FILE - This 2020 electron microscope image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - Rocky Mountain Laboratories shows SARS-CoV-2 virus particles which causes COVID-19, isolated from a patient in the U.S., emerging from the surface of cells cultured in a lab. On Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, the top U.S. public health agency said that coronavirus can spread greater distances through the air than 6 feet, particularly in poorly ventilated and enclosed spaces. But agency officials continued to say such spread is uncommon, and current social distancing guidelines still make sense. (NIAID-RML via AP)

CONCORD – The state Department of Health and Human Services announced 79 new positive test results for COVID-19, for a daily PCR test positivity rate of 0.7% on Thursday.

Today’s results include 55 people who tested positive by PCR test and 24 who tested positive by antigen test. There are now 531 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire.

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 fifteen individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 57% being female and 43% being male. The new cases reside in Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (20), Rockingham (19), Merrimack (5), Strafford (3), Grafton (1), and Sullivan (1) counties, and in the cities of Manchester (17) and Nashua (13).

Two new hospitalized cases were identified. There are currently ­­14 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. Ten of the new cases had no identified risk factors. 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 have either had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis or have recently traveled.

The state also announced the death related to COVID-19 of one Hillsborough County woman over age 60.

In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 8,878 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 747 (8%) of those having been hospitalized.