March 12
Gov. Lamont releases latest COVID numbers
- Cases + 1,185
- Tests + 47,985
- Positivity rate 2.47%
- Hosp - 2
- Deaths + 4
COVID-19 variants
The state DPH announced Friday that more cases of COVID-19 variants are being reported across the state.
An additional four cases of the B.1.351 variant of COVID-19, also known as the South African variant, have brought the statewide total number of confirmed cases of this variant to six.
As of March 12, here is where they were reported:
- Ansonia: 2
- Danbury: 1
- Greenwich: 1
- New Milford: 2
An additional 93 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant also known as the UK variant, have brought the statewide total number of confirmed cases of this variant to 174.
As of March 12, here is where they were reported:
- Beacon Falls: 1
- Bloomfield: 1
- Branford: 6
- Bridgeport: 7
- Bristol: 1
- Burlington: 1
- Cheshire: 3
- Cromwell: 1
- East Haven: 5
- Fairfield: 1
- Greenwich: 2
- Guilford: 2
- Hamden: 6
- Madison: 1
- Meriden: 5
- Middlefield: 1
- Middletown: 1
- Naugatuck: 3
- New Britain: 1
- New Hartford: 1
- New Haven: 34
- North Branford: 7
- North Canaan: 2
- North Haven: 4
- Norwich: 1
- Oxford: 7
- Prospect: 1
- Rocky Hill: 2
- Seymour: 2
- Shelton: 1
- Southbury: 2
- Southington: 2
- Stamford: 4
- Stratford: 2
- Thomaston: 2
- Thompson: 1
- Torrington: 1
- Wallingford: 14
- Waterbury: 16
- Watertown: 2
- West Hartford: 1
- West Haven: 10
- Westbrook: 1
- Wethersfield: 1
- Wilton: 1
- Windham: 1
- Wolcott: 1
- Woodbridge: 1
US hits COVID-19 vaccine milestone of 100 million shots
The U.S. reached the 100 million milestone for COVID-19 vaccine doses, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As of Friday morning, the agency said 133,337,525 doses have been delivered and 101,128,005 doses have been administered so far. The vaccine tally includes the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and Johnson & Johnson's single shot vaccine.
MDC's West Hartford Reservoirs Rec. Area parking lot to open at full capacity
The Metropolitan District (MDC) announced Friday the parking lot at the West Hartford Reservoirs recreation area located on Farmington Avenue will open to full capacity beginning Monday, March 15.
A portion of the lot has been closed since last year as part of the effort to safely manage staff and operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MDC requests that the public using the reservoir please park only in designated parking lots.
Rockville HS hosts FREE state-sponsored drive-thru COVID-19 testing site
A free state-sponsored drive-thru COVID-19 testing will be offered Sunday, March 14 from noon to 3 p.m. at Rockville High School located at 70 Loveland Hill Road.
Testing is open to all, especially those who have symptoms of COVID19 or have reason to believe they were in contact with or exposed to a person with the virus.
The site is being coordinated by the Town of Vernon and the North Central District Health Department with the State Department of Public Health.
Check the town of Vernon's and Vernon Police Department's Facebook and Twitter accounts for any updates.
March 11
Lamont releases latest COVID numbers
- Cases + 735
- Tests +31,185
- Positivity rate 2.36
- Hosp - 7
- Deaths +9
So far, 54 percent of Connecticut’s population over the age of 55 has received at least one dose, including:
- 76 percent of those over the age of 75;
- 67 percent of those between 65 and 74; and
- 32 percent of those between 55 to 64.
In total, 29 percent of all adults in Connecticut over the age of 16 have received at least one dose.
Lamont also said the American Recovery Act will provide $1.1 Billion for Connecticut schools.
2021 Eastern commencement to be on-ground
The 131st Annual Eastern Connecticut State University Commencement Exercises will take place in person on Saturday, May 15, adjacent to the Eastern campus.
To ensure the safety of graduates, their guests and other attendees, the University will be following strict social distancing protocols and other current guidelines of the CDC and Connecticut State Department of Public Health. Accordingly, graduates will be limited to two (2) guests each, and tickets will be required.
In addition, to manage audience density, two separate events are planned - one in the morning starting at 9:00 a.m., and one in the afternoon starting at 3:30 p.m. - with graduates split into two groups of equal size and in accordance with social distancing requirements. A ceremony for graduate students will take place midday. All three ceremonies will take place rain or shine.
Both undergraduate commencement sessions will be shown live on YouTube so that family members and friends unable to come to campus on May 15 can view the festivities; the video will also be recorded and available on Eastern's YouTube channel for viewing following the live event.
CVS to administer COVID-19 vaccines at 11 additional locations in CT
CVS Health announced Thursday that in its ongoing effort to slow the spread of the virus, it will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccinations to eligible populations at 11 additional CVS Pharmacy locations across Connecticut.
The new locations include Waterbury, Southington, Manchester, Waterford, and others. There are now a total of 26 CVS Pharmacy locations in Connecticut offering vaccinations.
Inoculations will begin as early as Sunday, March 14, and appointments will become available for booking on Saturday, March 13, as stores receive shipments of the vaccine.
March 10
Chatham Health District creates waitlist based on unused vaccine doses
According to their website, the Chatham Health District is offering a way to get to the COVID-19 vaccine for those having trouble getting it.
The website says the health district sometimes has a few doses available at the end of their vaccine clinics.
Anyone who would like to be added to their Call Down List needs to complete a survey which can be found here.
Positivity rate, hospitalizations down since Tuesday
Connecticut administered 16,696 tests and 512 came back positive, yielding a positivity rate of 3.07%. This is slightly down from Tuesday's positivity rate of 3.56%.
Hospitalizations were also down on Wednesday by 11 people. There are now 390 patients in the hospital being treated for COVID-19.
There were 13 new COVID-19 related deaths reported bringing the state's death toll to 7,752 people.
Virtual Career fair to be held in Hartford on March 18
JobFairX is hosting a Virtual Career Fair on Thursday, March 18 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The fair is expected to have many employers like Amazon and UnitedHealth Group. To register for the free event, click here.
Congress approves landmark $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill
The House gave its final approval Wednesday to the COVID bill with $1,400 checks, expanded jobless benefits, and more child tax credit money.
President Joe Biden is set to sign the bill into law on Friday.
Governor Lamont applauded Congress on their approval of the American Rescue Plan, saying the passage is a game changer for Connecticut and the country.
"President Biden pledged to all Americans that his administration would meet the challenge of this pandemic head-on using every tool at the U.S. government’s disposal. This legislation is a tremendous step in fulfilling that promise," he said. "I commend President Biden, Congressional Democrats, and particularly Connecticut’s Congressional delegation for their leadership and commitment to providing long-delayed relief for millions of American families, small businesses, state and local governments, our schools and child care system, and communities struggling with the economic fallout of this pandemic. It is a remarkable achievement."
Southington schools to pre-emptively close Monday in case of vaccination reactions
Southington schools are planning on being closed Monday. School officials are taking the pre-emptive action to prepare for absences due to side effects from staff and teachers receiving COVID-19 vaccinations at a clinic on Sunday, March 14.
Officials said, "Since it is likely that many will experience side effects we are planning proactively to close schools so we are not in a situation of having to close on an emergency basis. The day will be made up in June."
West Hartford to return to in-person learning
Almost a year after having to change how learning was done in West Hartford due to COVID-19, the school district is announcing that middle and high schoolers will be returning to full-time, in-person learning (for those who did not opt-in for RLE) and ending the hybrid model beginning March 17th.
The district cited declining cases and warmer weather which could help with ventilation and moving to more outdoor spaces.
March 9
Positivity rate, hospitalizations increase
Connecticut administered 21,030 tests on Tuesday and 749 came back positive, yielding a positivity rate of 3.56%.
Current hospitalizations also increased over the weekend to 401 patients. New Haven County has the most patients with 182 people. Tolland County has the lowest number of patients with two.
Hartford County has 88 patients.
There were 14 new reported COVID-19 related deaths bringing the state's death toll to 7,739 people.
March 8
COVID-19 positivity rate continues to remain low
Gov. Lamont's office released the latest COVID-19 metrics from over the weekend showing a continued downward trend.
Connecticut administered 78,634 tests and 2,066 came back positive. The positivity rate from over the weekend was 2.63%.
Hospitalizations are the lowest they have been in months with 388 patients. There were 21 reported deaths over the weekend. The state's death toll has now reached 7,725 people.
Gov. Lamont praised the state's vaccine rollout plan for the low metrics. Connecticut has administered 1,162,682 doses with 75% of people 75 years or older have received a vaccine. Gov. Lamont added that the state expects to receive 137,000 new doses this week.
