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 323 new positive test results for COVID-19 and three deaths Thursday for a daily PCR test positivity rate of 2.6%.

The deaths included two women from Hillsborough County and a man from Coos County, all over age 60.

Check number of COVID-19 cases by school every day. Under the “show” pull down and click “schools with cases.” https://www.nh.gov/covid19/dashboard/schools.htm. You can also download the community transmission level map there.

Manchester (199), Nashua (197), and Durham (105) had the most active cases Thursday.

On Thursday all 10 counties were listed in the red for having “substantial” community transmission, the highest level.

The overall level of community transmission is defined using three metrics: new cases per 100,000 over 14 days; new hospitalizations per 100,000 over 14 days; and 7-day PCR test positivity rate.

Today’s results include 270 people who tested positive by PCR test and 53 who tested positive by antigen test. There are now 2,528 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 forty individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 56% being female and 44% being male. The new cases reside in Rockingham (70), Strafford (56), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (42), Merrimack (27), Coos (24), Carroll (13), Belknap (11), Grafton (9), Cheshire (6), and Sullivan (3) counties, and in the cities of Nashua (28) and Manchester (23). The county of residence is being determined for eleven new cases.

Four new hospitalized cases were reported. There are currently 64 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. This census may include out of state residents hospitalized in NH and/or individuals readmitted to the hospital, therefore increases in the daily hospital census may not always equal the number of new hospitalizations reported in a given day. Four 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 are either associated with an outbreak setting or have had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis.

In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 13,470 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 804 (6%) of those having been hospitalized.