South Shore COVID-19 rates drop for third straight week; 2 towns see increase
QUINCY – The number of COVID-19 cases across the South Shore and in the state fell for the third straight week and the number of people hospitalized with the disease has also declined, the latest reports from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health show.
There was another drop in COVID-19 cases among staff and students in the state's schools, according to a report from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
In 23 communities on the South Shore, the number of COVID-19 cases declined by 23%, down from 2,326 cases last week to 1,789 this week, the state health department statistics show.
Statewide, cases declined by 21%, from 30,902 over the preceding 14 days to 24,356 for the same period in this week's report. The statewide rate has dropped from 31.7 cases per day per 100,000 people averaged over two weeks to 25.
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The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education reported 3,062 COVID-19 cases among the state's K-12 students for the week ending Wednesday. That's down nearly a quarter from the 4,073 in the previous weekly report. Cases among school staff dropped, from 1,461 the previous week to 1,154.
Levels of the virus in the region's wastewater, a predictor of future cases, have risen slightly in recent days, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority reported. The MWRA's South Region includes seven South Shore municipalities.
Only lab-confirmed cases are included in the state health department report, not ones found with home test kits.
Four communities had rates higher than the statewide average of 25 cases per day per 100,000 people. They are Randolph, with a rate of 28.5 and Quincy with a rate of 27.5, Weymouth 26.3 and Norwell with a rate of 26. Carver has the lowest rate at 14.6 per 100,000 people.
Only two communities, Duxbury and Halifax, saw an increase in COVID-19 cases in Thursday's report.
Gov. Charlie Baker announced Monday the state is sending 2 million new test kits to cities and towns. Each municipality will decide how they will be distributed. Most South Shore communities will receive the test kits.
In Thursday's report, the state health department said there were 1,662 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state's total for the pandemic to 1,746,713.
There were 478 people in the state's hospitals with COVID-19 on Thursday, a 5.6% drop from the 505 patients a week earlier. There were 40 patients with COVID-19 in intensive care units, down nine from a week earlier, and 11 people on breathing equipment, down four from the week before.
The state reported 7 new deaths Thursday, bringing the total number of Massachusetts deaths to 19,593. A total of 62 deaths were reported in the past week, seven less than the previous week.
The following is a list of the number of cases by community for the two weeks ending June 11 the average daily rate of cases per 100,000 people over the two-week period and the total number of cases since the pandemic began. The statistics do not include the results of home tests.
Abington: 58 cases; 22.7 rate; 4,162 total
Braintree: 124 cases; 22.3 rate; 9,594 total
Carver: 25 cases; 14.6 rate; 2,357 total
Cohasset: 19 cases; 18.5 rate; 1,294 total
Duxbury: 50 cases; 23.6 rate; 2,782 total
Halifax: 21 cases; 19.6 rate; 1,572 total
Hanover: 49 cases; 24.3 rate; 4,452 total
Hanson: 27 cases; 19.6 rate; 2,408 total
Hingham: 77 cases; 22.9 rate; 4,765 total
Holbrook: 39 cases; 24.6 rate; 2,825 total
Hull: 24 cases; 17.5 rate, 1,517 total.
Kingston: 29 cases; 15.2 rate; 3,079 total.
Marshfield: 66 cases; 18.2 rate; 4,779 total
Milton: 77 cases; 19.1 rate; 6,351 total
Norwell: 39 cases; 26 rate; 2,299 total
Pembroke: 45 cases; 17.1 rate; 3.928 total
Plymouth: 182 cases; 20.7 rate; 14,094 total
Quincy: 391 cases; 27.5 rate; 20,590 total
Randolph: 139 cases; 28.5 rate; 10,334 total
Rockland: 39 cases; 15.4 rate; 4,547 total
Scituate: 55 cases; 21.7 rate; 3,207 total
Weymouth: 207 cases; 26.3 rate; 12,849 total
Whitman: 43 cases; 19.8 rate; 3,555 total
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: For third week, COVID-19 cases fall on the South Shore
