County COVID-19 Decrease in number of cases

Region — Franklin County State-wide trends The reported reduction rate of COVID-19 positive cases shows a 7-day count of 38 confirmed cases by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as of February 11. The count shows a 38.71% reduction in confirmed cases from the previous 7 days.

As of February 7, the town of Farmington reported a cumulative maximum of 323 cases of COVID-19 identified in Franklin County, according to the Main CDC.

Federal CDC data provide county-wide confirmed cases across the country, while Maine CDC provides postal code-specific data that combines both state-wide confirmed and possible cases. To provide.

Recent outbreaks in Farmington Orchard Park Rehabilitation & Living Center There were 29 confirmed cases on February 10.

As of February 13, the University of Maine at Farmington (UMF) has reported a total of 20 positive cases since the start of the second semester test.

“As for our positive case, 10 on-campus and 10 off-campus UMF community members are positive this semester from statistics shared in weekly test notes starting January 8, 2021. You can share what you did with the test, “said Christine Wilson, Vice President, Student Affairs & Enrollment Management, in an email.

UMF is currently in Phase 6 of the testing process, and all students, staff, and faculty members working or living on campus need to be tested weekly.

Farmington will also benefit from the wastewater management program of the main university system, which is affiliated with the town’s sewerage facilities. COVID-19 test sewage Fragment for tracking infection trends.

Although the federal level has not set a specific number of positive COVID-19 cases to constitute an outbreak, the CDC in Maine has determined three positive cases that indicate an outbreak at K-12 schools.

According to the state CDC Standard business procedure manualAn outbreak is declared when “there are 3 or more confirmed cases from different households within 14 days”.

Regional School Unit 9 reported a total of 40 positive COVID-19 cases during the 2020-21 school year. District website..

The main CDC shows that the town of Jay has recorded the second highest cumulative probability in the county. There are 150 cases, and Wilton shows a total of 78 cases.

Rangeley, Kingfield, Strong, Phillips, and New Sharon all report a total of 20-49 cumulative possible confirmed cases.

Eustis, Stratton, Temple, New Vineyard, and Weld each have 6-19 estimated and confirmed cumulative cases as of February 7.

Franklin County reported the first confirmed case of COVID-19 variant B.1.1.7 in Maine on February 10. This variant was first detected in the United Kingdom and currently exists in 34 states.Florida and California are currently reporting the maximum number of variants Over 150..

The Maine Department of Agriculture and Forestry recently hosted a webinar to dispel false information about the COVID-19 vaccine. At the webinar, microbiologist Lisa Morici of the University of Train University School of Medicine in New Orleans shared information about the B.1.1.7 variant.

“We know that this virus is more infectious than the original virus, so that’s an important point that we all still need to wear masks,” Morichi said on February 12. Said in the webinar. “It’s less deadly, but if it’s more contagious, it will infect more people and cause more hospitalizations and deaths, but the mutation itself makes it more deadly. I won’t. “

Morici added that vaccination has already been modified to ensure high efficacy rates for variants B.1.1.7, B.1.351, and P.1. The CDC reports the success of current vaccines against these COVID-19 variants.

“So far, studies have suggested that antibodies produced by vaccination with currently approved vaccines recognize these mutants. This has been scrutinized and more studies have been conducted. Is in progress. ” CDC website says..

As of February 16, Maine had received 255,849 coronavirus vaccines, with 75,384 people receiving the second dose. maine.gov vaccination dashboard.. Fully vaccinated people in Maine make up 5.61% of the state’s population.

In Franklin County, 936 people receive both coronavirus vaccines, which is equivalent to 3.10% of the county’s population.

Morici said 60% of the US population needs to be vaccinated to stop the spread of COVID-19. This percentage includes the consideration that about 20% of the country’s population is naturally immune.

“If you say that 80% of the population needs to achieve herd immunity and 20% already have immunity, then 60% more Americans need to be immunized to get there.” Morici said.

To reach 60% of the population, 198 million people need to be vaccinated in the United States. As of February 16, the CDC reported that 15,471,536 people in the United States had been vaccinated with both doses of coronavirus vaccine.

Coronavirus mortality rates range from 1-2%, with an additional 2-4 million deaths in the United States without herd immunity.

Related article