CT Coronavirus Rate 'Stable'; Teacher Vaccinations Eyed

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut’s positive test rate for the coronavirus crept up to a 6.6 percent average over the last seven days, but the state is faring a little better than neighboring states that are experiencing rates over 8 percent.

“So far now more than a week since Christmas we’ve still got relatively stability there,” Gov. Ned Lamont said about the positive test rate Monday. He said hospital capacity has remained stable for several weeks.

Connecticut’s positive test rate jumped up to over 9 percent for a day last week, but it settled back down over the weekend to 5.29 percent.

There were more than 4,500 new coronavirus cases reported over two days Monday, along with 69 more deaths. Hospitalizations increased by 55 up to 1,111 hospitalized.

Next vaccine priority group

Lamont’s vaccine advisory group is still finalizing the subgroup of people who would fall into the state’s phase 1b list. The state is on track to finish phase 1a for front-line health care workers and nursing homes by the end of the month.

State House Republican Leader-elect Vincent Candelora asked the state’s vaccine advisory group to consider including teachers and school employees over 55 in the next vaccination phase.

“It’s critical that we get all kids back into schools full-time, and a part of the equation is to reduce the anxiety some teachers have toward returning to their classrooms,” Candelora said in a statement. “Making the vaccine available to them as soon as possible should be considered.”

Lamont said he will wait on his vaccine advisory group’s recommendations before making a decision. He was asked about teachers at a news conference.

“Everybody has somebody they want to put into the next group, into the front of the line,” Lamont said when asked if classroom teachers would fall into the next group. “Obviously if everybody’s a priority nobody’s a priority, but look I can understand teachers in the classroom, they are frontline essential workers, so I can understand where that question is coming from.”

Connecticut has administered more than 75,000 vaccination doses and is one of eight states that have vaccinated more than 2 percent of their population.

The first round of nursing home vaccination clinics is set to finish Friday. Vaccinations at assisted living facilities started Monday. There are more than 85 sites administering vaccinations throughout the state.

Also on Monday, the state started administering second doses of the vaccine to the first people who got their first dose, Lamont said.

The amount of people who can be vaccinated on a weekly basis is dependent on the supply of vaccine doses Connecticut gets from the federal Operation Warp Speed, state COO Josh Geballe said.

“We will have the infrastructure in place here in Connecticut to get those doses into arms as quickly as they arrive,” Geballe said.

The state Department of Public Health has been working with hospital systems and federally qualified health centers to make sure vaccine doses get to where they need to go and that none are wasted, he said.

Vaccination appointments will be made online or by phone to prevent people from waiting in lines for hours, Lamont said. Some seniors in Florida camped overnight for a vaccine dose.

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Connecticut coronavirus cases by community

The towns with the most new cases between Jan. 1 and 3 are:

1. Hartford: 193
2. Waterbury: 177
3. New Haven: 174
4. Stamford: 148
5. Bridgeport: 147
6. Meriden: 129
7. Danbury: 126
8. New Britain: 121
9. Norwalk 108
10. East Hartford: 97

The towns with the most new cases in the past week are:

1. Hartford: 1,090
2. Waterbury: 943
3. Stamford: 915
4. Bridgeport: 772
5. New Haven: 729
6. New Britain: 693
7. Danbury: 690
8. Norwalk: 607
9. Meriden: 581
10. East Hartford: 428