COVID shrinks but masks urged
While COVID cases keep dropping in the city and across the region, Boston health officials ahead of St. Patrick’s Day recommended that people gathering for the holiday wear a mask in public indoor spaces.
“Keep your weekend filled with luck and happiness (and not COVID-19)!” reads a poster from the Boston Public Health Commission.
“Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day?” the Boston Public Health Commission tweeted on Thursday. “While Boston is experiencing lower levels of COVID-19 spread, it’s still very easy to get sick when gathering in large crowds. Consider wearing a mask and be sure to stay home if you’re sick and to test for COVID before and after gathering.”
Meanwhile, the city’s virus wastewater data is continuing to fall. Data from the city’s wastewater surveillance program shows that the number of COVID particles in the wastewater dropped 46% over the past two weeks.
The citywide average is now 479 viral RNA copies per milliliter, down from 897 viral RNA copies two weeks ago.
On Thursday, the state Department of Public Health reported 2,612 virus cases over the last week. The daily average of 373 COVID cases from the last week was a 3% dip from the daily rate of 386 virus infections during the previous week.
The Bay State’s positive test average decreased again last week. The seven-day positive test rate is now 4.49%, down from 4.85% last week.
The state Department of Public Health on Thursday also reported that 423 total patients are hospitalized with COVID, which is a drop of 35 patients from this time last week.
The state reported 49 new COVID deaths over the past
week, bringing the state’s total to 24,391 recorded deaths since the start of the pandemic. The daily average of deaths is now six, which had been up in recent months.
More than 5.6 million people
in the state have been fully vaccinated, and more than 3.5 million people have received at least one booster dose. Also, the state reported that more than 1.6 million additional booster doses have been administered.