Daily coronavirus updates: Lowest COVID-19 hospitalizations since early August; slight dip in weekly positivity rate

Eliza Fawcett, Hartford Courant
·3 min read

Connecticut reported its lowest number of COVID-19 hospitalizations since early August on Thursday, as well as a slight dip in its weekly positivity rate.

The metrics are a potentially promising sign, though the state’s COVID-19 numbers have been uneven recently, with both increases and decreases in COVID-19 positivity rate and hospitalizations. Experts have warned that the virus could spike at the end of this year, though that surge has not yet emerged.

Cases and positivity rate

On Thursday, Connecticut reported 410 COVID-19 cases out of 24,611 tests administered, for a daily test positivity rate of 1.67%. The state’s weekly positivity rate now stands at 1.98%, a decline from the 2.08% weekly positivity rate reported on Wednesday.

As of Thursday, five Connecticut counties — Hartford, Litchfield, New London, Tolland and Windham counties — were experiencing “high” levels of COVID-19 transmission as defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while Connecticut’s remaining three counties were experiencing “substantial” levels of COVID-19 transmission.

Forty Connecticut towns and cities currently qualify for the state’s “red alert” designation, which is triggered when a municipality averages 15 or more daily COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents.

Hospitalizations

As of Thursday, there were 224 people in Connecticut hospitalized with COVID-19, a decrease of two people since Wednesday. Hospitalizations are now at the lowest level they have been since Aug. 10.

Connecticut has seen notable declines in hospitalizations this week, including a 22-person drop reported Wednesday — the most significant decline the state has seen in weeks.

According to state data released Thursday, 78.1% of those hospitalized with COVID-19 in Connecticut are not fully vaccinated. Hospital officials say that many vaccinated people hospitalized with the disease were admitted for other reasons and do not have severe symptoms.

Deaths

Connecticut reported 14 COVID-19 deaths in the past week on Thursday, bringing its total number of deaths related to COVID-19 during the pandemic to 8,721. In comparison to the past four weeks, during which the state recorded an average of about 42 deaths per week, this week’s data reflected a notable decline.

The United States has now recorded 731,904 COVID-19 deaths, according to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Vaccinations

As of Thursday, 78% of all Connecticut residents and 89.5% of those 12 and older had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, while 70.1% of all residents and 80.5% of those 12 and older were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

The state has administered 145,543 booster shots and third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine since Aug.13, according to Department of Public Health spokesperson Chris Boyle.

According to state data, being unvaccinated currently increases a person’s chances of being infected with COVID-19 by a factor of four, of being hospitalized with COVID-19 by a factor of 31 and of dying from COVID-19 by a factor of 23.

Eliza Fawcett can be reached at elfawcett@courant.com.