300,000-plus shots given in last week
Massachusetts health officials reported that more than 300,000 coronavirus vaccine doses were given across the state during the last week, a significant jump in shots as the state’s vax rollout ramps up.
The state’s weekly vaccine report on Thursday showed that 309,340 total doses have been administered and reported since last week — an increase of 93,769 doses from the previous week’s 215,571 doses.
Nearly 2 million total doses have been given since the start of the state’s rollout, according to the daily vaccine report Thursday.
The 1,931,280 total doses administered breaks down to 1,316,691 people who have received at least one dose and 614,589 people who have received both doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. Those figures represent a daily increase of 62,433 doses.
Almost 2.4 million doses have been shipped to the Bay State and more than 80% of total doses shipped to the state have been reported as administered.
Meanwhile, health officials on Thursday reported 42 new virus deaths and 1,410 new cases as the tally of estimated active infections and hospitalizations keeps declining. Gov. Charlie Baker at a Thursday press conference noted the downward trends across the board.
The state’s count of estimated active cases is now 27,763, a drop from 98,750 at the start of January. The current estimated count below 28,000 cases is about the same as the tally on Nov. 13, prior to the holiday surge.
Statewide hospitalizations have been dropping. Hospitalizations on Thursday went down by 14 patients, bringing the total to 741 patients.
Of the state’s total death toll of 16,296 people, 8,647 of the deaths have been reported in long-term care facilities.
A total of 476 staff and students in Massachusetts schools have tested positive for coronavirus in the past week in a continued downward trend that mirrors state figures, according to data from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Just 19 cities and towns were at high risk for coronavirus transmission this week. That continues the declining trend from 110 high-risk communities three weeks ago, 66 communities two weeks ago and 28 communities last week. The 19 communities at high risk is about the same as the count from early November.