Coronavirus CT: Slower Pace For Deaths — And Vaccinations

CONNECTICUT — Twenty-five residents have died from COVID-19 over the past seven days, down from last week's report of 30 deaths from the state Department of Public Health. The coronavirus death toll in the state is currently 8,776.

In the key recovery indicator of "7-day death rate per 100,000," Connecticut is third in the nation, with a rate of 0.7. That puts us behind only Florida (0) and Rhode Island (0.4).

The state fares less well in the metric of deaths per 100,000 population since the start of the pandemic. The Nutmeg State places towards the bottom of pack, at No. 38.

The CDC rates Connecticut's overall level of COVID-19 community transmission as "substantial." Not as bad as "high," it's a function of total new cases of the virus and the percentage of positive COVID-19 tests over the past week.

Overseas, the World Health Organization sounded the alarm Thursday over the rising rate of coronavirus cases in Europe. Germany was of particular concern, having just recorded its largest daily infection increase since the start of the pandemic.

The global death toll topped 5 million on Monday, less than two years into the pandemic.

The number of Connecticut towns in the COVID-19 high-alert red zone has dropped by three towns, to 31, in the most recent DPH data.

The eastern part of the state continues to be the hot spot, with the greatest concentration of red zone municipalities. The Naugatuck valley has lightened up a bit, as have the already low-infection western and northwestern towns.

The color codes correspond to guidance from DPH. Populations in the red zone have reported 15 or more cases per 100,000 people over a two-week average.

Those towns in the red category are: Berlin, Bethlehem, Bozrah, Brooklyn, Canterbury, Derby, Durham, Goshen, Granby, Griswold, Killingly, Lisbon, Morris, Naugatuck, New Hartford, New London, North Canaan, North Stonington, Norwich, Plainfield, Plainville, Putnam, Sharon, Sherman, Sprague, Sterling, Thompson, Voluntown, Waterbury, Waterford and Windsor Locks.

On Thursday, COVID-19 positivity was up half of a percentage point, to 2.25 percent, compared to the previous day's numbers. Out of 19,131 tests taken, 431 cases were confirmed.

According to the latest weekly release of statewide data from CDC, about 81 percent of Connecticut's eligible population has received all their COVID-19 vaccine shots. Nationwide, just over 68 percent of the population in the vaccine-eligible age tier have completed their vaccine series, according to the CDC. Connecticut's vaccination rate is second behind only Vermont.

As of Thursday, those residents fully vaccinated against COVID-19 include more than 95 percent of those over the age of 65, 92 percent of those between 55-64 (up 1 percent from last week), 83 percent of those between 45-54, 84 percent of those between 35-44 (up 1 percent from last week), 77 percent of those between 25-34 (up 1 percent from last week), 71 percent of those between 18-24, 80 percent of those between 16-17, and 71 percent of those between 12-15. Except where noted, there has been no percentage increase in the number vaccinated in each age tier since last week.

A new coronavirus vaccine-eligible age tier opened up this week, following the CDC's recommendation to states that the Pfizer vaccine be made available to children aged 5-11.

The progress toward compete vaccination proceeds slowly, as illustrated in the graph above. With Gov. Ned Lamont's introduction Thursday of the "Screen and Stay" initiative, which takes away the penalty of quarantine for unvaccinated school children and staff, the rollout is not likely to accelerate appreciably any time soon.

Predictably, residents in the eastern area of the state, with the highest coronavirus infection rates, are also least likely to be fully-vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the data released by DPH.

Mansfield remains the outlier, still with less than 38 percent of its population fully vaccinated. Of all Connecticut municipalities, only Canaan has fully vaccinated all its residents.

Breakthrough Cases and Hospitalizations

The Connecticut Department of Public Health is reporting that as of Nov. 4, a total of 19,474 cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated persons in Connecticut have been confirmed. Of the more than 2.4 million people in Connecticut who have completed their vaccine series, 0.81 percent have contracted the virus.

The number of Connecticut hospital beds claimed by COVID-19 patients dropped by six overnight. There are 209 patients currently hospitalized with the coronavirus in the state. Of those, 62, or 29.7 percent, are fully vaccinated.

Most of the Connecticut residents hospitalized for COVID-19 (62) can be found within hospitals in New Haven County.

See Also: Armed Robbery At CT Starbucks Under Investigation: Report

• Wanted By FBI: Man, 23, Charged In Alleged CT Robbery Spree
• 15-Year-Old Robbed 2 At Gunpoint Outside CT School: Cops
• Man Deprived Victim Of 'Proper Care': Police

During the week of Oct. 28 -Nov. 3, 262 Connecticut schools reported coronavirus cases, down 24 from last week. All but two of these counted less than six cases reported at each school during the reporting period. DPH reported that Southington High School recorded nine coronavirus cases, and Oxford Center School had six.