SPRINGFIELD — The city has returned to the “high risk” category for COVID-19 transmission, but the number of new cases did decline last week compared to the prior week, officials said Monday.
Officials discussed the latest trends during their weekly COVID-19 update at City Hall.
The city recorded 486 new cases for the week of March 28 to April 3, compared to 546 new cases for the week of March 21 to 27, reflecting a week-over-week drop of 11%. The week before, the city saw a 76% increase in new cases, said Helen R. Caulton-Harris, the city’s commissioner of Health and Human Services.
The case numbers have been high enough, however, to move the city back to the “red” category among communities statewide deemed at highest risk for COVID-19 transmissions. There were 55 communities in the red category as of Thursday, when the state’s Department of Public Health released its weekly data.
City and hospital officials said that with warmer weather and the expansion of vaccinations, some people seem to be relaxing on precautions such as wearing face coverings in public, maintaining social distancing and gathering with others.
“We are not powerless individuals,” Caulton-Harris said. “We are individuals with power, and that power comes from taking back our lives by doing the things that are necessary to get us back on track.”
In mid-March the city moved from the red to the yellow category, showing a reduced risk level for COVID-19 transmissions.
The state’s criteria designates communities with more than 50,000 residents as high-risk if the average daily case rate over a two-week period is 10 or more per 100,000 residents, and if the positive test rate is 4% or higher.
“Now is the time to continue to wear your masks, wash your hands and watch your distance (from others),” Caulton-Harris said.
Caulton-Harris, Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and Mercy Medical Center Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert Roose all urged residents to get vaccinated as soon as eligible.
City officials reported on Monday that there were seven new deaths from COVID-19 among Springfield residents, bringing the total number of deaths to 238 since the pandemic began more than a year ago.
Baystate Health reported 81 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Monday, compared to 78 a week ago and 48 three weeks ago. Thirteen were in the intensive care unit on Monday.
Mercy Medical Center reported 13 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, the same number hospitalized a week ago.
Roose said the public needs to remain committed to COVID-19 precautions. “The pandemic is not over, and it threatens life and economies all across the globe.” Roose said.
The Easter holiday and the arrival of spring are both about hope, Roose said.
“And I do believe that there is great reason for hope at this time but it’s not a magical hope or a fleeting hope,” he said. “It’s a hope that comes from a real belief in people doing the right thing.”
Sarno reported that there are eight police officers out of work due to COVID-19, but no firefighters were reported to be infected.
The city has continued to offer vaccines to emergency personnel but it remains voluntary.
There ha e been 19,815 COVID-19 infections among Springfield residents since the pandemic began.
In other COVID-19 updates, Sarno said the city has reopened the City Clerk’s office following a week-long closure blamed on a possible contamination and a decision for a deep-clean of the office.
In addition, the city continues to seek additional vaccines from the state for current and proposed neighborhood vaccination sites. The state operates a mass vaccination site at the Eastfield Mall on Boston Road, as supported by city officials, but the city is also opening sites in neighborhoods on specific designated days and exploring new sites, Sarno and Caulton-Harris said.
April 06, 2021 at 12:42AM
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Springfield gets mixed news on COVID; city returns to ‘high risk’ category but new cases decline - MassLive.com
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