Massachusetts adds 3,378 new coronavirus cases as thousands of vaccine appointments sit open

Massachusetts public health officials reported 3,378 new coronavirus cases and 59 more deaths on Saturday as thousands of vaccine appointments for the upcoming week sat unfilled.

Gov. Charlie Baker said Friday morning that 20,000 appointments were still available for the upcoming week across the mass vaccination sites at Fenway Park, Gillette Stadium and Springfield’s Eastfield Mall.

Thousands of appointments were still available through Valentine’s Day at Gillette and Eastfield, and hundreds were available at Fenway as of Saturday evening, though most of the openings are for later in the week.

The open slots come as the number of new confirmed cases ticked up to 3,378 on Saturday, an increase from Friday’s count of 2,982 cases, Thursday’s tally of 2,602 and Wednesday’s count of 2,186.

There have now been 513,526 confirmed coronavirus cases in the commonwealth, according to the Department of Public Health. Another 241 probable cases were reported, for a combined confirmed and probable case tally of 540,827.

The DPH estimates there are 58,768 active COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts, down significantly from nearly 100,000 in January.

There were 1,451 patients in hospitals as of Saturday, including 310 in intensive care units and 189 who were intubated.

The 59 new fatalities bring the state’s confirmed death toll to 14,622. Three new probable deaths were reported on Saturday, bringing the state’s combined toll from confirmed and probable cases to 14,921.

More than half the state’s fatalities continue to come from long-term care facilities, where the death toll stood at 8,225 on Saturday.

More than 461,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus and 26.8 million have been infected, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. Deaths have crossed 2.3 million globally, and cases total more than 105 million.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2N3yuUm