COVID-19 tests performed at LincolnHealth declined for the sixth straight week and positive cases dropped for the third week in a row, according to hospital spokesperson John Martins.
From Jan. 30 to Feb. 5, LincolnHealth ran 79 COVID-19 tests with five positives, for a positivity rate of 6.33%, down from 8.54% last week.
Martins said by email that the last time LincolnHealth had more than five cases in one week was the week of Nov. 28 to Dec. 4.
LincolnHealth offers the COVID-19 vaccine to anyone 6 months and older.
Martins has urged people to get their flu shot and bivalent COVID-19 booster shot, which contains components of the original COVID-19 strain as well as the omicron variant.
For more information, people can contact their primary care physician or visit vaccine.mainehealth.org.
Community transmission, which is defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and describes the amount of COVID-19 spread in a community, shifted to “moderate” after two weeks at “substantial.” This metric is used by healthcare facilities to determine infection control intervention, Martins has said.
The community level, which describes the impact of COVID-19 on communities, is “low” for Lincoln County and has stayed there since the levels were first determined. Community levels are calculated using the number of new COVID-19 admissions per 100,000 population in the past seven days, the percentage of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients, and total new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population in the past seven days.
MaineHealth is maintaining a database of COVID-19 information that can be accessed at mainehealth.org/coronavirus-COVID-19/what-to-do.
The health system also recommends staying home when sick, testing for COVID-19 in the event of symptoms or contact with a COVID-19-positive person, and seeking care when necessary.
According to Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention data current through Tuesday, Feb. 7, since COVID-19 arrived in Lincoln County in March 2020, 6,830 residents have had the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus – 5,698 confirmed cases and 1,132 probable. The number of deaths in Lincoln County residents stayed at 42.
The number of residents who have been hospitalized with COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic rose by one to 121.
Lincoln County has a “moderate to high” rate of vaccine doses administered per 100,000 residents relative to other counties in the state at 269,639.66. The number does not represent fully vaccinated individuals and, since the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines both require two doses, the number can be higher than 100,000.
The census data for Lincoln County provided by the Maine CDC lists a population of 34,634. Of those residents, 27,254, or 78.69%, have received their first dose of the vaccine and 27,987, or 80.81%, have received the second and final dose, according to the agency’s data.
A total of 93,387 doses of vaccine have been administered, up 67 doses from last week. Those counted in the final dose category have either received the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
There have been 38,146 additional or booster shots given to Lincoln County residents.
State COVID-19 numbers
According to data current as of Feb. 7, the Maine CDC has reported 309,680 COVID-19 cases in Maine, an increase of 3,509 from the week before. Of those cases, 89,410 are probable.
There have been 6,858 hospitalizations in the state, with 113 being reported in the past week. There have been 2,875 deaths so far from COVID-19 in Maine, including 14 reported in the last week. The statewide case rate is 2,340 per 10,000 people, up from 2,331 last week.
