Last week the cumulative COVID-19 positive test rate in Eastie increased a half a percentage point while the weekly positive test rate dropped for the fourth week in a row.
According to the latest data released by the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC), of the 34,076 Eastie residents tested for COVID since the pandemic began, 18.8 percent overall were found to be positive for the virus, a 0.53 percent increase from the 18.7 percent reported two Fridays ago.
However, 2,154 Eastie residents were tested for the virus last week and 7.8 percent were positive–a 17 percent decrease from the 9.4 that tested positive two Fridays ago.
Citywide, 32,198 residents were tested and 5.8 percent were COVID positive–a 15 percent decrease from the 6.8 percent testing positive two weeks ago.
At a press briefing last week Mayor Martin Walsh said while the numbers are moving in the right directions, residents still need to remain vigilant.
“The average number of positive tests each day was about 375, also down from the week before,” said Mayor Walsh. “Our current community positivity rate was 6.8 percent. That is lower than the week before, and down 1.6 percentage points over the last two weeks.”
The Mayor said that, throughout the pandemic, Boston has taken a cautious approach to reopening, and only moves forward with reopening if public health experts say it’s safe.
“In recent weeks, we’ve seen some improvement in our COVID numbers,” said Walsh. “That is why we are moving into Phase 3 Step 1 today (Monday). You can go to Boston.gov/Reopening to find the list of businesses allowed to reopen.”
The Mayor also mentioned that, last week, the State moved Boston from “high risk” to “moderate risk” on their map, which is encouraging news. However, Walsh warned that we must stay vigilant.
“The numbers could change any time,” he said. “Every single person has a role to play in keeping these numbers down. Everyone can take actions on a daily basis to protect themselves and their loved ones.” He reminded everyone to wear a mask; social distance; wash your hands with soap and warm water; disinfect surfaces; and avoid gatherings.
He also reminded everyone to make testing a part of your routine.
“We have over 30 testing sites including mobile sites that are free and open to all, regardless of symptoms. Visit Boston.gov or call 3-1-1 for complete details,” said Walsh.
Eastie’s COVID infection rate only increased 2.2 percent last week and went from 1,346.5 cases per 10,000 residents to 1,375.5 cases per 10,000 residents. The citywide average is 798.9 cases per 10,000 residents.
An additional 136 Eastie residents contracted the virus and there are now 6,455 confirmed cases, up from the 6,319 reported two weeks ago.
The statistics released by the BPHC as part of its weekly COVID19 report breaks down the number of cases and infection rates in each neighborhood. It also breaks down the number of cases by age, gender and race.
Citywide positive cases of coronavirus increased 4.8 percent percent last week and went from 52,704 cases to 55,236 confirmed cases in a week. Forty-one Boston residents died from the virus last week and there are now 1,194 total deaths in the city from COVID.