New Haven County meets CDC recommended threshold for universal indoor masking – NBC Connecticut



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New Haven County became the third region in Connecticut to be classified as having “significant” transmission of COVID-19, meaning it has reached the level at which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, everyone, regardless of vaccination status, wear a mask inside.

Hartford and New London counties hit that threshold on Wednesday, according to the CDC’s COVID Data Tracker.

The CDC guidelines, which recommend that people wear masks indoors in areas where infection rates are classified as “significant” or “high,” is not a mandate and leaves political decisions to the public. state and local levels. Currently, there is no mask warrant in the state, but the Connecticut Department of Health issued a statement on Thursday strongly recommending people who live, work or visit the counties of Hartford, New London or New Haven to follow CDC guidelines.

The state’s positivity rate stood at 2.35% on Thursday, down from 2.96% the day before. There were 14,401 new tests reported, with 339 new cases. There are 112 people hospitalized with the virus, a net increase of nine from the previous day.

The state reports COVID-19-related deaths once a week, Thursday. To date, 8,293 deaths have been reported in Connecticut, an increase of seven from last week.

State officials are urging the public to get vaccinated, warning that the delta variant continues to spread and COVID-19 measures tend to increase.

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said they recommend that everyone wear masks indoors in public places. The town hall and municipal buildings have always pursued the mask’s mandate. Private institutions have the power to develop their own policies.

“Our city lawyers read the governor’s order as not allowing us to implement a city-wide warrant, so because we don’t have that authority, we mandate within the city hall and also encourage strongly any private facility or people who are indoors in a group willing to wear masks, ”Elicker said.

The city is continuing its vaccination efforts and said there are opportunities to get vaccinated every day.

“I think we’re all frustrated, but the overwhelming new refuge is doing the right thing. And we’ve been doing it throughout the pandemic. We have followed the science, we have followed the advice and even though people may be tired of wearing their masks, take them off again, put them back on, it’s the right thing to do, ”Elicker said.

Connecticut continues to have one of the highest vaccination rates in the country.

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