LYME/OLD LYME — The Daily Data Report for Connecticut issued Tuesday, March 9, by the Connecticut Department of Public Health(CT-DPH) for data as at 8:30 p.m., Monday, March 8, shows that cumulative cases (confirmed and probable) since the pandemic began increased by one in Lyme to 91 and held steady in Old Lyme at 285 when compared with the numbers reported Sunday, March 7.
It should be noted that Monday reports always include data for the previous three days because reports are not issued on Saturdays or Sundays. All the other days reports are issued (Tuesday through Friday), the reporting period is 24 hours.
The next CT DPH Daily Data Report for Connecticut will be issued in the afternoon of Wednesday, March 10.
Lyme – Cumulative Cases Up One
Lyme has a cumulative total (since the outbreak began) of 84 confirmed cases and 7 probable cases, making a TOTAL of 91 cases.
This represents an INCREASE of ONE in the cumulative number of confirmed cases and NO CHANGE in the number of probable cases compared with those reported Monday, March 8.
The total number of Lyme residents tested is 1,285, an increase of three over Monday’s number of 1,282.
Old Lyme – No Change in Cumulative Cases
Old Lyme has a cumulative total (since the outbreak began) of 279 confirmed COVID-19 cases and SIX probable cases, making a TOTAL of 285 cases.
This represents an INCREASE of TWO in the cumulative number of confirmed cases and NO CHANGE in the number of probable cases compared with those reported Friday, March 5.
The total number of Old Lyme residents tested is 4,766, up 22 from the previous day’s number of 4,744.
Vaccination Rates
At the request of several readers, we are starting a new section today reflecting the status of community vaccination rates in Lyme and Old Lyme. The data is taken from the COVID-19 Vaccinations by Town report published by CT-DPH, which is published roughly weekly.
Old Lyme is marginally ahead of Lyme in terms of the percentage of its total population that have received a first dose, with 28.95 percent vaccinated compared with 26.12 percent in Lyme. The percentages for both towns for the age segments 65-74 and 75+ are very encouraging with Old Lyme now having 92 percent of seniors 75 and above having received their first dose.
The detailed data below is the most recent and was updated March 1.
Old Lyme
Total population: 7,306
Estimated population age 65-74: 1,067
Estimated population age 75 and above: 794
Total population 1st dose administered: 2,115
1st dose administered as % of total population: 28.95%
1st dose administered age 65-74: 835
1st dose administered as % of age 65-74 population: 78%
1st dose administered age 75 and above: 730
1st dose administered as % of age 75 and above population: 92%
Lyme
Total population: 2,316
Estimated population age 65-74: 372
Estimated population age 75 and above: 274
Total population 1st dose administered: 605
1st dose administered as % of total population: 26.12%
1st dose administered age 65-74: 244
1st dose administered as % of age 65-74 population: 66%
1st dose administered age 75 and above: 222
1st dose administered as % of age 75 and above population: 81%
Old Lyme Now in Gray (Lowest) Zone for Two-Week New Case Rate, Lyme Remains in (Highest) Red Zone
The report issued Monday, March 8, by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (CT DPH) for the average daily rate of new cases of COVID-19 by town during the past two weeks contains good news for Old Lyme … but not Lyme.
This report is issued daily, but only updated weekly on Thursdays. The most recent report was updated Thursday, March 4: the next updated report will be issued in the afternoon of Thursday, March 11.
It shows that Old Lyme has moved from the (second lowest) Yellow Zone down into the (lowest) Gray Zone reflecting an even lower case rate than the previous week.
Unfortunately, Lyme remains in the ‘Red Zone’ — the category with the highest rate of new cases.
(Four zones are specified by the CT DPH — see details below)
Overall, the report contains good news for the whole state with the number of towns in each Zone increasing this week in every case (the previous week’s figures shown in parentheses):
- 18 (10) towns are now in the (lowest case rate) Gray Zone
- 10 (7) are in the (lowest but one) Yellow Zone
- 36 (28) are in the (second highest case rate) Orange Zone.
All the remaining towns are in the Red Zone, but this represents a dramatic improvement from the map published in November when every town in the state was in the Red Zone.
This report shows that Old Lyme now joins 17 other towns — Barkamsted, Bethlehem, Bridgewater, Canaan, Chester, Colebrook, Cornwall, Eastford, Franklin, Hartland, Morris, Norfolk, Roxbury, Scotland, Sharon, Voluntown and Warren — in the Gray (lowest rate) Zone.
The Yellow (second lowest rate) Zone includes Bolton, Canton, Easton, Farmington, Granby, New Hartford, Plymouth, Tolland, Woodbury and Willington.
- The gray category is defined as when the Average Daily Rate of COVID-19 Cases Among Persons Living in Community Settings per 100,000 Population By Town is less than five or less than five reported cases.
- The yellow category is defined as when the Average Daily Rate of COVID-19 Cases Among Persons Living in Community Settings per 100,000 Population By Town is between five and nine reported cases.
- The orange category is defined as when the Average Daily Rate of COVID-19 Cases Among Persons Living in Community Settings per 100,000 Population By Town is between 10 and 14.
- The red category is defined as when the Average Daily Rate of COVID-19 Cases Among Persons Living in Community Settings per 100,000 Population By Town exceeds 15.
In all cases, this rate does not include cases or tests among residents of nursing home, assisted living, or correctional facilities.
More Detail on Two-Week Case Rates
On Thursday, March 4, Ledge Light Health District (LLHD) also issued their latest weekly report of COVID data for the municipalities within their District. Ledge Light Director of Health Stephen Mansfield prefaces the report with the comment, “We are encouraged to see relatively steady numbers within our jurisdiction.’
He stresses, however, “Although we are making great strides with our COVID vaccination program, it is still imperative that we remain diligent in our mitigation strategies.”
The latest two-week case rates announced Thursday, March 4, for the period 2/14 to 2/27 per 100,000 population (compared with the previous two-week case rate for 2/07 to 2/20) have fallen in both Old Lyme and Lyme.
The two-week case rates are as follows:
- Old Lyme from 6.8 to 4.8
- Lyme from 24.4 to 15.3
The same report shows that the case numbers in Week 1 and Week 2 respectively and recorded for the period 2/14 to 2/27 (compared with the previous two-week case rate for 2/07 to 2/20 shown in parentheses) are as follows:
- Lyme had 2 (5) cases in Week 1 and 3 (3) in Week 2
- Old Lyme had 2 (4) cases in Week 1 and 3 (3) in Week 2
This data was updated March 4, 2021. The next Ledge Light Weekly Data Report for its District will be issued in the afternoon of Thursday, March 11.
Three Fatalities in Old Lyme Since Pandemic Began, None in Lyme
According to the report mentioned above, there have now been THREE fatalities in Old Lyme. Asked Tuesday, Feb. 9, for details of this third fatality, Ledge Light Health Department Director of Health Stephen Mansfield responded, “We have not been notified of any recent deaths in Old Lyme. Keep in mind that that report is compiled by the Connecticut Department of Public Health; deaths are not reportable to local health districts.”
He added, “I can’t speak for their data sources.”
The two fatalities from Old Lyme previously reported in 2020 were a 61-year-old female and an 82-year-old male.
No fatalities have been reported in Lyme.
Connecticut Hospital Occupancy
At the request of several readers, we are adding a new report today showing the respective rates of hospital occupancy at local hospitals. The data for this report is obtained from the Connecticut Hospital Occupancy Report published weekly by the CT DPH and extracted from the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) facility-level data for hospital utilization aggregated on a weekly basis (Friday to Thursday).
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Editor’s Note: The state issues a COVID-19 metric report daily around 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, which includes current data up to the previous evening. In light of the ongoing rise in Coronavirus cases, we publish a new weekday update reporting confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases in Lyme and Old Lyme.
More broadly, CT’s positive test rate dropped a bit to 2.36 percent yesterday, with 735 new COVID cases.
On Thursday, Governor Lamont again promised increased efforts to reach people of color and other residents with low vaccination rates. I know that this is also a high priority for our own Ledge Light Health District, who have been wholly engaged in vaccinating ECT residents
Nearly 27% of Connecticut residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and about 10% have been fully vaccinated.