For Immediate Release: 5/7/2021 4:45 pm
The City of Worcester has released the following COVID-19 update for May 7:
As of Friday, May 7 there are 23,472 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in the City of Worcester. This is an increase of 170 cases from Friday, April 30. By contrast, there were 203 new cases last week.
Positive case counts in surrounding towns: Shrewsbury: 2,942 (increase of 11 from last Friday); Holden: 1,448 (increase of 12 from last Friday); Grafton: 1,172 (increase of 16 from last Friday)
All combined medical facilities of Saint Vincent Hospital and UMass Memorial Health Care had 52 (increase of 3 from last week) total COVID-positive in-patients and 16 (decrease of 1 from Tuesday) total COVID-positive ICU patients. To date, their facilities have had 723 (increase of 3 from Tuesday) total COVID-related deaths.
To date, there have been 422 deaths of Worcester residents from COVID-19.
According to the state Department of Public Health, a combined total of 143,374 doses (increase of 11,892 from last week) have been administered for Worcester. That includes 86,730 (about 47 percent of the total population) first doses and 56,644 (roughly 31 percent of the total population) second doses.
A total of 12,550 vaccination doses (1,103 more since the last report) have been administered through the City’s Mobile Vaccination Clinics to 8,742 individuals (does not include May 6 clinics). Of those vaccinations, 5,989 first doses, 3,808 second doses, and 2,753 single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccines have been administered.
As of Thursday, May 6, 74,431 doses had been administered through the Regional Vaccination site at Worcester State University.
The City of Worcester’s Department of Health & Human Services and Division of Public Health are working closely with community partners to administer vaccinations to isolated populations through Mobile Vaccine Equity Clinics and the Homebound Vaccination Program.
Their efforts are in addition to those of other agencies across the City that are administering vaccines, including the Regional Collaborative Site at Worcester State University, and a number of pharmacies and health centers.
Many appointments are now available at these sites. While some require appointments, no appointments are necessary for the City’s Walk-In Mobile Equity Clinics. Upcoming clinics include:
Do you qualify for Equity Clinics? You must meet one of the following criteria
Find more information about the COVID-19 virus, and the City’s vaccination efforts, including the latest Mobile Vaccination Clinics, and more by visiting www.worcesterma.gov/coronavirus/vaccination.
The Massachusetts Homebound Vaccination Program is available for homebound individuals who are unable to leave their home to get to a vaccination site, even with assistance. These individuals require either ambulance or two-person assistance leaving the home, are not able to leave the home for medical appointments under normal circumstances, or have considerable difficulty and/or require significant support to leave the home for medical appointments. For a screening and to be connected to resources to schedule a homebound vaccination, call the Homebound Vaccination Program Central Intake Line at 1-833-983-0485, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For additional information about homebound vaccinations, visit www.worcesterma.gov/coronavirus/vaccination.
Free, walk-in COVID-19 testing offered by UMass Memorial Health Care will be available next week on Monday, May 10, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Thursday, May 13, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Mercantile Center, 201 Commercial St., Worcester (intersection of Commercial and Mechanic streets). For more locations around the state, visit www.mass.gov./info-details/stop-the-spread.
With COVID-19 trends in the state continuing to show positive signs, the Field Hospital at the DCU Center will be demobilized. The process is expected to take about two weeks. The facility was first set up in April 2020, decommissioned in late May, and reopened in December last year amid a second wave. It had remained unused since March, but available in the event of another surge.
A total of 572 calls were made to seniors this week. The calls are a combination of wellness checks, assisting with vaccination appointments, and helping with other issues, such as accessing food, benefits and housing. Elder Services of Worcester Area delivered 5,610 meals to seniors.
The City’s Division of Parks & Recreation has finished installing hoops and rims, and has announced that all basketball courts are now open and operational. Volleyball courts are also open.
The State is now moving toward more targeted, community-based options, such as the Mobile Clinics Worcester has been implementing. This new phase of vaccination efforts includes doubling vaccine allocations to the State’s 20 most disproportionately impacted communities, including Worcester.
Gov. Charlie Baker this week announced that six of the state’s seven Mass Vaccination Sites will offer walk-up testing starting on Monday, May 10. The sites include the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, the DoubleTree Hotel in Danvers, the former Circuit City in Dartmouth, the Natick Mall and Eastfield Mall in Springfield. For hours and details, visit vaxfinder.mass.gov. The move comes on the heels of the Governor’s previous announcement that the State would transition from or ramp down its seven Mass Vaccination Sites. Four of them – Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, the Hynes Convention Center, Double Tree In and Natick Mall – are slated to close by the end of June. Appointments for some sites will also be available at vaxfinder.mass.gov or by calling 211.
In anticipation that the Centers for Disease Control may authorize vaccines for children ages 12-15, the State will keep pre-registration available for parents who may want to bring kids to a mass vaccination site. More details will be announced when the CDC determines its next steps.
As announced last week, the State on Monday, May 10 will advance to Phase 4, Step 2 of its Reopening plan for some industries. Large venues such as indoor and outdoor stadiums and ballparks, including Polar Park, which hosts its Home Opener on Tuesday, May 11, will allowed to increase capacity from 12 percent to 25 percent. Some outdoor industries, including amusement, theme and outdoor water parks, will be allowed to operate at 50 percent capacity after submitting plans to the State Department of Public Health. Road races and other large, outdoor organized amateur or professional group athletic events can take place with staggered starts after submitting safety plans to a local board of health or State DPH. Youth and adult amateur sports tournaments will be allowed for moderate- and high-risk sports. Singing will also be permitted indoors, with strict distancing requirements at performance venues, restaurants, event venues and other businesses.
