for COVID-19. There have now been 7,780 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in New Hampshire. Several cases are still under investigation. Additional information from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates. Of those with complete information, there are four individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 24% being female and 76% being male. The new cases reside in Rockingham (9), Strafford (6), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (4), Carroll (1), Grafton (1), and Merrimack (1) counties, and in the cities of Nashua (6) and Manchester (5).

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