Posted on by Bonnie

COVID-19 Update 27 December 2021

COVID-19 Update 27 December 2021

SALEM:

  • Now 1 out of every 6 Salem residents have had confirmed infections. 
  • Salem since last update: 290 new cases since last week
  • Total: 4,733 confirmed cases in Salem.
  • We have 178 active cases
  • Salem’s new cases per 100K for 14 days: 1,167. (1,130 last week)
  • Salem’s Positivity Rate for the past 2 weeks: 16.6% (15.3% last week.) 
  • This is possibly the highest positivity rate ever, but definitely the highest in 13 months
  • Salem had 3.5% of the new cases this week. (Salem has 2.2% of NH’s population.)
  • Fully vaccinated Salem residents: 14,818 (49.5%). (+13 people, 0.0% in the past week)
  • Salem residents who have had at least one shot: 16,175 (54.1%). (+42 people, 0.2% in the past week.)

NEW HAMPSHIRE:

  • New cases of COVID-19 in NH this week by math (Total cases last week compared to total cases today): 7,792 (8,579 last week) 
  • New cases of COVID-19 in NH this week as reported by DHHS: 8,387. Last week: 8,400.
  • 1 out of every 7 NH residents has been infected. (This was 1:8 two weeks ago.)
  • Active COVID-19 cases in NH: 8,026 (8,504 last week). There were 155 active cases on June 28. Before the recent surge, we peaked one year ago, last December 27, at 6,994. Starting November 18, we have broken that record multiple times, peaking on December 9 at 10,648 cases, a 52.2% increase from last December.
  • Recovered in NH this week: 8,206 (9,106 last week.)
  • State Level of Transmission: Substantial in all counties 
  • New patients hospitalized this week because of COVID-19: 94 (64 last week)
  • Current patients hospitalized because of COVID-19: 397 (436 last week)
  • New admissions to ICU this week because of COVID-19: 38 (16 last week)
  • New deaths attributed to COVID-19 reported in NH this week: 64 (55 last week)
  • One of the deaths was for a child aged 0-9, the first time NH has lost a child from COVID-19. We also lost a person in their 20’s this week.
  • From the Vaccination Dashboard: Total NH individuals fully vaccinated: 7814,344 (55.8%). (+2,560; 0.2% this week.) Total NH individuals with at least one shot: 884,241. (62.2%). (+6,152; 0.3% this week) The issues with vaccination rates as previously reported have not been resolved, and now the CDC has reporting issues as well as the State.
  • Per data published on WMUR from last Thursday, NH had a small number of Omicron variants, and it appeared that Delta was still the dominant variant. (Note that this can change rapidly.)

Hello, Salem!

Random thoughts from this week:

  • CDC guldelines have changed again. Those with confirmed case are to isolate for five days and then, if symptom free, they can return to work if they wear a mask for the next five days.
  • Booster Blitz 2: 13,000 NH residents will be able to get their booster shots on Sat. Jan 8. Sign up on January 3.
  • A percentage of NH’s positive test results are sequenced for the variants. In recent days, Delta and Omicron variants are the only ones that have been identified. From the reports on WMUR: From Wednesday (12/22) to Thursday (12/23), Delta samples increased by 265, but Omicron increased by only 2, for a total of 11.

My next update is scheduled for next Monday. In the meantime, Happy New Year!!! Enjoy your celebration, but be smart, stay safe, and always, be kind. 

~Bonnie 

On Tuesday, December 21, 2021, DHHS announced 561 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Monday, December 20. Today’s results include 342 people who tested positive by PCR test and 219 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 32 new cases from Monday, December 13 (14 by PCR and 18 by antigen test, for a new total of 1,047); an additional 14 new cases from Tuesday, December 14 (14 by PCR and 0 by antigen test, for a new total of 1,324); an additional 20 new cases from Wednesday, December 15 (11 by PCR and 9 by antigen test, for a new total of 1,242); 19 new cases from Thursday, December 16 (15 by PCR and 4 by antigen test, for a new total of 1,056); and 7 new cases from Friday, December 17 (0 by PCR and 7 by antigen test, for a new total of 272). There are now 7,971 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

On Tuesday, DHHS also announced additional deaths which took place from the week of September 6 through the week f Nov 27. One was aged 0-9, and another was aged 40-49; the rest were over 60. None were from Rockingham County.

On Wednesday, December 22, 2021, DHHS announced 983 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Tuesday, December 21. Today’s results include 539 people who tested positive by PCR test and 444 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 29 new cases from Tuesday, December 14 (17 by PCR and 12 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,353; an additional 62 new cases from Wednesday, December 15(38 by PCR and 24 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,304; an additional 48 new cases from Thursday, December 16 (28 by PCR and 20 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,104; an additional 38 new cases from Friday, December 17 (17 by PCR and 21 by antigen test) for a new total of 310; an additional 12 new cases from Saturday, December 18 (7 by PCR and 5 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,676; an additional 2 new cases from Sunday, December 19 (0 by PCR and 2 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,259; and an additional 81 new cases from Monday, December 20 (5 by PCR and 76 by antigen test) for a new total of 642. There are now 8,495 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

On Thursday, December 23, 2021, DHHS announced 1,088 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Wednesday, December 22. Today’s results include 802 people who tested positive by PCR test and 286 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced an additional 15 new cases from Wednesday, December 15 (12 by PCR and 3 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,319; an additional 13 new cases from Thursday, December 16 (13 by PCR and 0 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,116; an additional 80 new cases from Friday, December 17 (62 by PCR and 18 by antigen test) for a new total of 390; an additional 79 new cases from Saturday, December 18 (70 by PCR and 9 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,753; an additional 9 new cases from Sunday, December 19 (9 by PCR and 0 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,268; an additional 35 new cases from Monday, December 20 (6 by PCR and 29 by antigen test) for a new total of 677; and an additional 16 new cases from Tuesday, December 21 (2 by PCR and 14 by antigen test) for a new total of 999. There are now 9,149 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. 

There was no data reported on Friday, December 24, 2021.

On Monday, December 27, 2021, DHHS announced 380 new positive test results for COVID-19 for Sunday, December 26. Today’s results include 236 people who tested positive by PCR test and 144 who tested positive by antigen test. DHHS also announced 1,378 new cases from Thursday, December 23 (950 by PCR and 428 by antigen test); 1,275 new cases from Friday, December 24 (1,009 by PCR and 266 by antigen test); and 624 new cases from Saturday, December 25 (605 by PCR and 19 by antigen test); Additionally, DHHS announced an additional 57 new cases from Saturday, December 18 (52 by PCR and 5 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,812; an additional 28 new cases from Sunday, December 19 (18 by PCR and 10 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,296; an additional 99 new cases from Monday, December 20 (55 by PCR and 44 by antigen test) for a new total of 776; an additional 300 new cases from Tuesday, December 21 (198 by PCR and 102 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,299; and an additional 122 new cases from Wednesday, December 22 (69 by PCR and 53 by antigen test) for a new total of 1,210. There are now 8,026 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. Additionalinformation from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates.” 

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

  • Total people who have tested positive: 194,470 (186,678) last week)
  • New positive cases reported this week by math (Comparison of total number of cases last week to now): 7,792 (8,579 last week)
  • New positive cases per DHHS: 8,387 (8,400 last week)

• • • • • ACTIVE CASES • • • • • • 

  • 8,026 (8,504 last week). There were 155 active cases on June 28. We peaked at 6,994 last December 27. Starting November 18, we have broken the record multiple times, peaking on December 9 at 10,648 cases, a 52.2% increase from last December.
  • There are 4 communities with more active cases than Salem: Manchester, Rochester, Derry and Concord.
  • 33 communities have more than 50 active cases.
  • 13 communities have more than 100 active cases.

• • • • • CUMULATIVE CASES • • • • • • 

  • 4 communities — Manchester, Nashua, Concord, and Derry — are still the only communities with more total cases than Salem. (Manchester passed 20,000 this week.)
  • Rochester, Dover, and Hudson also have more than 4,000 total cases. 
  • 1 out of every 6 Salem residents has been infected. (Was 1:7 last week)
  • 1 out of every 7 residents of Rockingham County. (Was 1:8 two weeks ago)
  • 1 out of every 7 residents of NH have been infected. (Was 1:8 two weeks ago)

• • • • • • RECOVERED • • • • • •

  • Total recovered: 184,537 (176,331 last week)
  • Recovered this week: 8,206 (9,106 last week)
  • Percentage of diagnosed cases that have recovered: 94.9% (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: 1,125. (1,220 last week.)
  • Positivity Rate for NH: 13.4%. (12.3% last week.) On June 28, NH’s positivity was at 0.8%. The peak before the recent surge, was December 22, when NH had a positivity rate of 9.2%. 
  • Salem’s Positivity Rate is now 16.6%. This is the highest rate in my records, which, for this metric goes back 13 months to December 3, 2020. Last week we were at 15.3%.
  • 54 communities have a positivity rate higher than Salem. 134 communities are over 10%. There are 161 communities with a positivity rate over 5%. 
  • When the positivity rate is high, it is likely that cases may be undercounted.

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

  • Currently hospitalized: 397 (Last week: 436). NH’s previous peak before the recent surge was reached on January 2, with 335 COVID hospitalizations. We have broken that record a number of times lately. December 10 was the most recent peak at 466.
  • Staffed hospital beds available: 14.6%. (13.2% last week)
  • Total patients who have been hospitalized with COVID-19: 2,786 (2,692 last week) 
  • New patients hospitalized this week because of COVID-19: 94. (64 last week)
  • Percentage of those who have been infected that have been hospitalized: 1.4%
  • Total ICU patients: 799
  • New admissions to ICU this week because of COVID-19: 38 (16 last week)
  • Staffed adult ICU beds available: 8.9%. (Last week: 5.4%.)
  • Ventilators available: 71.0% (62.2% last week)

• • • • • • DEATHS IN NH • • • • • • 

  • Total fatalities in NH associated with COVID-19: 1,907 (1,843 last week)
  • New deaths attributed to COVID-19 reported in NH this week: 64 (Last week 55)
  • NH residents diagnosed with COVID-19 that have died: 0.98% 
  • This week’s death counts include a child aged 0-9, and a person who were in their 20’s. 
  • We have lost two healthcare workers in the last two weeks, bringing that total to 15.
  • NH residents diagnosed with COVID-19 and who have lasting side effects (Long-COVID): Unknown count, but nationally it is estimated to be 1:3. 

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

(Showing changes since last week) 

  • 0-9: Infections: 17765 (+1449); Hospitalizations: 29 (+1); Deaths: 1 (+1)
  • 10-19: Infections: 27324 (+1661); Hospitalizations: 18 (-1); Deaths: 0 (+0)
  • 20-29: Infections: 34044 (+1957); Hospitalizations: 64 (+2); Deaths: 3 (+1)
  • 30-39: Infections: 29331 (+1943); Hospitalizations: 138 (+4); Deaths: 16 (+1)
  • 40-49: Infections: 25058 (+1422); Hospitalizations: 225 (+4); Deaths: 35 (+4)
  • 50-59: Infections: 27264 (+1454); Hospitalizations: 418 (+11); Deaths: 86 (+6)
  • 60-69: Infections: 18462 (+970); Hospitalizations: 635 (+30); Deaths: 241 (+11)
  • 70-79: Infections: 8797 (+380); Hospitalizations: 646 (+25); Deaths: 469 (+19)
  • 80+: Infections: 6151 (+162); Hospitalizations: 610 (+18); Deaths: 1056 (+21)

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

  • 0-9: 13.6% vs. 9.1% (+4.5%)
  • 10-19: 15.5% vs. 14.1% (+1.4%)
  • 20-29: 15.4% vs. 17.5% (-2.1%)
  • 30-39: 16% vs. 15.1% (+0.9%)
  • 40-49: 12.4% vs. 12.9% (-0.5%)
  • 50-59: 12.9% vs. 14% (-1.1%)
  • 60-69: 8.7% vs. 9.5% (-0.8%)
  • 70-79: 3.5% vs. 4.5% (-1%)
  • 80+: 1.8% vs. 3.2% (-1.4%)
  • Unknown: 0.2% vs. 0.1% (+0.1%)

Additional Age Stats

  • 1,659 children under 18 are included in this week’s new cases. (2,212 last week)
  • 19.8% of new cases announced by DHHS this week are kids under 18 years old. (26.3% last week.)
  • Under 60: 6,788 new cases; 21 hospitalizations; 13 deaths this week.
  • 60+: 1,004 new cases; 73 hospitalizations; 51 deaths this week.

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

  • NH DHHS reported 25 institutional outbreaks as of Thursday, Dec. 22, including one here in Salem. Salem Haven has had 21 residents and 6 staff. Last week Salem Haven was reported as having three residents and one staff affected, (and six residents the previous week???)
  • Details about these active outbreaks, and all closed outbreaks, can be seen here.

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

Per WMUR, of the positive cases that were sequenced, NH has had:

  • Number of B.1.1.7 variant (Alpha) cases: 1,259 No change) 
  • Number of B.1.351 variant (Beta) cases: 2 (No change)
  • Number of P.1 variant (Gamma) cases: 203 (No change)
  • Number of B.1.617.2 variant (Delta) cases: 4,068 total (917 from Tuesday, December 7 to Thursday, December 23)
  • Number of B.1.1.529 variant (Omicron): 11 total (11 from Tuesday, December 7 to Thursday, December 23)

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.

Which Booster should I get?

Chart based on data at:
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-10-26/which-booster-shot-should-i-get-heres-how-to-chose?

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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