LincolnHealth’s COVID-19 testing center at 40 Belvedere Road in Damariscotta will be closing and moving to the Watson Health Center after this Saturday, June 4, according to John Martins, spokesperson for the hospital.
“People who needed to be tested should contact their primary care physician’s office to schedule an appointment for their test,” Martins said in an email.
The number of new positive cases of COVID-19 identified at LincolnHealth in the past week has remained essentially flat compared to the week prior.
From May 23-29, the hospital conducted the same number of tests as the previous week, 430, with two fewer positive results at 42.
“After seeing a significant decrease in percentage of fully vaccinated testing positive in the previous week, that number jumped dramatically to 81%,” Martins wrote.
Last week, LincolnHealth saw 25 fully vaccinated individuals test positive for COVID-19, or 57% of the individuals tested. This week, that number jumped to 34, or 81% of those tested.
The vaccine is being provided through all of LincolnHealth’s primary care practices, as well as booster shots. Call the MaineHealth Vaccine Assistant at 1-877-780-7545 or email vaccine@mainehealth.org for an appointment.
An appointment is preferred and can be made by calling a Lincoln Medical Partners office or by visiting vaccine.mainehealth.org, according to Martins.
MaineHealth, the health system LincolnHealth belongs to, 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, May 31, since COVID-19 arrived in Lincoln County in March 2020, 5,755 residents have had the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus – 4,859 confirmed cases and 896 probable.
Deaths in county residents held steady at 35.
Lincoln County has a “high” rate of vaccine doses administered per 100,000 residents relative to other counties in the state at 224.262.29. 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, 26,684, or 77.05%, have received their first dose of the vaccine and 27,345, or 78.95%, have received the second and final dose, according to the agency’s data.
A total of 77,671 doses of vaccine have been administered, up 399 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 23,642 additional or booster shots given to Lincoln County residents.
According to a database maintained by the Maine CDC, vaccine appointments can be requested at Hannaford in Damariscotta, Walgreens in Damariscotta and Boothbay Harbor, and Wiscasset Family Medicine.
Patients of Sheepscot Valley Health Center in Coopers Mills can call 549-7581 to make an appointment for a vaccine.
To schedule an appointment at Hannaford, go to hannaford.com/pharmacy/covid-19-vaccine.
To schedule an appointment at Walgreens, go to walgreens.com/schedulevaccine or call 1-800-WALGREENS.
To schedule an appointment at Wiscasset Family Medicine, call 882-6008.
According to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center, the seven-day average positivity rate for Maine is 10.4%, up from 10.3% last week.
State COVID-19 numbers
According to data current as of May 31, the Maine CDC has reported 263,439 COVID-19 cases in Maine, an increase of 2,408 from the week before. Of those cases, 73,470 are probable.
There have been 4,975 hospitalizations in the state, including 36 reported in the past week. There have been 2,346 deaths so far from COVID-19 in Maine, including one reported in the last week. The statewide case rate is 1,968.3 per 10,000 people, up from 1,950.3 last week.
(Update: An earlier version of this article online and on page five of the June 2 print edition stated that the Belvedere Road COVID-19 testing site would not be open on Saturday, June 4. Based on new information from LincolnHealth, the clinic will be open at Belvedere Road on Saturday, June 4 and move to the Watson Health Center on Monday, June 6.)
