Most of state now in red zone

145 out of 169 towns have positive test rate of more than 10%

Nearly all of Connecticut is in the red zone for COVID-19 infections, with more than 15 cases per 100,000 people and a positivity rate of more than 10%, according to state data released Thursday.

According to Connecticut guidance, residents in red zones — 145 out of 169 towns — should limit close contact with people outside their households and wear a mask indoors in public places.

Still, mask mandates have been dropped for both schools and public buildings, and the increase in cases has had little impact on public life.

The reason is immunity, said Dr. Virginia Bieluch, chief of Infectious Diseases at The Hospital of Central Connecticut, in a Hartford Healthcare podcast Thursday.

“We have baseline level of immunity in the community, either because of prior infection or vaccination, and people who have prior immunity tend not to get as sick and require hospitalization as people who have no immunity,” Bieluch said.

“In addition, we have pills right now that can be administered to people to prevent decline and an effective monoclonal antibody that can be used to prevent people from getting sick,” she said. “I think this all represents progress we’ve made in controlling this pandemic.”

Connecticut has reported 6,420 cases in the past seven days out of 62,002 tests, for a positivity rate of 10.35% — the highest since late January when the omicron surge began to abate.

That winter surge of cases has given many in Connecticut

increased protection against the virus, but immunity wanes over time, Bieluch said, recommending that people discuss with their doctors whether they should receive a second booster shot.

According to the state data released Thursday, while more than 3 million residents had received at least one dose and 2.7 million had been fully vaccinated (defined as receiving two shots of Pfizer or Moderna, or one J&J), just 1.5 million had been recorded as having received a booster shot and 159,280 as having had a second booster. Currently people over 50 and those with special conditions are approved to receive a second booster shot.

Two hundred thirty-three patients are currently hospitalized with COVID-19; of these, 82 are fully vaccinated and none have been admitted this week. Many of those patients, officials say, are “incidental” cases, meaning they were admitted for non-coronavirus reasons before testing positive upon arrival.

There have been 18 deaths associated with the coronavirus in Connecticut this past week, for a total of 10,858 since the pandemic began. There have been 996,886 deaths from the coronavirus in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins University.