Dec. 16 NH DHHS COVID-19 update: 928 new positive results with 94 in Manchester; 21 deaths reported

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COVID Overview 70


CONCORD, NH – On Wednesday, December 16, 2020, DHHS announced 928 new positive test results for COVID-19, for a daily PCR test positivity rate of 6.4%. Today’s results include 680 people who tested positive by PCR test and 248 who tested positive by antigen test. There are now 6,680 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire. Of the results reported today:

  • 12/11: 212 new cases today, for an updated total of  799 cases
  • 12/12: 118 new cases today, for an updated total of  536 cases
  • 12/13: 1 new case today, for an updated total of  725 cases
  • 12/14: 175 new cases today, for an updated total of  560 cases
  • 12/15: 422 new cases

Test results for previous days are still being processed and the total number of new positives for those days are not yet complete. Updated case counts for prior days will be reflected on the COVID-19 interactive dashboard.

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 one hundred and three individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 53% being female and 47% being male. The new cases reside in Rockingham (202), Merrimack (157), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (153), Strafford (74), Belknap (57), Carrol (24), Cheshire (22), Grafton (18), Sullivan (3), and Coos (1) counties, and in the cities of Nashua (95) and Manchester (94). The county of residence is being determined for twenty-eight new cases.

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 are either associated with an outbreak setting or have had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis.

DHHS has also announced 21 additional deaths related to COVID-19.

  • 2 male residents of Belknap County, 60 years of age and older
  • 1 female resident of Cheshire County, 60 years of age and older
  • 3 female residents of Grafton County, 60 years of age and older
  • 3 female residents of Hillsborough County, 60 years of age and older
  • 8 male residents of Hillsborough County, 60 years of age and older
  • 1 male resident of Hillsborough County, less than 60 years of age
  • 1 male resident of Merrimack County, 60 years of age and older
  • 1 male resident of Rockingham County, 60 years of age and older
  • 1 male resident of Coos County, 60 years of age and older

There are currently 286 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 33,433 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 870 (3%) of those having been hospitalized.

Current Situation in New Hampshire

 New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report (updated December 16, 2020, 9 a.m.)

NH Persons with COVID-19 33,433
Recovered 26,128 (78%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19 625 (2%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases 6,680
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19 870 (3%)
Current Hospitalizations 286
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)2 473,346
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests2 34,058
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL 60,831
       Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL (see 3 below) 1,326

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.

 Number of Tests Conducted by Date of Report to NH DHHS

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Tests
Testing Laboratory 12/09 12/10 12/11 12/12 12/13 12/14 12/15 Daily Average
NH Public Health Laboratories 908 1,703 1,258 1,329 999 1,253 853 1,186
LabCorp 1,333 1,930 1,053 1,629 1,851 1,299 1,228 1,475
Quest Diagnostics 1,839 917 1,308 1,364 1,747 1,424 1,155 1,393
Mako Medical 400 996 277 131 249 9 113 311
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center 1,200 793 721 515 423 302 57 573
Other NH Hospital Laboratory 628 579 540 485 434 523 377 509
Other Laboratory* 2,118 2,187 1,831 1,724 1,010 1,084 1,288 1,606
University of New Hampshire** 782 1,483 1,773 1 0 1,917 1,481 1,062
Total 9,208 10,588 8,761 7,178 6,713 7,811 6,552 8,116
Antibody Laboratory Tests
Testing Laboratory 12/09 12/10 12/11 12/12 12/13 12/14 12/15 Daily Average
LabCorp 22 19 20 21 1 2 0 12
Quest Diagnostics 28 31 41 34 7 10 17 24
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center 6 11 10 3 0 7 0 5
Other Laboratory* 15 12 15 7 0 23 10 12
Total 71 73 86 65 8 42 27 53

* Includes out-of-state public health laboratories, out-of-state hospital laboratories, and other commercial laboratories not already listed in the table.

Note: Patients who had both antibody and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests are accounted for in both tables.

** Includes tests conducted at the UNH laboratory and their contracted lab Veritas.

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NH Department of Health and Human Services