High transmission in Fairfield Co.

Fifth county in state on CDC list for high transmissions; hospitalizations continue to increase

Fairfield County has become the fifth Connecticut county on the CDC’S list of those with high community transmission, as the state continues to see high levels of cases and hospitalizations.

Fairfield County has become the fifth Connecticut county on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s list of counties with high community transmission of COVID-19, as the state continues to see high levels of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. Hartford, New Haven, Middlesex and New London Counties had all already reached the high transmission threshold, while Litchfield, Tolland and Windham Counties are currently classified as having “substantial” transmission.

According to guidelines from the CDC and the Connecticut Department of Public

Health, people in all eight counties are advised to wear masks indoors in public places, regardless of vaccination status. Some towns and cities, including Hartford, Bridgeport, New Haven and Stamford, have gone further, requiring masks.

Gov. Ned Lamont said Wednesday he does not believe a statewide mask mandate is necessary.

“I think what we’re doing town by town makes sense,” Lamont said. “I’m finding businesses, restaurants and mayors know their communities really well. Some communities are 90% vaccinated. Some are 50% vaccinated. So I’m not sure that we need a statewide mandate regarding masks at this

point.”

The CDC defines a county as having high COVID-19 transmission when it records 100 weekly cases per 100,000 residents.

Cases and positivity rate

Connecticut on Wednesday reported 593 COVID-19 cases out of 19,824 tests, for a positivity rate of 2.99%. The state’s seven-day positivity rate now stands at 3.4%, nearly unchanged from Tuesday, when it reached its highest level since April 7.

Connecticut has averaged 594 cases a day over the past week, down slightly from Tuesday but still higher than at any other point this summer.

Hospitalizations

As of Wednesday, Connecticut has 348 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, up 27 from Tuesday and the most at a time since May 2. Hospital officials say most people with serious COVID-19 illness have not been vaccinated.

Deaths

Connecticut now reports COVID-19 deaths only on Thursdays. As of last week, the state had recorded 8,307 coronavirus-linked deaths since the start of the pandemic.

The United States has now recorded 623,847 COVID-19 deaths, according to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Vaccinations

As of Wednesday, 71.9% of all Connecticut residents and 82.5% of those 12 and older had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, while 64.6% of all residents and 74.1% of those 12 and older were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.