Maine Reports 375 New COVID-19 Cases in 3 Days

Maine on Tuesday reported 375 new cases of COVID-19 over a three-day period and three additional deaths.

The 375 cases were the total for Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The seven-day average of daily new cases stood at 177 on Tuesday, up from 147.4 a week ago and 38.9 a month ago.

The increase in cases in Maine and across the country comes amid reports that the Biden administration is expected to announce this week that booster shots will be available to most people eight months after receiving their final dose. The recalls are expected to be ready for administration by the end of September, according to national press releases.

Since the start of the pandemic, Maine has recorded 72,896 cases of COVID-19 and 907 deaths. Penobscot County recorded the highest number of cases in the three-day period with 95 new cases, followed by York County at 59 and Cumberland County at 36.

Cumberland County – the most populous and most vaccinated county in the state – is seeing a drop in the number of cases over a seven-day period, with an average of 51.8 cases per 100,000 population. Penobscot County is seeing an increase, with 259.5 cases per 100,000 population. York and Androscoggin counties are also seeing a drop in cases.

Cumberland County’s vaccination rate is 72.9% of its population, compared to the state average of 61.5%. Somerset County has the lowest vaccination rate at 49.2%.

With the exception of Kennebec County, every county has substantial or high levels of transmission, as defined by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to the agency’s recommendations, all people, regardless of their immunization status, should wear masks in indoor public places, except in Kennebec County.

Despite the rise in cases in recent weeks, Maine has the second lowest viral prevalence in the country, according to the Harvard Global Health Institute. Maine’s rate of 13 cases per 100,000 people is beaten only by Vermont, at 10.7 cases per 100,000 people. In the regions where the virus is spreading the fastest, Florida and Louisiana, the number of cases is 138 per 100,000 and 116 per 100,000, respectively.

The federal government approved boosters for those who are immunocompromised last week, and pharmacies are now doing the injections.

Walgreens, CVS, and Community Pharmacy, a Maine-based chain, are among the pharmacies that offer the injections to people with moderately to severely compromised immune systems. This includes people undergoing cancer treatments, receiving an organ transplant, taking stem cell treatments, or who have HIV or other immunodeficiency diseases, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. .

Immunocompromised people for whom the booster is approved represent approximately 3% of the population. Pharmacies in Maine do not require proof that a person is immunocompromised before giving the injections.

This story will be updated.

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