942 new cases reported and 31 more deaths
Second day in a row that Maryland has counted fewer than 1,000 new infections
Maryland health officials reported 942 new cases of the coronavirus Wednesday, and 31 more deaths caused by the virus.
It’s the second day in a row that the state has reported fewer than 1,000 new cases. The last time the state reported less than 1,000 new cases on consecutive days was Nov. 2 and 3.
The state also said first doses of the coronavirus vaccine were administered to 9,429 new people, an improvement on Tuesday’s total of 6,252. Last week, the average was about 17,000 new first doses a day.
Recent snowfall across much of the state is likely impacting the data. The storm, which dropped between 4 and 6 inches on the Baltimore area between Sunday and Tuesday, shuttered several coronavirus testing sites and certain vaccination locations. The state reported administering 14,607 new COVID-19 tests, well below last week’s average of about 40,000 new daily tests. But it’s an increase over Tuesday, when the state reported 13,702 new tests.
The seven-day average positivity rate increased for the second straight day — to 5.96% from 5.79% — following a two-week plunge from above 8%.
Hospitalizations increased to 1,485 people Wednesday, 18 more than Tuesday. Of those patients, 361 were in intensive care units Wednesday, five fewer than Tuesday.
The number of nursing homes with active coronavirus cases declined to 155, according to Wednesday’s data. That number had peaked at about 200. Nursing home residents and staff were among the first in line to get the coronavirus vaccines, followed by assisted living residents. Nursing home residents alone account for about 32% of the deaths from the virus in Maryland.
The state also announced an effort Wednesday to prioritize vaccinating at least one independent living facility housing people 65 and older per jurisdiction per week.
Meanwhile, 1.68% of the state population is fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, and 7.8% of Marylanders have gotten at least their first shot.
Prince George’s County continues to lag the state with the lowest percentage of its population vaccinated. Just 3.4% of people in Prince George’s have received at least one shot. The majority Black county is one of the state’s most populous, which could explain the low percentage, but neighboring Montgomery County, which has more residents, had given the first vaccine dose to 6.9% of them as of Wednesday.
An emerging racial disparity in vaccinations continues to draw concern. Black Marylanders have received about 15% of the first doses administered so far, despite making up about 31% of the state population. Hispanic Marylanders have received about 4% of first doses so far, but make up about 11% of the state population. Experts have pointed to an underrepresentation of people of color in health care fields and distrust of the vaccine due to mistreatment in the medical world.
Maryland also has been slower than many other states to administer its allotment of doses from the federal government, but has improved of late. According to the New York Times vaccine tracker, Maryland has used about 60% of doses, ranking it 37th among the states.
Wednesday, the Democratic members of Maryland’s Congressional delegation called on Gov. Larry Hogan to create a more centralized system for distribution in hopes that it would speed up the rollout.