Health officials in Massachusetts on Friday reported another 7,635 cases of COVID-19, bringing the number of active cases nationwide to 87,348.
According to data from the Department of Public Health, the new cases are based on 108,569 molecular tests. The seven-day average of positive tests is 7.49%, compared to a low of 0.8% in September. Without including tests at higher education institutions, where regular tests have helped keep the number of cases low, the state’s seven-day average positivity is 8.7%.
On Friday, officials also reported another 74 deaths related to the virus. So far, there have been at least 400,823 cases and 12,708 deaths in the pandemic. There were known conditions for 6,639 people who died, according to the DPH data.
There are currently 2,311 people admitted to the hospital with cases of coronavirus, with 440 in the intensive care unit. According to DPH, the average age of patients in the hospital is 73 years.
As of Friday, the seven-day average hospitalizations are 2,346. The lowest average was 155 in August.
COVID testing will expand for students and school staff in Massachusetts. Government Charlie Baker and education officials announced Friday that the weekly pool test is expected to begin within the next month.
Since last month, 141,108 doses of the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine have been administered in Massachusetts. Both vaccines require two doses, and 1,213 seconds were administered in the state until Thursday.
Vaccinations for police officers and emergency personnel begin on January 11th.
DPH identified 219 cities and towns in Massachusetts as a high risk for the spread of the virus.
Here are the cumulative COVID cases per country:
Barnstable County: 6,143
Berkshire County: 3,414
County of Bristol: 39,255
Dukes County: 565
Essex County: 64,512
Franklin County: 1,418
Hampden County: 29,368
Hampshire County: 4,393
Middlesex County: 83,698
Nantucket County: 903
Norfolk County: 30,818
Plymouth County: 27,624
Suffolk County: 59,640
Worcester County: 47,879
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