Connecticut records 44 more COVID-19 deaths
One day after the country surpassed 400,000 COVIDrelated deaths, 44 more Connecticut residents died with the illness, the governor’s office reported Wednesday.
Connecticut’s death toll rose to 6,726 Wednesday as
1,915 new COVID-19 cases were reported. The new cases were found out of
30,461 tests for a daily positivity rate of 6.29 percent, according to the state’s data
There were 17 fewer hospitalizations Wednesday, dropping the statewide total to 1,124.
Gov. Ned Lamont also announced Wednesday that he has been appointed co-chair of a COVID-19 task force run by the National Governors Association along with Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee.
“Our state was hit early and hit hard by this pandemic. Throughout this unprecedented crisis, I have worked with my neighboring governors to ensure our responses were coordinated,” Lamont said in a statement. “Our state has provided leadership and ingenuity, as we know our approach saved lives.”
Connecticut this week has officially begun Phase
1B of the vaccine rollout.
Residents who are 75 and older who are not living in longterm care facilities can now schedule appointments to be vaccinated. Phase 1A included health care workers, medical first responders, and residents and staff of long-term care facilities.
On Tuesday, Lamont announced the next group
to receive the vaccine will be those who are between 65 and 74. Those vaccinations should begin in early February, according to a timetable shared by the governor’s office.
Those residents will be followed by front-line essential workers and people with medical conditions
that put them at greater risk of the virus, Lamont announced. Those vaccinations are expected to begin sometime in late February to early March.
The vaccine is expected to be available to the general public in June.
Some teachers in the state have already begun
receiving the vaccine after school districts uploaded all of their employees into the federal Vaccine Administration Management System. The online portal then prompts people in the system to log in and schedule an appointment to receive the shot.
Josh Geballe, the state’s chief operating officer, said Tuesday around a dozen school districts in the state had uploaded all of their employees.
The state’s Department of Public Health and Department of Education have sent memos asking teachers to cancel any vaccine appointments they make scheduled after Thursday, unless they are otherwise eligible to receive the vaccine.
“We know and accept that in a large rollout such as this one there will be bumps along the way,” a memo from the Department of Public Health said Tuesday. “There are no punitive measures for those who accidentally scheduled under the belief that they were eligible to receive vaccine. However, as of Friday of this week, we ask that all appointments be limited to individuals 75years-and-older and individuals who became eligible as part of Phase 1A.”
Schools were asked to notify staff, while local health departments were asked to cancel appointments after Thursday to those who were not eligible. Health care providers were advised they may see cancellations and were told to fill them with people aged
75 and older.