Case Prevalence Per 10,000, By Town
For the week ending May 19, 2021
Connecticut had another incredibly good week as case counts and case prevalence, or the number of cases per 10,000 people, continued their dramatic slide.
As of May 19th, most COVID-19-related restrictions on gatherings, mask use, and indoor capacity were lifted or softened. This easing of restrictions comes as the Centers for Disease Control issued new guidance that allows people who are fully vaccinated to forego wearing masks in most situations. So far, the data seems to be backing the shift in policy: COVID-19 is in full retreat in Connecticut.
The state recorded 1,807 new cases for the week of May 12-19, a drop of 763 cases from last week’s total of 2,570. Cases fell by about 30%, which is similar to the drops recorded for the weeks ending May 5 (27%) and May 12 (29%). Cases are actually down by over half from two weeks ago, and are down an impressive 68% from where they were one month ago.
Case prevalence also continues to fall. The number of new cases per 10,000 residents was 5.06 for the week ending May 19, down from 7.19 for the week ending May 12. One month ago this number was 15.94. Test positivity is lower, too; it’s 1.3% this week, down from 1.6% last week.
These are incredibly positive trends. Considering where we were just a few months ago, during the worst of the second wave, it feels downright miraculous. If only we hadn’t had to go through so much sickness, death, and disruption to get here.
Let’s take a look at the map.
Most towns are now firmly in the 2-5 or 5-10 new cases per 10,000 residents. There are very few outliers. Only seven towns, Norfolk (12.20), Waterbury (10.73), Hartford (10.77), Union (11.90), Salem (16.98), Putnam (21.29), and Ledyard (12.21) recorded a case prevalence of over 10. In the case of tiny Union, a single case was enough to put it on this list. It’s worth noting that the two big cities on the list, Waterbury and Hartford, are right on the cusp of dropping below 10 new cases per 10,000 residents.
Meanwhile, 27 towns reported zero new cases. Most of these were small towns in the Litchfield hills or the rural eastern part of the state, but two, Darien and Wethersfield, are populous suburbs.
The reason for all this good news is simple: vaccination works. If there is to be any rise in case numbers from the lifting of restrictions, we likely won’t know for a few weeks yet. Still, as the percentage of people who are fully vaccinated continues to rise, the virus will have a much harder time making a comeback.
Case Prevalence Per 10,000, By Town
For the week ending May 12, 2021
Susan Bigelow is an award-winning columnist and the founder of CTLocalPolitics. She lives in Enfield with her wife and their cats.
The views, opinions, positions, or strategies expressed by the author are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of CTNewsJunkie.com.