Annmarie Timmins - New Hampshire Bulletin

For the third time since September, the Executive Council rejected contracts Wednesday that provide 80 percent of the low-cost reproductive health care to Granite Staters.

Lawmakers won’t have a budget to write, debate, and negotiate this session, but with at least 900 bills awaiting their return Jan. 5, it will be another busy year.

The House and Senate will stream meetings but allow only in-person testimony when lawmakers reconvene in January.

In January, it will be illegal to terminate a pregnancy after 24 weeks in N.H. Every person seeking an abortion will also have to undergo an ultrasound.

Vaccine mandates aren’t the culprit to blame, N.H. health care leaders say. The pandemic exacerbated an existing worker shortage, they said.

New Hampshire is one of 10 states that provides only emergency dental benefits for adults, according to the American Dental Association

The Manchester marketing firm charged with advertising COVID-19 vaccination is involved in a high-stakes effort to make the state safer as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are surging and the vaccination rate lags at 54.7 percent.

The purchase could be complete by the end of the year, but finding enough staff to use at least 80 to 90 beds will take months.

After rejecting federal money for vaccine outreach at their last meeting, Republican executive councilors approved a much smaller amount to help vaccinate 5- to 11-year-olds.