When It Comes To Wearing A Mask How Is CT Doing?

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut still has one of the lowest coronavirus infection rates in the country but over the past several days last week the numbers began to slightly rise.

Connecticut's infection rate remained just under 1 percent, which is considered phenomenal but at one point it had been nearly 0.6 percent and as of Friday it was just under 1.0 percent.

Last week Gov. Lamont expressed concern that the group currently with the most positive cases was between the ages of 20-29, and he was adamant that residents can't let up and must continue to wear a mask, wash their hands and social distance when in public.

There are now 47,893 coronavirus cases in Connecticut and 4,396 deaths. More than 627,000 people have been tested since the pandemic began in March and there are 66 hospitalizations.

According to a New York Times map of who is wearing a mask, Connecticut receives very high scores. In Fairfield and New Haven county, nearly 90 percent of people always wear a mask when they are in a public space, and most of the state is in excess of 80 percent, though some areas registered in the 70 percent range.

What the New York Times found is that if a community wears a mask at least 80 percent of the time when social distancing isn't possible it means that everyone who is masked in five random encounters is about 75 percent. (Click here to find the results for your area on the NY Times map.)

The map reveals that there are large parts of the nation where mask wearing is below 25 to 30 percent, especially in the Midwest, south and west. The northeast has the highest compliance.

Here are the county-by-county numbers:

Fairfield County: 16,426 confirmed coronavirus cases; 643 probable coronavirus cases; 1,086 confirmed deaths; 309 probable deaths; 21 hospitalizations

Hartford County: 11,366 confirmed coronavirus cases; 680 probable coronavirus cases; 1,087 confirmed deaths; 316 probable deaths; 19 hospitalizations

Litchfield County: 1,459 confirmed coronavirus cases; 64 probable coronavirus cases; 117 confirmed deaths; 21 probable deaths; 0 hospitalizations

Middlesex County: 1,298 confirmed coronavirus cases; 59 probable coronavirus cases; 151 confirmed deaths; 38 probable deaths; 3 hospitalizations

New Haven County: 12,340 confirmed coronavirus cases; 393 probable coronavirus cases; 938 confirmed deaths; 152 probable deaths; 20 hospitalizations

New London County: 1,288 confirmed coronavirus cases; 59 probable coronavirus cases; 76 confirmed deaths; 26 probable deaths; 3 hospitalizations

Tolland County: 871 confirmed coronavirus cases; 68 probable coronavirus cases; 51 confirmed deaths; 14 probable deaths; 0 hospitalizations

Windham County: 644 confirmed coronavirus cases; 7 probable coronavirus cases; 13 confirmed deaths; 1 probable death; 0 hospitalizations

Town-by-Town numbers:

This article originally appeared on the Across Connecticut Patch