Maine health officials reported 225 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, but no further deaths, as the state’s busiest vaccination week is coming to an end.
It is the fourth time in the past three weeks that daily cases have surpassed 200 – another reminder that transmission is not disappearing immediately with the increase in vaccinations.
And vaccinations are expected to decline next week, after several weeks of steady increases. Maine learned on Thursday that its vaccine quota for next week will be significantly lower. The news arrives as soon as teachers and daycare staff become eligible, joining residents aged 60 and over.
Maine will receive a total of 33,500 doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine, but nothing from Johnson & Johnson, which provided Maine with 15,000 doses this week. The state could still obtain additional doses that go directly to retail pharmacies as part of an agreement with the federal government, but these batches have not yet been finalized. This week, more than 55,000 doses have arrived in Maine – the highest weekly total to date.
Chuck Rich of Waterboro is vaccinated by David Garriepy at a MaineHealth vaccination clinic in Sanford on Tuesday. Gregory Rec / Team photographer
The average daily seven-day cases has increased slightly and stood at 167 on Friday, compared with 138 cases two weeks ago, or an incubation period, behind. This time, last month, cases averaged nearly 300, and cases peaked at more than 600 a day in mid-January. Although cases have dropped dramatically since the post-holiday increase, there has been a leveling off in many states, raising concerns that the public may be relaxing before vaccines have a chance to take effect.
In all, there have been 45,452 confirmed or probable cases in Maine since last March and 704 people have died from COVID-19, according to data monitored by the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Hospitalizations were not updated on Friday morning, but on Thursday 69 people were in the hospital with COVID-19, including 23 in intensive care and eight on a ventilator. Hospitalizations have also stabilized in the past two weeks – ranging from a minimum of 62 to a maximum of 75 – after reaching more than 200 in mid-January.
The state administered 391,148 vaccines until Friday morning. Of these, 253,135 were the first doses, representing almost 19% of the state’s population, and 138,013 people were fully vaccinated, or just over 10% of residents. About 72 percent of Mainers over 70 have already received an injection.
Going forward, individuals who receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which is an injection, will be counted in the fully vaccinated category. Vaccines produced by Pfizer and Moderna require two injections, which are taken every 3-4 weeks.
According to a state tracker of Bloomberg News vaccination efforts, Maine has fallen in recent weeks and is now ranked in the lower half of the states, with 24.89 vaccines administered by 100 people. Maine was in the top 10 last month.
Maine CDC director Nirav Shah acknowledged this worrying trend on Thursday and said he is working to find out why it is happening. But he also said that the growing number of vaccine options – both on a large scale and in pharmacies – should help improve the efficiency of vaccinations.
Nursery teachers and staff became eligible for vaccination this week, following President Biden’s directive to states to prioritize teachers. They join residents between the ages of 60 and 69. There are approximately 52,000 teachers and daycare workers in Maine, as well as nearly 200,000 residents in their 60s.
For the time being, retail pharmacies have been instructed to offer consultations exclusively to teachers and daycare staff.
Governor Janet Mills is due to speak at a press conference at 11 am on Friday about her updated plans to protect public health and support Maine’s economy during the state’s busy spring and summer tourism season. The governor will be joined by Shah, Commissioner for Economic and Community Development Heather Johnson and Commissioner for Health and Human Services Jeanne Lambrew.
Mills and Shah are also scheduled to visit MaineHealth’s mass vaccination site at Scarborough Downs on Friday afternoon.
This story will be updated.
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