New Hampshire moves to limit remote school during pandemic

By Holly Ramer and Wilson Ring
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Here are the latest developments regarding the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic:

New HampshireA proposed rule that would severely limit remote instruction options for schools won’t go before the state Board of Education until November, but state officials already are advising districts to follow it.

School districts currently can shift to fully remote or hybrid instruction for all students due to COVID-19 outbreaks. But under an administrative rule proposed by the Department of Education, schools would be required to provide in-person instruction five days per week except in cases of inclement weather or when a parent requests remote learning for an individual student.

In an email to school leaders last month, Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut instructed schools on how to comply with what he called the “recently advanced” rules, without describing the current rules. Schools are permitted to offer remote instruction to individual students who have contracted COVID-19, are required to quarantine because a household contact is infected or have other family circumstances that prevent in-person attendance, he said.

“I think there’s a little bit of a shift that’s taking place, because we’re not in the same circumstances we found ourselves in last year, so people have to shift their mindsets,” he said in a phone interview this week.

The Manchester School District on Wednesday temporarily moved three elementary school classes to remote status for three school days because of COVID-19 clusters.

Manchester School District announced Wednesday that COVID-19 clusters had been identified at two city elementary schools. Out of an abundance of caution, the affected classes have been temporarily moved to remote status, officials said.

“It should go without saying that it’s our strong preference to have all students learning in person,” Superintendent John Goldhardt said in a statement. “However, in moving the affected groups to remote status, we are making our best effort to ensure we keep as many students in person as possible.”

Vaccine protest: New Hampshire’s attorney general wants to determine if any individuals violated criminal laws after protesters disrupted an executive council meeting, forcing Gov. Chris Sununu to postpone it.

Angry opponents of the Biden administration’s new vaccine mandate moved around the room in Manchester on Wednesday, shouting “Shut it down.”

Sununu, a Republican, said state police had to escort state employees to their cars after “unruly and very aggressive” behavior.

Attorney General John Formella on Thursday announced the start of a review “of the facts and circumstances surrounding yesterday’s conduct of individuals” at the meeting.

The postponement further delayed a council vote on $27 million in federal aid to boost New Hampshire’s vaccination efforts.

Community health centers: Ten community health centers in New Hampshire will receive a total of over $5.3 million through the American Rescue plan to support construction projects, the state’s congressional delegation said Thursday.

The grants range from over $120,000 to over $670,000.

Recipients include Health First Family Care Center, Inc.; Lamprey Health Care, Inc.; Ammonoosuc Community Health Services; Coos County Family Health Services, Inc.; Indian Stream Health Center; Amoskeag Health; City of Manchester; Greater Seacoast Community Health; Mid-State Health Center; and Harbor Homes, Inc.

“Ensuring our community health care centers have the facilities and capabilities necessary to meet the needs of the patients they serve is critical, especially as many providers have been overwhelmed by the influx of Granite Staters due to COVID-19,” U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said in a statement. “That’s why securing federal assistance for our frontline providers to complete necessary construction projects was an important effort during negotiations of the American Rescue Plan.”

The numbers: More than 120,000 people have tested positive for the virus in New Hampshire, including 421 cases announced Friday. No new deaths were announced, keeping the total at 1,481.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in New Hampshire has risen over the past two weeks from 446 new cases per day on Sept. 15 to 508 new cases per day on Sept. 29.

VermontThe University of Vermont Medical Center says 93% of its nearly 15,000 workers at its facilities in Vermont and upstate New York have complied with the requirement they be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Three employees resigned rather than comply with the vaccine requirement that took effect on Friday, Medical Center spokesperson Neal Goswami said.

The hospital system announced its policy in August.

Goswami said about 250 employees are not vaccinated and will be tested weekly and 250 or so employees are partially vaccinated and will be tested until they are fully vaccinated.

Another 250 employees have yet to confirm whether they will choose weekly testing, vaccination or have not submitted their vaccine documentation.

“We have received 12 requests for religious exemption and are reviewing them carefully,” Goswami said.

Booster shots: All eligible groups can now sign up to get a Pfizer booster shot against COVID-19 in Vermont.

Registration opened Friday for people 65 and older and for those ages 18 to 64 with underlying medical conditions that put them at risk for severe illness with COVID-19 or who are more likely to be exposed to the virus because of where they work. Registration is also open for people ages 18 and older who are Black, indigenous, or a person of color or live with someone who is.

“We know vaccines are safe and effective, and these additional doses add even more protection. So, I encourage anyone who is eligible to register for your booster today,” Gov. Phil Scott said in a statement. “At the same time, we continue to urge those who have not yet gotten their first dose to get vaccinated. The data shows we are now in a pandemic of the unvaccinated, and vaccines are the best way to protect yourself, friends and family, and to make sure we continue moving forward from the pandemic.”

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed booster shots for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans six months after receiving their second dose of the Pfizer vaccine.

Booster shots are available where Pfizer vaccines are offered, including at a Health Department clinic, pharmacy or health care provider, state officials said. People must make an appointment to get a shot at a state clinic and are asked to bring their vaccine cards with them. Information can be found on the Vermont Health Department website.

More than 4,700 people in Vermont have registered through the state system for a third Pfizer shot as of Friday morning, the governor’s office said.

Unemployment benefits: Pandemic-related provisions that expanded eligibility to unemployment benefits for people directly impacted by COVID-19 are set to expire on Friday, the Vermont Department of Labor said.

The expanded eligibility was for situations including people needing to quarantine because of exposure to the coronavirus, care for a child whose school or childcare center was closed due COVID-19, or care for a family member who had the illness, the department said.

When the expansions expire, Vermonters may only qualify for unemployment benefits under traditional criteria, like being laid off or terminated without cause, officials said. People who have been filing for unemployment under one of the virus-related provisions will be required to do a weekly work search.

Vermonters may be eligible for workers’ compensation if they have contracted COVID-19 while at work, according to the state Labor Department.

The numbers: On Friday, the Vermont Department of Health reported 189 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing the statewide total since the pandemic began to more than 33,850.

There were 48 people hospitalized with COVID-19, including 10 in intensive care.

There have been a total of 318 deaths.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Vermont decreased over the past two weeks, going from 190.57 new cases per day on Sept. 15 to 184.86 new cases per day on Sept. 29.

The seven-day rolling average of daily deaths in Vermont has risen over the past two weeks from 1.57 deaths per day on Sept. 15 to 2.29 deaths per day on Sept. 29.

The Associated Press is using data collected by Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering to measure outbreak caseloads and deaths across the U.S.