4 CT Counties Should Mask Up As Community COVID Levels Surge, CDC Says

CONNECTICUT — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that the residents of four Connecticut counties wear a mask indoors in public.

In a report issued Friday, the CDC has listed four Connecticut Counties—Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex and New Haven Counties—in the High/Orange category as part of its COVID-19 Community Levels Map. Hartford, New London, Tolland and Windham Counties are listed in the Medium/Yellow category.

The COVID-19 Community Levels map—which was launched earlier this year—informs CDC recommendations on prevention measures, such as masking and testing. The guidelines include a color-coded system available on the CDC website of “Low,” “Medium,” and “High.”

People living in the counties designated in the High/Orange category are advised to wear a mask indoors in public, stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines, and get tested if they have symptoms. Additional precautions may be needed for residents who are at high risk for severe illness.

"We are now witnessing the long-anticipated winter COVID-19 surge. With 2023 right around the corner, we are in a far better place with this pandemic then we were in 2020," said Connecticut Department of Public Health Commissioner Manisha Juthani. "We have many more tools at our disposal to deal effectively with COVID-19, including vaccines and updated boosters, Test to Treat locations, the mobile van clinics, and the wide availability of COVID-19 self-test kits."

See also: New COVID Subvariant Now Accounts For Half Of All Connecticut Cases

Residents of Hartford, New London, Tolland and Windham Counties who are at high risk for severe illness should talk to their health care providers about when they should consider wearing a mask and any other precautions they should consider taking, according to Juthani.

DPH reported nearly 3,827 weekly cases of COVID-19 in the state on Thursday, and a 15.56 percent positive test rate. There were 473 fewer cases than the last seven-day reporting period. Cases are likely severely undercounted due to at-home test results going unreported.

As of Dec. 7, 2022, a total of 308,226 cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated persons in Connecticut have been identified, according to state health officials. Those cases account for 10.18 percent of the nearly 2.8 million people in the state who are fully vaccinated.