Next vaccine phase expanded
State reports its lowest single-day positivity rate in months
Connecticut’s next phase of vaccinations has officially expanded to include all residents who are 65 years and older, as well as residents with at least one high-risk health condition, but a vaccine shortage means it could be months before this large group is inoculated.
Gov. Ned Lamont on Thursday formally approved the Phase 1B expansion, which had been recommended by a state subcommittee earlier in the week.
“It will probably take a few weeks before all the people in Phase 1A get their second dose,” Lamont said, “but that doesn’t mean we’re not beginning to do people in 1B, really focused right now on folks 75 and above.”
With the expansion, the state has added about 715,000 people to the phase, for a total of more than 1.3 million, according to state estimates.
(Previous state estimates placed the number at more than 1.5 million.)
The newly expanded phase, which began this week with residents 75 and older eligible to sign up for vaccination, now includes: All residents aged 65 and older. Residents aged 16 to 64 who have at least one high-risk co-morbid condition (including cancer and Down syndrome).
Frontline essential workers (including teachers and grocery store workers).
Residents of congregate settings (including group homes and prisons).
Because of the size of the phase, the state is rolling out eligibility in waves — meaning not everyone in Phase 1B will be vaccinated at once.
“This allocation strategy is limited by the number of doses we have available,” said Dr. Deidre Gifford, acting commissioner of public health. “We’re hoping for more vaccine as new [vaccines] get approved and as the existing manufacturers are able to ramp up production, but we can only give out as many vaccines as we have doses.”
The state’s 277,000 residents who are aged 75 and older are first in line, and the state has already opened up vaccination appointments to that group. However, Connecticut officials have not said which group might become eligible next, or given any timeline for the full rollout of Phase 1B.
“Our message to the public today is please be patient,” Gifford said. “It will take time for us to get to the other members of Phase 1B.”
Lamont noted that “demand is far outstripping supply.” The state has received 46,000 vaccine doses a week from the federal government, though Lamont said Thursday they were expecting an extra 50,000 next week as a one-time reward for successful vaccine administration.
Phase 1B marks the beginning of the widespread vaccination in Connecticut. Previously, only a narrow subset of the population — health care workers, medical first responders and nursing home residents — were eligible for inoculation.
Gifford said the full vaccination process will take months but that state hopes to have most residents vaccinated by the fall.
Also on Thursday, the state opened its centralized vaccination registration website to residents who are 75 and older. Eligible residents can now make a vaccination appointment through the website, which can be found at portal.ct.gov/ Coronavirus/COVID-19—Vaccination-75-and-older. They can also call (877) 918-2224 to set an appointment.
Appointments are currently available only to residents who are 75 and older. Appointments are required at vaccination sites across the state.
“Don’t just show up. That doesn’t work,” Lamont said. “You need to get registered, and you need to make an appointment.”
Connecticut has so far administered more than 170,000 vaccine doses, with about 5% of the state’s population having received at least one shot and about 16,000 residents having received both of their required doses. The state ranks fifth nationally in the share of its population to receive at least one dose.
State reports lower positivity rate
Lamont on Thursday reported 968 new COVID-19 cases out of 22,171 tests, for a positivity rate of 4.4% — lowest in a single day since late November.
That lower-than-usual figure came just days after Connecticut reported its highest single-day positivity rate since May. The state’s seven-day average currently stands at 7%, down slightly from recent days but still near its peak level.
“The numbers are bouncing around a little bit,” Lamont said. “What we know is that outside is safer than inside and there’s nothing more important than wearing a mask.”
Connecticut currently has 1,118 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, down 30 from Wednesday. Hospitalizations have remained mostly flat for about a month now, since peaking in mid-December.
Additionally, Lamont reported 17 new coronavirus-linked deaths Thursday, following 87 on Wednesday. The state has now recorded 6,553 COVID-19 deaths during the pandemic, including 264 over the past week.
The United States has now seen more than 23 million COVID-19 cases and 386,996 deaths, according to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University.
High-capacity vaccine sites
In addition to an existing vaccine site at the Connecticut Convention Center, state officials announced Thursday that the state will organize two additional high-capacity sites: one at Rentschler Field and one in Shelton.
Josh Geballe, the state’s chief operating officer, said the sites are taking only a small number of patients currently but that they help ensure the state’s preparedness for future phases of vaccine rollout.
“We’re limited for the foreseeable doses by the number of doses that we get in,” Geballe said. “What we’re doing is setting up these mass sites in anticipation [of more doses becoming available].”