Maine reports 203 new COVID-19 cases, no additional deaths

State health officials on Wednesday reported 203 new cases of COVID-19, which has continued a modest but nonetheless upward trend over the past few weeks.

No additional deaths were reported, but it was the third time in the past six days that cases have eclipsed 200.

Initially, the state reported a much lower daily total, which appears to be incomplete due to a data transfer issue, a spokeswoman for the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said.

The average of seven days fell daily to 193, compared to 170 two weeks ago and from 142 this month last month. Cases peaked at an average of more than 600 daily after a post-holiday boom in January, and then gradually declined for weeks before declining.

Younger people are responsible for an increasing number of cases in Maine. People in their 20s form the highest percentage of positive cases, 18.1 percent, followed by people under the age of 20, 15.7 percent of all cases. Maine residents over the age of 70 make up only 11.7 percent of the cases, but are responsible for 619 or 85 percent of all deaths.

There have now been 47,591 confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 and 725 deaths since the Maine pandemic reached a little over a year ago. Across the United States, there were nearly 30 million cases and more than 535,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Both total dwarf those of any other country.

Hospital admissions, which have peaked at more than 200 since January, have begun to climb again in Maine. As of Wednesday, there were 84 individuals in the hospital with COVID-19, including 25 in critical care and eight in a ventilator. The total dropped to 62 on March 1, but has risen steadily since then. A total of 1,612 Maine people were admitted to the hospital at one point.

Meanwhile, Maine is making progress on vaccinations. As of Wednesday morning, the state has fired 524,214 shots. Of these, 330,123 were first doses, representing 24.6 percent of the population, and 194,091 individuals, or 14.4 percent, were fully vaccinated. Nearly 77 percent of Mainers older than 70 and 43 percent of those between the ages of 60-69 received their first dose.

Maine now averages 13,500 doses a day and ranks 8th among states in the percentage of people who are fully vaccinated, according to a state-by-state tracker from Bloomberg News.

The state continues to prioritize residents over the age of 60, as well as teachers, school staff and child care staff. Those between the ages of 50 and 59 will be eligible on April 1 and all adult Mainers can schedule an appointment by May 1st.

Health officials also announced Tuesday that residents of Maine’s Department of Correctional Facilities older than 60 – about 150 inmates – will be eligible for vaccinations from next week. The state has not previously said when inmates will be vaccinated. Maine’s two largest outbreaks at some sites were in a state jail and a jail in the country, and more recently, seven inmates and one Maine State Prison employee tested positive for the virus.

Additional mass vaccination sites opened in Auburn and Dover-Foxcroft this week, contributing to a growing list of options. The state now has more than 200 sites across the state, which include dozens of retail pharmacies that offer shots through a partnership with the federal government and that currently focus on teachers.

Maine has received approximately 45,000 doses in each of the past two weeks, down from 55,000 doses three weeks ago after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was approved. The director of Maine CDC, dr. Nirav Shah, said on Tuesday he expects a similar amount for next week, but by the end of March or early April, the volume will increase dramatically.

He also said the state is working with vaccinators to see who has the staff to increase staff or to keep clinics open for longer hours as more doses arrive.

“My message to vaccination sites in Maine is, ‘Let’s drill the well before we get thirsty,'” Shah said.

This story will be updated.

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