New Hampshire boosts benefits, skips standardized testing

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire students will skip standardized tests this spring and businesses will have more time to pay their taxes, Gov. Chris Sununu said Monday as the number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 in the state surpassed 300.

Sununu said residents have done a good job so far adapting to restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of the new coronavirus. But he emphasized that the state will be “in this for the long haul.”

“We need stamina, we need discipline, we need to do this not this week, but next week and next month and probably the month after that,” he said. “So building these practices now and seeing how they work in the real world has given us a lot of useful information.”

A look at developments around the state:

EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT:

Students in grades three through eight typically take standardized tests to measure proficiency in math and English, while 11th graders are assessed via the SAT. But those exams will not be given this year, Sununu said. The state will help students who want to take the SAT during the summer or next fall.

The state also is further expanding unemployment benefits using federal funds. The weekly minimum benefit will increase from $32 per week to $168 per week, the maximum is increasing by $600 per week and benefits will be extended up to 39 weeks.

Employers also are getting a break in the form of a delay in the due date for paying business taxes. The new deadline is June 15.

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ALTERNATIVE CARE SITES

Several more alternative care sites are being set up to serve as overflow and surge spaces for hospitals in New Hampshire.

The University of New Hampshire is working with Wentworth-Douglass, Frisbie Memorial and Portsmouth Regional hospitals to accommodate 250 people.

At the New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord, the community college system is working with Concord Hospital and others to accommodate up to 300 patients in its gymnasium, wellness center and student center.

The first such site was established at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester.

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THE NUMBERS

More than 300 people in New Hampshire have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Three people have died.

For most people, it causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.

Dr. Benjamin Chan, the state epidemiologist, said nearly 50 people in New Hampshire have recovered so far.

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SOCIALLY DISTANCED SWAPS

A Mount Washington Valley group on Facebook is encouraging neighbor-to-neighbor bartering for items and services, while emphasizing social distancing.

One woman was seeking a washing machine for a relative. The woman said in return, she could offer an hour of her cleaning services business “once we’re back to normal.” Last weekend was “super productive” for one man, who wrote he was able to barter for flour, trout worms, pallets and a dishwasher.

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Associated Press Writer Kathy McCormack contributed to this story.