NH Governor Extends Stay-At-Home Order 2 More Weeks: Update

CONCORD, NH — New Hampshire's emergency order, keeping many parts of the state closed and encouraging people to limit their travel to necessities, is in place until at least the middle of next month, according to Gov. Chris Sununu.

The order, nicknamed Stay-At-Home 2.0, expires Saturday, and at a news conference Friday, the governor said it would continue for two more weeks, at least. Health officials and task forces looking at new policies and guidelines to reopen would continue to eye data and "constantly look" at flex opening more businesses and organizations.

"That's really why we're going to be staying in it for another two weeks," Sununu said. "But it is our hope and intention to move beyond it on June 15. That's the hope. We'll watch the data and see where we are."

Other Positive Updates

Sununu also listed a number of new changes and loosening of closure orders, items he called, positive updates, as the season changes from spring to summer.

Driver's education tests will be reopening with new rules and protocols allowing teenagers to test to see if they have earned their licenses. The governor said as the father of a nearly 16-year-old child, this was good news.

Houses of worships will also be allowed to reopen at 40 percent occupancy after guidance from the federal government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some of the new guidelines include 6-foot buffers between different groups of parishioners, to preserve social distancing and limit large, in-person services. Sununu said state Sen. Bob Giuda, R-Warren, had "worked tirelessly" to bring people together, done in a real way, "that is manageable."

Day camps, programs Sununu called "really essential in New Hampshire," noting that he visited a lot of them, will be allowed to reopen June 22, again, with new guidance and restrictions, if they choose to open. The day camps will allow parents some flexibility with their child care and, in some cases, kids receive their only meal of the day at the camps, Sununu said. Day camps are also mostly used by in-state children and are often kids at camp in their own communities which "doesn't create a cross-border issue," he said.

On overnight camps, Sununu said he had a "half announcement," saying they will be allowed to reopen June 28, but officials were still "working on the guidance document" and testing different provisions, "some things that are practical."

Hotels and short-term rentals can reopen on June 5, and can take reservations, effectively immediately, from in-state guests and out-of-state guests who have quarantined for at least 14-days, the governor said. Out-of-state guests will have to "self-attest to the fact that they have quarantined." Rentals, hotels, and motels with fewer than 20 rooms and motels or hotels with outdoor entrances can serve customers at full capacity — due to not having hallways and areas where people can congregate or run into each other, creating potential infection issues. Other hotels have to limit occupancy to 50 percent, he said.

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"We appreciate everyone's patience to find a viable solution," he said. "We believe the guidance we are putting out today is a solid foundation to, at least, get the ball rolling, get started, again, we'll watch the data over the next few weeks and, hopefully, be able to make another step forward if the data looks good."

Sununu also spoke about the death of George Floyd, the situation in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the rioting, which he called "terrible." While saying his thoughts were "personal," the governor said it was important to be thinking of Floyd's family during this difficult time.

"That's what this is really about," he said. "Our hearts really go out to them."

Sununu said it was important to continue to talk with one another and address biases that "we take for granted." He said he was proud of establishing a diversity and inclusion council and a civil rights unit at the attorney general's office. Incidents like Floyd's death "can happen anywhere, any time," he said, while also praising New Hampshire's "amazing law enforcement and first responders … we're incredibly fortunate."

Public Health Updates — Both Good, Bad

Lori Shibinette, the commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, announced six new coronavirus deaths who all lived in Hillsborough County, were 60 or older, and connected to long-term care facilities. There are also 107 new positive test results but only two new hospitalizations. More than 70,000 people have been tested for the virus, she said.

Another outbreak occurred at the Mount Carmel Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Manchester involving 31 residents and one staffer who were positive, Shibinette said.

Catholic Medical Center and Elliott Hospital, two of the state's largest hospitals, also announced clusters of illnesses in areas of both facilities. The state was working with both facilities to perform contact tracing and find the sources of the sickness.

CVS is now offering self-swab drive-thru testing for anyone at the pharmacy's locations on Hall Street and Loudon Road in Concord, Lafayette Road in Hampton, White Hall Road in Hooksett, and the Daniel Webster Highway in Nashua.

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The state is also opening up its testing facilities to anyone who wants a test.

"Anybody that wants a test can get a test," Shibinette said. "We're really encouraging people to go out and get tested."

The state's COVID-19 dashboard would also soon be updating data in real-time, Shibinette said.

Questions And Answers

The governor was asked about his comments concerning Floyd while not mentioning a recent issue with two New Hampshire State Police troopers a couple of weeks ago smashing the window of a vehicle and dragging a man out of his car by his dreadlocks. Sununu said he was aware of the incident and the attorney general was looking into it with law enforcement to ensure it was proper even though there wasn't a complaint in the case.

"We're going to stay on top of it," he said.

On houses of worship, Sununu called them the glue inside a community and a lot of parishioners were passionate about getting them reopened. The team looked at the federal guidance, and suggestions that came from religious people in New Hampshire, too, as well as what other states had worked on. Sununu believed that they could be reopened under the new conditions.

"If you're ever going to start talking about allowing people to gather in large groups together, the first place to start is probably faith," he said.

Shibinette was asked about whether testing would be overwhelmed as it was opened up to everyone, and she said during the past few weeks, the test state's sites were at around 70 percent capacity. So, they could open testing to everyone. The system, she said, will not get overwhelmed. Thousands of people in long-term care are getting tested each week, she added.

With the Elliott and CMC situations, both hospitals, as well as Manchester Public Health, were contacting patients who received treatment on the infected floors. Anyone who has symptoms, she said, should get tested and anyone can get tested.

Sununu was asked about property taxes and he said the subject comes up "quite often" during his meetings with community leaders and the Department of Revenue Administration. He did not know what the outcome would be or what the final number would be. He hoped some of the money from the federal stimulus and extra unemployment would be used toward rent, mortgages, and property taxes. Sununu said there might be more federal relief, too. Cities and towns, however, need to make some kinds of cuts, too, like families and businesses are doing, he said.

The governor was also asked about the legal challenge of remote learning not being an adequate education required by the state's constitution. He refused to speak about the legal part of the question since he had not seen the case filing yet. Overall, remote learning was successful, Sununu said, but agreed students, including some in special education, fell through the cracks. Discretionary dollars, he said, would be used to fill those gaps during the summer and next year, too.

On indoor dining and many restaurant owners who say that they will go under if they cannot reopen soon, Sununu said the state would look at data from other states that have allowed restaurants to reopen as well as other impacts in the business world — bankruptcy, unemployment, mental health, and other issues. Working toward 50 percent indoor opening was a light at the end of the tunnel but public health and safety must come first, he said.

On the status of nursing home testing, Shibinette said 95 percent had been completed with specimens taken from everywhere. A new program to continue testing and track cases will begin next week.

When asked about chambers of commerce being able to sustain their activities, Sununu said most were nonprofits and there was around $60 million in funds available for them to tap into it. He said they would be needed to help keep small businesses open and running.

On the hotel industry in the North Country and potential new cases from out of state, Sununu said other states had a downward trend, too, in cases, and he hoped that the 14-day quarantine was still in place before visitors could come to the state.

On ATV usage in the North Country and outdoor rental facilities, those were reopened and there was guidance available for those business, Sununu said.

On outdoor tourism attractions and amusement parks, there will be updates soon, he added.

About 6,000 kids have been in child care since the pandemic, taking care of the children of first responders and others. When asked if there were any outbreaks in those centers, Shibinette said there had not been any. One facility is under investigation for having one positive staff member and children and workers will be tested.

Sununu was asked about other states and how they measure data, and he said a lot of states were not near Boston and had better social distancing.

Shibinette was asked about why positive test results today and yesterday had been more than 100 positives each day after declining numbers the previous week and whether it had to do with the Mount Carmel outbreak or something else. She said it was due to that outbreak and close to half of positive cases during the past two days were from nursing homes with current outbreaks — which is why staff and residents are being tested and retested. The positive results were not due to reopening the economy.

When asked about how much longer after the two-week extension the state would be closed, Sununu said it would depend.

"My hope is that we're out of it on June 15," he said. "That's the plan. Anything beyond that? We'll see where we go. Hopefully, we'll get there."

Learn More About The Spread Of COVID-19

The COVID-19 virus is spread through respiratory droplets, usually through coughing and sneezing, and exposure to others who are sick or might be showing symptoms.

Health officials emphasize residents should follow these recommendations:

• Avoid any domestic and international travel, especially on public transportation such as buses, trains, and airplanes.
• Practice social distancing. Stay at least 6 feet from other people, including distancing while in waiting areas or lines.
• Anybody who is told to self-quarantine and stay at home due to exposure to a person with confirmed or suspect COVID-19 needs to stay home and not go out into public places.
• If you are 60 years or older or have chronic medical conditions, you need to stay home and not go out.
• Avoid gatherings of 10 people or more.
• Employers need to move to telework as much as possible.
• There is increasing evidence that this virus can survive for hours or possibly even a few days on surfaces, so people should clean frequently touched surfaces, including door handles, grocery carts and grocery basket handles, etc.

Take the same precautions as you would if you were sick:

• Stay home and avoid public places when sick (i.e., social distancing).
• Cover mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
• Wash hands frequently.
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

More information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services about coronavirus can be found here on the department's website.

• Guidance to schools can be found can be found here.
• Instructions for returning travelers to self-observe for symptoms of COVID-19 are available are available here.
• For more information on COVID-19 in NH, visit its site here.
• For the latest information from the CDC, visit its site here.

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