CONCORD – The state has received confirmation from FEMA that it will receive three monoclonal antibody teams at the beginning of the new year. 

On Jan. 3, 2022, FEMA is deploying three teams dedicated to administering monoclonal antibodies to three hospitals in New Hampshire: Elliot Hospital, Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital, and Concord Hospital, according to a news release from Gov. Chris Sununu.

“Patients are referred for treatment with monoclonal antibodies at infusion sites by their primary care provider and are accessible at some urgent care centers,” said Dr. Jonathan Ballard, Chief Medical Officer at DHHS. “This assistance will reduce the number of patients needing hospitalization.” 

A map of locations administering monoclonal antibodies in New Hampshire is on the NH COVID-19 Treatment Resources website. 

Health and Human Services spokesman Laura Montenegro said: “Patients with increased risk of severe disease that may result in hospitalization or death have medical indications to receive monoclonal antibodies.   Primary care providers make these determinations using their clinical judgement and the use of the NIH Treatment guidelines available here: https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/therapies/anti-sars-cov-2-antibody-products/anti-sars-cov-2-monoclonal-antibodies/“

Vanessa Stafford, vice president of communications at New Hampshire Hospital Association’s Foundation for Healthy Communities said: “Having additional federal resources has been, and will continue to be, important to our hospitals’ ability to respond the COVID-19 surge New Hampshire is experiencing.

“The establishment of three dedicated monoclonal antibody treatment sites will not only expand access to these important COVID-19 treatments, it will also free up our hospitals’ health care workers to support patients that are extremely ill within their facilities.”

 Sununu issued the following statement after the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification confirmed that the State licensed over 650 nurses in a three week period following his Executive Order 2021-12, regarding “all actions completed in order to increase licensed health care workforce and hospital capacity.”

“The Office of Professional Licensing looks forward to continuing its collaboration with the Board of Nursing to identify ways to eliminate unnecessary licensure requirements, increase portability of nurses licensed in other states, and to expedite the licensing timeframes overall,” said OPLC Executive Director Lindsey Courtney.