Daily coronavirus updates: Seven-day positivity rate above 2% for first time in two weeks; highest hospitalizations in three weeks

Eliza Fawcett, Hartford Courant
·2 min read

Connecticut’s seven-day COVID-19 positivity rate rose above 2% for the first time in two weeks Tuesday, as hospitalizations hit their highest level since late September.

The state’s seven-day COVID-19 positivity rate stands at about a third of what it was during this year’s January surge of the virus, when the metric reached as high as 7%. Still, the rate is now higher than it was during a lull in the virus in the early summer, when it remained below 1.5% for two months.

Recently, hospitalizations in the state, which fell steadily through late August and September, have also slowly begun to rise.

Medical experts have indicated that Connecticut may see a rise in COVID-19 cases this fall due to colder weather and holiday gatherings, but it remains too early to tell whether that spike has arrived.

Cases and positivity rate

Connecticut reported 709 new COVID-19 cases out of 24,702 tests administered Tuesday, for a daily positivity rate of 2.87%. The state’s seven-day positivity rate now stands at 2.05%, an increase from Monday’s rate of 1.94%.

For the past two weeks, Connecticut’s seven-day positivity rate has remained below 2%, dropping to as low as 1.78% on Oct. 13. Before that point, the last time the metric dropped below 2% was in late July.

As of Tuesday, New Haven, Windham and New London counties were classified by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as areas of “high” levels of COVID-19 transmission, while Connecticut’s five other counties had “substantial” levels of transmission.

Hospitalizations

Connecticut reported 248 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Tuesday, an increase of one person since Monday and the state’s highest level of hospitalizations since Sept. 29.

Deaths

Connecticut reports coronavirus-linked deaths once a week. On Thursday, the state reported 40 COVID-19 deaths over the past week, bringing its total during the pandemic to 8,707.

The United States has now recorded 726,919 COVID-19 deaths, according to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Vaccinations

As of Tuesday, 77.8% of all Connecticut residents and 89.2% of those 12 and older had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, while 69.9% of all residents and 80.3% of those 12 and older were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

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