Posted on by Bonnie

COVID-19 Update 8 November 2021

COVID-19 Update 8 November 2021

SALEM:

  • Salem since last update: 123 new cases in the last two weeks. 
  • Total: 3,708 confirmed cases in Salem
  • We now have 64 active cases (?? last week)
  • 1 out of every 8 Salem residents has been infected.
  • Salem’s new cases per 100K for 14 days: 321 (328 on 10/25)
  • Salem’s Positivity Rate for the past 2 weeks: 6.9%. (2.7% on 10/25).
  • Fully vaccinated Salem residents one week ago: 14,506 (48.5%). Reported yesterday: 5,207. The whole report is blank today.
  • Partially vaccinated Salem residents one week ago: 15,684 (52.4%). Reported yesterday: 5,591 (18.7%). The whole report is blank today.

NEW HAMPSHIRE:

  • New cases of COVID-19 in NH this week by math (Total cases last week compared to total cases today): 4,542. (4,334 last week) 
  • New cases of COVID-19 in NH this week as reported by DHHS: 4,725. 
  • 1 out of every 10 NH residents has been infected. 
  • Active COVID-19 cases in NH: 5,164 (3,948 last week.). It took three weeks to get from where we are now to our peak (6,994 on December 27). There were 155 active cases on June 28
  • Recovered in NH this week: 3,295. (3,657 last week.)
  • State Level of Transmission: Substantial in all counties 
  • New patients hospitalized this week because of COVID-19: 80. Last week: 93. Early October: about 20 per week.
  • Current patients hospitalized because of COVID-19: 212 (193 one week ago; 178 two weeks ago)
  • New admissions to ICU this week because of COVID-19: 15 
  • New deaths attributed to COVID-19 reported in NH this week: 21 
  • From the Vaccination Dashboard: Total NH individuals fully vaccinated: 768,977 (54.8%). Total NH individuals partially vaccinated: 845,960 (60%). Vaccine numbers on the Map Dashboard on Thursday showed town data totaling 715,930 fully vaccinated; on Friday it fell to 257,329. Today those numbers are blank.  Per NHPR: “Over the summer, the gap in vaccinations as reported by the state and the CDC grew to a discrepancy of more than 200,000 first doses. The state health department’s data is currently showing 60 percent of the total population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, while the CDC puts that same figure at 75 percent.” In the governor’s press conference, State officials reported that the CDC records for vaccinations in NH are more accurate than the State’s records. It might take weeks or months to resolve the issues.

Hello, Salem!

Random thoughts from this week:

A friend is trying to get their children vaccinated. One is past their 11th birthday, the other hasn’t reached that yet, but is old enough to get vaccinated. My friend shared on Wednesday that they were unable to get a vaccine locally. The kids’ parents made an appointment at the earliest date and closest location: Monday in Chicopee MA, over 100 miles from Salem. They shared, “There were no availabilities in the local areas. Local towns in Mass, bordering NH have no availabilities. But plenty of spots were available in Central MA, in the Springfield/Chicopee area.” 

This dedicated parent shared on Saturday that they found an appointment for one of their younger kids in Manchester on Monday 11/8. They found another appointment for the older child on Wednesday at the Hampstead Walgreens. “Appointments are hard to find … Just have to keep on trying…”

During the Governor’s press conference, his team member, Dr. Chan, reported new cases, saying, “Now, this number will be updated in the coming days, as we continue to work through some of the cases that were not reported to us during the IT system outage last week. But I can say we continue to average 500 to 600 new infections each day. And in fact, in the last few days, we’ve had some days with more than 600 infections reported.” This is the first time that I have heard of the recent problems as an “IT system outrage.”

Regarding staff shortage, Commissioner Shibinette shared that “overall about 88% of … our licensed beds in hospitals are staffed.”

As COVID-19 fills beds, Concord Hospital is postponing some elective surgeries such as colonoscopies, carpal tunnel release surgery and esophageal endoscopies “due to limited bed capacity related to the rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations” and an increase in Intensive Care Unit patients. As of last Friday morning, half of the occupied beds in Concord Hospital ICU had COVID-19 patients. Hospitals in Lancaster and Colebrook have also recently curtailed elective surgeries due to a COVID-surge in the North Country. Story here.

NHDH is having multiple issues with their data, both in tracking case counts and in tracking vaccines. Here are two local stories:

“Terrible Timing for Failure of State’s COVID-19 Tracking System.” Here is a brief history of the issues NH has faced regarding COVID-19, and how a “very vocal minority is driving the bus and the majority of state residents are paying the price for their activism.”

An article by NHPR, “N.H.’s COVID-19 vaccination data hasn’t been accurate since June. Why?” contains concerning information. A few excerpts: “The state’s vaccination data hasn’t been correct since June.” “Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette confirmed that NH is relying on the CDC to keep records because “the state’s own records are missing thousands of doses. The state’s data correction process could take months.” And then there’s this: “New Hampshire’s inaccurate COVID-19 vaccine data is now likely leading to inaccurate counting of booster doses and breakthrough cases.” 

State Rep. David Meuse does periodic COVID-19 updates. Check out his report from Nov. 6. Rep. Meuse is from Rockingham 29 — Portsmouth. Portsmouth is a community which has had a much smaller number of infections than Salem, yet their State Rep feels its important to keep his constituents informed. I haven’t seen anything from any of Salem’s State Reps — and we have nine! — in a community that has had some of the worst numbers in the State. That’s why I have been doing these reports. 

My next update is scheduled for next Monday. In the meantime, stay safe, and always, be kind. 

~Bonnie 

On Monday, November 1, 2021*, DHHS announced 336 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Sunday, October 31. Today’s results include 242 people who tested positive by PCR test and 94 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced 668 cases from Friday, October 29 (444 by PCR and 224 by antigen test); and 678 cases from Saturday, October 30 (502 by PCR and 176 by antigen test). Additionally, DHHS announced one additional new case from Saturday, October 23 (0 by PCR and 1 by antigen test) for a new total of 522; an additional 305 new cases from Sunday, October 24 (239 by PCR and 66 by antigen test) for a new total of 306; an additional 174 new cases from Monday, October 25 (100 by PCR and 74 by antigen test) for a new total of 184; an additional 85 new cases from Tuesday, October 26 (42 by PCR and 43 by antigen test) for a new total of 494; an additional 52 new cases from Wednesday, October 27 (28 by PCR and 24 by antigen test) for a new total of 349; and an additional 33 new cases from Thursday, October 28 (14 by PCR and 19 by antigen test) for a new total of 621. There are now 3,948 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire.  (*Reported on Tuesday, after my update was published.)

On Tuesday, November 2, 2021, DHHS announced 341 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Monday, November 1. Today’s results include 152 people who tested positive by PCR test and 189 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 13 new cases from Monday, October 25 (10 by PCR and 3 by antigen test) for a new total of 197; an additional 17 new cases from Friday, October 29 (6 by PCR and 11 by antigen test) for a new total of 685; an additional 8 new case from Saturday, October 30 (8 by PCR and 0 by antigen test) for a new total of 686; and an additional 1 new case from Sunday, October 31 (1 by PCR and 0 by antigen test) for a new total of 337. There are now 3,757 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

On Wednesday, November 3, 2021, DHHS announced 528 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Tuesday, November 2. Today’s results include 335 people who tested positive by PCR test and 193 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 49 new cases from Friday, October 29 (20 by PCR and 29 by antigen test) for a new total of 734; an additional 44 new cases from Saturday, October 30 (30 by PCR and 14 by antigen test) for a new total of 730; an additional 13 new cases from Sunday, October 31 (13 by PCR and 0 by antigen test) for a new total of 350; and an additional 27 new cases from Monday, November 1 (19 by PCR and 8 by antigen test) for a new total of 368. There are now 4,089 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

On Thursday, November 4, 2021, DHHS announced 635 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Wednesday, November 3. Today’s results include 437 people who tested positive by PCR test and 198 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 80 new cases from Monday, November 1 (58 by PCR and 22 by antigen test) for a new total of 448; and an additional 46 new cases from Tuesday, November 2 (26 by PCR and 20 by antigen test) for a new total of 574. There are now 4,561 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

There was no press release with Friday’s report (Friday’s report is usually available around 6:00 pm, with numbers reported between 9:00 a.m. on Thursday and 9:00 a.m. on Friday.) It did show up on Monday: On Friday, November 5, 2021, DHHS announced 744 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Thursday, November 4. Today’s results include 557 people who tested positive by PCR test and 187 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 23 new cases from Tuesday, November 2 (12 by PCR and 11 by antigen test) for a new total of 597; and an additional 86 new cases from Wednesday, November 3 (34 by PCR and 52 by antigen test) for a new total of 721. There are now 4,850 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

On Monday, November 8, 2021, DHHS announced 425 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Sunday, November 7. Today’s results include 333 people who tested positive by PCR test and 92 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced 590 cases from Friday, November 5 (397 by PCR and 193 by antigen test); and 906 cases from Saturday, November 6 (662 by PCR and 244 by antigen test). Additionally, DHHS announced an additional 10 new cases from Wednesday, November 3 (5 by PCR and 5 by antigen test) for a new total of 731; and an additional 139 new cases from Thursday, November 4 (103 by PCR and 36 by antigen test) for a new total of 883. There are now 5,164 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

Each day, DHHS says that “Test results for previous days are still being processed and updated case counts for prior days will be reflected on the COVID-19 interactive dashboard.” And, “Several cases are still under investigation. Additional information from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates.” 

• • • • • • DIAGNOSTIC TESTS IN NH • • • • • •

  • Total people who have tested positive: 141,317 (136,775) last week)
  • New positive cases reported this week by math (Comparison of total number of cases last week to now): 4,542 (4,334 last week)
  • New positive cases per DHHS: 4,725 (??? last week)

• • • • • ACTIVE CASES • • • • • • 

  • NH has 5,164 active cases. Last week we had 3,948. We were down to 214 cases as recently as June 28.

• • • • • CUMULATIVE CASES • • • • • • (As of last Monday; not likely to have changed)

  • 1 out of every 8 Salem residents has been infected 
  • 1 out of every 10 residents of Rockingham County 
  • 1 out of every 10 residents of NH have been infected 

• • • • • • RECOVERED • • • • • •

  • Total recovered: 134,554 (131,259 last week)
  • Recovered this week: 3,295 (3,657 last week)
  • Percentage of diagnosed cases that have recovered: 95.2% (98.3% in late July.) 

• • • • • COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION • • • • • • 

  • Every county in NH, as well as Manchester and Nashua, are at Substantial risk for community transmission.
  • Cases per 100K NH residents: 584 (497 last week.
  • Positivity Rate for NH: 7.2% (4.3% last week)

• • • • • • HOSPITALIZATIONS IN NH • • • • • • 

  • Currently hospitalized: 212 (Last week: 193)
  • Staffed hospital beds available: 12.8%
  • Total hospitalized patients: 1,994 (1,914 last week) 
  • New patients hospitalized this week because of COVID-19: 90 
  • Current patients hospitalized because of COVID-19: 212
  • Percentage of those who have been infected that have been hospitalized: 1.4% 
  • New admissions to ICU this week because of COVID-19: 15
  • Staffed adult ICU beds available: 6.5%
  • Ventilators available: 73.7% 

• • • • • • DEATHS IN NH • • • • • • 

  • Total fatalities in NH associated with COVID-19: 1,599
  • New deaths attributed to COVID-19 reported in NH this week: 25
  • NH Residents diagnosed with COVID-19 that died: 1.13% 

• • • • • • TOTALS BY AGES • • • • • •

(Showing changes since week)

  • 0-9: Infections: 10515 (+628); Hospitalizations: 22 (+3); Deaths: 0 (+0)
  • 10-19: Infections: 19110 (+775); Hospitalizations: 15 (+0); Deaths: 0 (+0)
  • 20-29: Infections: 26359 (+667); Hospitalizations: 48 (+2); Deaths: 2 (+0)
  • 30-39: Infections: 21046 (+671); Hospitalizations: 87 (+0); Deaths: 11 (+1)
  • 40-49: Infections: 18291 (+568); Hospitalizations: 154 (+8); Deaths: 24 (+1)
  • 50-59: Infections: 20375 (+504); Hospitalizations: 281 (+12); Deaths: 54 (+2)
  • 60-69: Infections: 13657 (+426); Hospitalizations: 449 (+24); Deaths: 176 (+4)
  • 70-79: Infections: 6763 (+180); Hospitalizations: 480 (+16); Deaths: 386 (+10)
  • 80+: Infections: 5064 (+115); Hospitalizations: 458 (+15); Deaths: 946 (+13)
  • Unknown: Infections: 137 (+8); Hospitalizations: 0 (+0); Deaths: 0 (+0)
  • Total: Infections: 141317 (+4542); Hospitalizations: 1994 (+80); Deaths: 1599 (+31)

New Infections in the Past 4 Weeks vs. All NH Cases 

  • 0-9: 12.4% vs. 7.4% (+5%)
  • 10-19: 16.3% vs. 13.5% (+2.8%)
  • 20-29: 13.6% vs. 18.7% (-5.1%)
  • 30-39: 14.8% vs. 14.9% (-0.1%)
  • 40-49: 12.5% vs. 12.9% (-0.4%)
  • 50-59: 12.6% vs. 14.4% (-1.8%)
  • 60-69: 9.6% vs. 9.7% (-0.1%)
  • 70-79: 5% vs. 4.8% (+0.2%)
  • 80+: 3% vs. 3.6% (-0.6%)
  • Unknown: 0.1% vs. 0.1% (0%)

Additional Age Stats

  • 1,303 children under 18 are included in this week’s new cases. 
  • 27.6% of new cases announced by DHHS this week are kids under 18 years old. 
  • Under 60, this week: 3,813 new cases; 25 hospitalizations; 4 deaths
  • 60+, this week: 721 new cases; 55 hospitalizations; 27 deaths

• • • • • • Institutional Outbreaks in NH • • • • • •  

  • NH DHHS reported 17 institutional outbreaks as of Tuesday, Nov. 2. Last week there were 16 outbreaks. Of special notice is the Hillsborough County Department of Corrections, which has had 136 residents infected, an increase of 15 since las week.
  • Details about these active outbreaks, and all closed outbreaks, can be seen here.
  • This week: 163 people from long-term care facilities were diagnosed, 92 were hospitalized, 11 died. (Total: 7660 cases; 344 hospitalizations, 971 deaths.)
  • This week: 113 healthcare workers were diagnosed, 2 were hospitalized, 2 died. (Total: 6,135 cases; 92 hospitalizations, 11 deaths.)

• • • • • • VARIANTS IN NH • • • • • •  

Per WMUR, NH has had:

  • Number of B.1.1.7 variant (Alpha; UK) cases: 1,259 No change) 
  • Number of B.1.351 variant (Beta; South Africa) cases: 2 (No change)
  • Number of P.1 variant (Gamma; Brazil) cases: 203 (No change)
  • Number of B.1.617.2 variant (Delta; India) cases: 2,090 (1,614 last week)

These are not simply numbers. We must not forget that these are all someone’s husband or wife, mother or father, sister or brother, son or daughter, friend or neighbor.

The chart above was published in the September issue of the AARP Bulletin. It is based on information from the article, “Vital Statistics: Provisional Life Expectancy Estimates for 2020,” which was published by the CDC.

FINDING INFORMATION:

The State lists information on where to get vaccinated, where to get tested, and what to do if you test positive or were exposed to COVID on their website.

COVID-19 SYMPTOMS – Updated early September 2021

Concerns continue to grow for the Delta variant of COVID-19, which now accounts for 93% of all new COVID-19 infections. Descriptions of symptoms have been updated:

Ranking of Symptoms for Covid-19 Infection in the Unvaccinated

  1. Headache
  2. Sore Throat
  3. Runny Nose
  4. Fever
  5. Persistent cough 

Loss of smell now comes in at number 9, and shortness of breath is way down the list at number 30.

Ranking of Symptoms for Covid-19 Infection in the Partially Vaccinated

  1. Headache
  2. Runny Nose
  3. Sore throat
  4. Sneezing
  5. Persistent Cough

Sneezing, which was never thought to be a symptom in the original Covid strain, is now ranked more common than a cough, for a reported symptom in those with only one dose of the vaccine.

Ranking of Symptoms for Covid-19 Infection in the Fully Vaccinated

  1. Headache
  2. Runny Nose
  3. Sneezing
  4. Sore throat
  5. Loss of smell

A cough ranks 8 on the list for fully vaccinated people, and a fever ranks 12. Shortness of breath is way down the list at number 29.

Breakthrough COVID-19 symptoms:

  • While some vaccinated people are getting COVID, it is still rare, and 99.9% of all recent hospitalizations and deaths associated with COVID-19 are people who are not vaccinated.
  • CDC reports that 79% of those who are found to have breakthrough infections have a cough, headache, sore throat, myalgia and fever. 
  • NBC says approximately 1 in 900 vaccinated people have had breakthrough infections. The vast majority of those had mild or no symptoms. 

A new study shows that unvaccinated people are 17x more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 than people who are fully vaccinated.

Useful links

Sources used to create these reports:

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