The lower Naugatuck Valley has picked up 34 positive cases of COVID-19 since Sept. 23, according to data released by the Naugatuck Valley Health District Wednesday (Sept. 30).
The report shows six additional positive cases reported in Ansonia since Sept. 23; one on Beacon Falls; five in Derby; 15 in Naugatuck; three in Seymour, and; four new cases in Shelton.
The numbers were reported between Sept. 23 and Sept. 30.
The Town of Oxford is part of the Pomperaug Health District.
Overall the state’s infection rate remains low, at 1.8 percent, compared to other parts of the U.S.
The state is seeing an uptick in the infection rate compared to the summer, when the infection rate was just under 1 percent.
Gov. Ned Lamont and administration officials have stressed this week the state has not seen any major outbreaks as of late.
Here is an excerpt from a COVID-19 story published on CT Mirror, a nonprofit news site covering state government:
Lamont acknowledged Wednesday the state could be seeing an increase this fall due to many local school districts offering in-person classes and state colleges and university campuses opening their dormitories.
But he added that “Right now we haven’t seen any real flare-ups around that.”
Despite the two-day bump in infections, Connecticut’s average rate for the past week — a more important metric according to many public health officials — is 1.2%, one of the lowest seven-day rates in the nation.
Click here to read The CT Mirror story.
COVID-19 remains very much a political issue, especially as Election Day draws close.
Several Facebook readers Wednesday reacted to a CT Mirror story about a COVID-19 press conference by calling it “fear mongering” and “fake news,” even though the CT Mirror story put this week’s infection rate into proper context.
The state maintains databases that include information on local positivity rates. However, the information comes with a red flag: the numbers are a very small sampling, so small that they can’t be used alone to make public policy decisions. Small sample data is not considered “stable.”
Derby’s most recent publicly available positivity rate is 1.5 percent, but that represents less than five positive tests (a precise number is not provided) out of some 200 tests.
Between Sept. 13 and Sept. 19 (latest available on the database), Ansonia’s infection rate was .8 percent, Beacon Falls was .9 percent,Derby was 1.5 percent, Naugatuck was 1.1 percent, Seymour was .3 percent, and Shelton was .8 percent.
It’s important to note the above is just one data set of many, and that neither local nor state health department officials have issued any type of alerts regarding COVID in the lower Valley. When spikes in infection rates jump, the state Department of Health issues warnings, such as happened in the City of Danbury last month.
Do you have a COVID question that has not been answered? Here are some places to go:
Take the time to read the complete report from the Naugatuck Valley Health District, which is embedded below.
Click this link to explore the Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard, which includes ‘recovery’ data (9,300 in Connecticut).
Click this link to take a deep dive into Connecticut’s COVID data.
Click this link for the state’s COVID-19 information page.
Click this link for a Connecticut COVID-19 map.
Click here for information from the CDC.
Click here for press releases from The White House.
Click here for the Naugatuck Valley Health District’s webpage.
Click here to read a CDC website on COVID rumors.
Click this link to read a story about a new study attempting to explain why people embrace conspiracy theories.
Click here for the Sept. 29 COVID report from the NVHD.
Click here for the Sept. 28 report from the NVHD.
Click here for the Sept. 25 report from the NVHD.
Click here for the Sept. 24 report from the NVHD.
