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NH plans drive-in session, vaccination sites open

By Holly Ramer And Wilson Ring
Associated Press
Here are the latest developments regarding the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic throughout New England:

New HampshireThere will be only one House speaker, but as many as 400 New Hampshire lawmakers will be in the driver’s seat next month for a legislative session modeled on a drive-in movie theater.

The House released plans Tuesday for what acting Speaker Sherm Packard called “the most risk-mitigated session of the House yet during this pandemic.”

Lawmakers in one of the world’s largest legislative bodies will park in front of a large screen at the University of New Hampshire in Durham and will remain in their cars for the duration of the Jan. 6 session.

“It is our belief that the extra precautions of members voting and debating from the comfort of their own vehicles, spread apart across the largest parking lot on UNH’s campus, will allow us to do our business effectively and efficiently,” Packard, R-Londonderry, said in a letter to lawmakers.

Since the pandemic began, the House has met indoors in a UNH arena and outside on an athletic field. House Speaker Dick Hinch, R-Merrimack, died of COVID-19 on Dec. 9, a week after being sworn in during the outdoor gathering, and Democrats have pushed for fully remote sessions.

“It’s absurd in the height of the pandemic that the leader of the republican majority is doing everything possible except the most logical thing to do, which is to allow us to meet remotely,” House Minority Leader Renny Cushing, D-Hampton, said Tuesday. “Why in the middle of a pandemic we’re spending all these resources to circumvent a logical solution to a problem is beyond me.”

But the House has not adopted rules to allow remote sessions, and doing so would cost $300,000, Packard said.

“Such an expense cannot be justified at the present time, nor is it possible to resolve the significant logistical requirements of a remote session given the short timeframe and the unique challenges of the 400-member House,” he said.

Instead, the Jan. 6 session will include cars parked in alternating spots in staggered rows facing a large movie screen. The House clerk and speaker will conduct the session from a heated platform, and members can watch and listen via the screen or through their car radios. Microphones will be brought to their windows for questions and debate, and voting will be conducted via electronic devices similar to those used during the indoor arena session.

The Durham Fire Department will conduct air monitoring throughout the day given the large number of idling vehicles, but officials said there shouldn’t be a problem given the wind and wide-open area.

Vaccination sites for first responders open: Vaccinations began Tuesday for New Hampshire’s first responders and high-risk health care providers who don’t work in hospitals.

The state has opened 13 vaccination clinics, including one in Claremont, for first responders and ambulatory care workers, with the sites in the mostly densely populated locations operating five days a week and the others two or three days per week. Those who are eligible are being notified by their professional associations, licensing boards and other organizations, state officials said Monday.

The numbers: More than 42,000 people have tested positive for the virus in New Hampshire, with 1,029 cases announced Tuesday that included partial results from five days. Twenty new deaths were announced, bringing the total to 735.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in New Hampshire has decreased over the past two weeks from 866 on Dec. 14 to 611 on Dec. 28.

VermontThe number of new cases of people infected with the coronavirus continues to drop, but officials are waiting to see if the holidays will cause a spike in cases, officials said Tuesday.

Vermonters generally stayed home during Thanksgiving, and travel data shows that with the New Year’s holiday still to come, travel is down significantly over last year.

In counties from Ohio to Virginia to Maine, eight of the 10 with the lowest rates of active infection per 1 million people are in Vermont.

“We are holding our breath a bit,” Gov. Phil Scott said during his twice-weekly virus briefing.

The relatively good news about the virus comes as Vermont health officials continues to vaccinate those at highest risk — health care workers — and those considered at the highest risk of death from COVID-19, the usually frail, elderly people living in long-term care facilities.

So far, just under 10,000 people have received the first dose of the vaccine.

Human Services Secretary Mike Smith said that by Jan. 8 the first dose of the vaccine should have been provided to those in the highest priority groups.

State officials are now planning who should receive the vaccine in the second priority group and then expanding the vaccination campaign into the general population.

Smith said that in general, there will be four locations where Vermonters will be able to be vaccinated, primary care offices, pharmacies and 12 health department district vaccination sites. Mass vaccination sites will also be set up in conjunction with the state’s COVID-19 testing sites, Smith said.

“It’s the easiest way to administer vaccines and it’s easiest for the public to understand,” Smith said.

Who gets the vaccine will be based on age and underlying health conditions, Smith said.

The process will begin focusing on people who are 75 and older and then expanding to younger people, Smith said.

The numbers: On Tuesday, the Vermont Health Department reported 82 new cases of the virus, bringing the statewide total since the pandemic began to more than 7,200.

There are currently 31 people hospitalized, including six in intensive care.

The state reported one more death, bringing the statewide fatality total to 130.

Of those fatalities 70% have been among residents of long-term care facilities.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Vermont did not increase over the past two weeks, going from 111 on Dec. 14 to 83.71 on Dec. 28.

The latest average positivity rate in Vermont is 2.06%. State health departments are calculating positivity rate differently across the country, but for Vermont the AP calculates the rate by dividing new cases by test specimens using data from The COVID Tracking Project.

The seven-day rolling average of the positivity rate in Vermont did not increase over the past two weeks, going from 2.17% on Dec. 14 to 2.06% on Dec. 28.

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