Maine CDC reports 260 new COVID-19 cases, 2 additional deaths
Apr. 19—State health officials reported 260 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday and two additional deaths even as the state is poised to surpass the 1 million mark for vaccine doses administered to adults.
The average number of new cases reported daily to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention continues to trend upward despite a vaccination campaign that has been getting shots into arms faster than nearly every other state. With the 260 new cases reported on Monday, Maine's seven-day, rolling average stood at 475, compared to 328 one week earlier. This year's lowest average of 137 daily cases occurred on February 20.
To date, the Maine CDC has tracked 57,545 confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 since the coronavirus was first detected in the state in March 2020. The number of Mainers whose deaths have been linked to COVID-19 stood at 767 on Monday, according to the Maine CDC.
Maine residents under age 30 account for much of the recent surge in cases.
On the vaccination front, health care providers had administered 996,602 total doses to individuals in Maine as of Sunday evening. Roughly 42 percent of the state's population of 1.3 million residents — and just over 50 percent of those age 16 or older who are now eligible for vaccination — have received at least one shot of vaccine.
Nearly 32 percent of the state's population had received either both of the necessary shots of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the one-dose shot from Johnson & Johnson before administration of that vaccine was paused last week to allow federal health officials to investigate extremely rare cases of blood clots.
On Sunday, Gov. Janet Mills marked the symbolic milestone of Maine surpassing the 50 percent mark for eligible residents who have received at least one shot of vaccine.
"This is the biggest vaccination effort in our history and one of the largest logistical challenges in generations. This milestone is a testament to the teamwork of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, the Maine CDC, the Maine National Guard, our health care providers and volunteers across the state, who are working around the clock to protect Maine people from COVID-19," Mills said in a statement.
"As a result of their efforts, and because Maine people are rolling up their sleeves to do their part, more than half of Maine residents age 16 and older have now received at least one dose of vaccine, and more than a third are fully vaccinated," Mills said. "We will continue our efforts to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. I encourage all everyone to get vaccinated so that we can defeat this virus and its variants and get back to normal as soon as possible."
Vaccine shipments to the Maine CDC were expected to decrease slightly this week, falling 230 doses to a total of 36,460. The decline is largely due to federal regulators pausing use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine while investigators look into a possible connection between blood clots and the vaccine.
The total number of doses will likely be about 50,000 next week, through shipments sent to the federal retail pharmacy program and to community health clinics.
This story will be updated.
