Coronavirus CT: Uptick In Deaths As Infection Rates Dip

CONNECTICUT — After taking a sweet drop last week, the number of deaths from coronavirus-associated illness in Connecticut climbed this past week to mid-September levels.

Thirty residents have died from COVID-19 over the past seven days, up from last week's report of 14 deaths from the state Department of Public Health. The coronavirus death toll in the state is currently 8,751.

Connecticut is not alone in the uptick. The World Health Organization reported Thursday that worldwide numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths are increasing for the first time in two months as the virus surges across Europe.

The number of Connecticut towns in the COVID-19 high-alert red zone has dropped six towns, to 34, 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, Colchester, Derby, Durham, East Granby, Goshen, Granby, Griswold, Killingly, Lisbon, Naugatuck, North Canaan, North Stonington, Norwich, Plainfield, Plainville, Preston, Putnam, Salem, Salisbury, Sharon, Sherman, Somers, Sprague, Sterling, Thompson, Waterbury, Waterford, Woodbury and Woodstock.

On Thursday, COVID-19 positivity was up a more than a tenth of a percentage point, to 1.77 percent, compared to the previous day. Out of 25,014 tests taken, 443 cases were confirmed.

According to the latest weekly release of statewide data from CDC about 70.6 percent of Connecticut's population has received all their COVID-19 vaccine shots. The state's vaccination rate is second behind only Vermont. About 57.6 percent of Americans have completed their vaccine series, according to the CDC. That's up 0.2 percent from last week.

As of Thursday, those residents fully vaccinated against COVID-19 include more than 95 percent of those over the age of 65, 91 percent of those between 55-64, 83 percent of those between 45-54 (up 1 percent from last week), 83 percent of those between 35-44 (up 1 percent from last week), 76 percent of those between 25-34 (up 1 percent from last week), 71 percent of those between 18-24 (up 1 percent from last week), 80 percent of those between 16-17, and 70 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.

The reticence among Connecticut residents to be vaccinated can best be illustrated in the graph above, which shows the progress toward full vaccination for each age tier from the start of their eligibility is up less than a half-point from last week.

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 Thursday, a total of 17,564 cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated persons in Connecticut have been confirmed. Of the more than 2.4 million fully vaccinated people in Connecticut, 0.74 percent have contracted the virus.

The number of Connecticut hospital beds claimed by COVID-19 patients dropped by three overnight. There are 191 patients currently hospitalized with the coronavirus in the state. Of those, 57, or 29.8 percent, are fully vaccinated.

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

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During the week of Oct. 14-20, 286 Connecticut schools reported coronavirus cases, down 20 from last week. All but two of these counted less than six cases reported at each school during the reporting period. DPH reported that Emma Hart Willard School in Berlin recorded six coronavirus cases, and Cesar Batalla School in Bridgeport had 10.