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Pandemic worsens across New England, leading many to wonder what went wrong — and whether there is time to reverse course - The Boston Globe
Pandemic worsens across New England, leading many to wonder what went wrong — and whether there is time to reverse course
In a troubling reversal of summertime trends, November has seen COVID-19 cases surge in all six New England states.
More than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases each day in Massachusetts. A nursing home outbreak in Maine. Record peaks in infections in Connecticut. In Vermont and New Hampshire, the single highest daily caseloads since spring. In Rhode Island, the highest rate of positive tests since May.
While the nation was held rapt by a cliffhanger election, the coronavirus pandemic has surged to record levels across the United States. And this time — unlike the country’s summertime surge, when outbreaks were concentrated in the Sun Belt — New England is feeling the virus’s full wrath.
In the past week, each state has seen its own version of a pandemic nightmare unfold, seemingly with no end in sight. Surging transmission across the region has left governors scrambling to introduce new restrictions and residents wondering what went wrong.
Experts said that New England’s summertime success might have created a false sense of security, preventing officials and residents alike from seeing the approaching surge in time to stop it. Now, the region must act immediately to curb or reverse the dangerous trend, they said.
“I think we got lulled into it,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. “Many of us [epidemiologists] started speaking up in September that we’ve got to act. . . . I think people thought we were being a bit alarmist, but you want to act early and not wait. We still need to act. We still need to do a lot more. But it’s going to be much more painful now, and if we decide to wait a couple more weeks, it’ll be that much more painful yet.”
On Monday, the country passed a grim milestone, with more than 10 million known cases of COVID-19 reported since February. On four of the past five days, the CDC’s count of newly-reported cases has surpassed 100,000, a height not reached in the first eight months of the pandemic.
New England states have seen troubling trends of their own.
Doctors issue warnings about coming weeks, months for COVID-19 | Boston.com
Local doctors are issuing dire warnings about the
COVID-19 pandemic in the coming weeks and months in the United States, reminding the public and elected officials that actions have to be taken immediately to save lives.
“We are entering the hardest days of the pandemic,” Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health wrote Monday. “The next two months will see a lot of infections and deaths.”
That must be remembered along with the emergence of “light at the end of the tunnel,” the doctor wrote. On Monday, Pfizer
announced that early data on its COVID-19 vaccine suggests the shot may be 90 percent effective.
In his
victory speech to the American public on Saturday night, President-elect Joe Biden announced he was forming a team of scientists and experts to take his plan for tackling the pandemic and convert it into a “blueprint” for actions he can take when he is in office. He unveiled the
members of the advisory board on Monday.
But local public health experts and epidemiologists are emphasizing that action is needed before Jan. 20, 2021, to save lives.
COVID-19 surge concerns growing in Massachusetts
BOSTON —
Surging coronavirus case counts are leading doctors to make a new push to convince Massachusetts residents to take action to protect themselves and their families.
Experts fear the summer's lower case numbers caused people to relax far too much, and they're trying to sound the alarm as infections climb.
Worcester is just one city seeing the highest levels of the virus since May. Free testing centers are being set up to control the spread -- with hundreds lining up Monday at the Mercantile Center.
Doctors and local leaders are urging everyone to fight the virus by adhering to social distancing guidelines and wearing masks.
They're most concerned about unmasked gatherings in people's homes -- particularly among young people.
New Hampshire
‘Substantial’ community coronavirus transmission reported in 8 New Hampshire counties
BERLIN, N.H. —
Eight of New Hampshire’s 10 counties are now seeing substantial transmission of COVID-19, according to state officials.
New Hampshire has seen more than 1,000 new cases in just the last five days.
Berlin Mayor Paul Grenier said that until recently, COVID-19 was a southern New Hampshire problem, but that’s not true anymore.
He anticipates a proposed mask mandate for the city will pass and hopes it prompts citizens in the city to take the crisis more seriously.
“There is community transmission and we need to get a handle on it,” Grenier said.
In an interview with WMUR last week, Grenier said that if COVID-19 got a grip in Berlin, it could get bad very quickly.
“I have a Catholic Charities-operated nursing home. We have a county-operated nursing home. Collectively, they are licensed for about 180 beds. I have the state correctional facility. I have a federal correctional facility in town,” Grenier said.
Vermont
Vermont Gov. Issues Quarantine Order, Compliance Checks
Gov. Phil Scott is implementing quarantine requirements for anyone traveling to Vermont and deploying state police and other officials to conduct compliance checks amid a spike in coronavirus cases.
"I know it's disappointing, but it's more important than ever to be vigilant, to wear a mask, stay six feet apart, avoid non-essential gatherings and follow our travel policy," Scott said. "We can change our trajectory, but we'll need to dig deep and double our efforts so we can protect the most vulnerable and keep our schools and economy open."
Anyone entering Vermont is now required to quarantine for 14 days or for seven days with a negative test after Scott suspended the state's travel map Tuesday, which allowed people from counties with low levels of community spread to visit without restrictions.
Scott is deploying assets including the state police, the division of fire safety, the Department of Liquor and Lottery and potentially local and county officials to conduct compliance checks. Officers in plainclothes will conduct randomized compliance and education assessments, officials said Tuesday, with a focus on locations frequented by out-of-state visitors, lodging facilities and indoor settings.
