Coronavirus deaths take a small step up

Here are the most important things to know about coronavirus in Connecticut:

Deaths take a small jump up

Daily confirmed coronavirus cases were down somewhat Friday, with only 141 new confirmed cases statewide (compared to 220 on

Thursday). The most notable increase in cases — at least in the big cities — was Hartford, where there continues to be an increase in the average number of new cases.

Deaths from coronavirus, though increased to four statewide in a single day — notable, as there was an increase of one on Thursday and two on Wednesday.

Are colleges fueling the rise in cases?

Sacred Heart University has announced a total of 67 positive coronavirus cases, including 34 new cases in the last seven days.

The college is randomly testing students without symptoms, and they’re only testing a small percentage of the student body this far, so it’s possible that the number of cases will rise precipitously, at Sacred Heart and elsewhere, as more students are tested.

CDC reverses course on testing again

Back in July, the CDC said tests were not really necessary. “Except for rare situations, a test-based strategy is no longer recommended,” the agency wrote. At the time, many epidemiologists and public health experts were flummoxed.

Then, Friday, the CDC reversed that guidance, saying, “Due to the significance of asymptomatic and presymptomatic transmission, this guidance further reinforces the need to test asymptomatic persons, including close contacts of a person with documented SARS-CoV-2 infection.”

Not many people are comfortable with the idea of a vaccine

The number of adults who say they would get a coronavirus vaccine has dropped significantly, according to a poll published by Pew Research Center. Only 51 percent of American adults say they would “definitely” get vaccinated, with another 30 percent saying they would “probably” get a vaccine. The “probablys” have stayed the same, but the number of people who “definitely” would be vaccinated against the coronavirus was over 70 percent in May.

People are concerned that the process is being rushed, according to the survey.

Masks and social distancing are working against the flu

The CDC said that efforts to combat the coronavirus are working against the flu, too:

“Following widespread adoption of community mitigation measures to reduce transmission of SARSCoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, the percentage of U.S. respiratory specimens submitted for influenza testing that tested positive decreased from [greater than] 20 percent to 2.3 percent and has remained at historically low interseasonal levels.”