Trends in short
- As of February 21, 43,628,092 people have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. Over 75 million doses of vaccines have been delivered to states, territories, and federal agencies that are charged with distribution.[1]
- The rate of new COVID-19 cases in the US has fallen 44% in the past two weeks, but daily case rates are still well above the case peaks during last spring and summer. Daily cases peaked around 31,000 in April and 70,000 in July. In the past week, the average number of new cases per day has been 66,393.[2]
- New coronavirus cases in Connecticut have declined in the past two weeks. The state is currently seeing an average of 823 new cases per day, down from 1,336 cases per day two weeks ago.[3]
- The number of daily COVID-19 cases is decreasing in Rhode Island, with an average of 332 new cases per day this week compared to 493 cases per two weeks ago.[4]
International case numbers
- 111,528,650 COVID-19 diagnosed cases worldwide; 2,468,785 deaths; 62,903,843 recovered.[5] More than 205 million doses of vaccines have been administered in 92 countries.[6]
- The United States continues to have the highest number of reported COVID-19 cases at 28,135,045. India has the second highest number of reported cases with 11,005,850, Brazil third with 10,168,174 cases, and Russia fourth with 4,130,447 cases.[7]
- South Africa has halted COVID-19 vaccination after initial findings that suggest the Astra-Zeneca one-shot vaccine is not very effective against the B.1.351 variant which was first detected in the country.[8]
- Comparatively fewer cases in India and Brazil are likely related to testing. In India, a faster but less reliable method of testing for COVID-19 has gained popularity and fewer tests are being conducted overall in comparison to other countries.[9] Similarly, case numbers are expected to actually be much higher than reported in Brazil but testing lags far behind the rate of testing in other countries.[10]
- The new B.1.1.7 variant of COVID-19 first discovered in the United Kingdom has now been detected in various countries throughout the world, including the US.[11] Early studies suggest that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is effective against the variant.[12]
- Other COVID-19 variants have been identified in South Africa, Nigeria, and Brazil. None of the variants appear to cause more severe illness although they do spread more easily and may cause reinfection among people who have already contracted COVID-19.[13]
Distribution of new coronavirus cases and deaths worldwide each week (from The World Health Organization COVID-19 Weekly Situation Update, as of 1/14/2021).[14]
US National case numbers
- 28,135,045 cases of coronavirus confirmed by lab tests, more than 500,000 deaths, and more than 12,000,000 recovered cases. 340,620,767 total tests have been conducted.[15]
- 43,628,092 people have received at least one dose and 18,865,319 people have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.[16]
- The states with the highest rate of cases per 100,000 people in the country are currently Iowa, South Carolina, New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. Iowa, which has 137 cases per 100,000 people in the state, is currently seeing an average of 4,324 new COVID-19 cases per day.[17]
- December saw the highest number of COVID-19-related deaths in the United States, surpassing those in April. 57,638 people in America died, an average of 2,506 deaths per day compared to an average of 1,842 deaths per day in April at the beginning of the pandemic.[18]
Risk in population
COVID-19 deaths reported to National Center for Health Statistics as of February 17, 2021[19]
| Age group | Total number of deaths | Percentage of reported deaths |
| 0-24 | 788 | 0.17% |
| 25-44 | 10,633 | 2.31% |
| 45-54 | 21,251 | 4.62% |
| 55-64 | 54,153 | 11.77% |
| 65-74 | 99,019 | 21.51% |
| 75+ | 274,409 | 59.62% |
Provisional Death Counts for COVID-19 by Demographic Characteristics as of February 17, 2021[20]
| Population Total | |
| Female | 45.54% |
| Male | 54.46% |
| White | 40.40% |
| Black | 13.50% |
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 0.40% |
| Asian | 9.90% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 0.20% |
| Hispanic | 33.60% |
| Other | 2.10% |
Known cases in Connecticut (call 211 or text “CTCOVID” to 898211 for information)
- As of February 22, 2021 there were 275,334 confirmed and probable cases (+15,962 from February 4), 500 hospitalizations (-327 from February 4), and 7,562 deaths (+348 from February 4). 6,509,744 patients have been tested in the state with a 2.58% daily positivity rate, the lowest it has been since late October.[21]
- Confirmed and probable cumulative cases by county[22]
- Fairfield County: 78,803 cases, 2,034 deaths
- Hartford County: 69,078 cases, 2,258 deaths
- Litchfield County: 10,917 cases, 272 deaths
- Middlesex County: 10,212 cases, 340 deaths
- New Haven County: 69,832 cases, 1,905 deaths
- New London County: 18,791 cases, 405 deaths
- Tolland County: 7,673 cases, 161 deaths
- Windham County: 9,081 cases, 178 deaths
Cumulative Cases and Deaths in CT with Percent Increase from Previous Reporting Period by County
| County | Feb. 22 | Feb. 4 | Jan. 22 | Jan. 4 | Dec. 17 | Dec. 8 |
| Fairfield Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 78,803 (5.9) 2,034 (4.5) | 74,404 (7.7) 1,947 (3.2) | 69,065 (17.1) 1,886 (7.5) | 58,959 (16.5) 1,755 (7.8) | 50,614 (12.5) 1,628 (3.2) | 44,980 (27.5) 1,577 (6.8) |
| Hartford Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 69,078 (5.5) 2,258 (3.7) | 65,496 (9.1) 2,178 (6.3) | 60,027 (21.1) 2,048 (7.8) | 49,560 (22.0) 1,900 (9.6) | 40,611 (17.7) 1,733 (4.1) | 34,516 (30.6) 1,664 (6.0) |
| Litchfield Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 10,917 (6.4) 272 (5.0) | 10,256 (9.2) 259 (5.3) | 9,391 (19.1) 246 (6.0) | 7,885 (22.0) 232 (13.2) | 6,515 (17.7) 205 (12.6) | 5,569 (44.5) 182 (13.8) |
| Middlesex Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 10,212 (6.9) 340 (4.6) | 9,549 (9.6) 325 (5.9) | 8,712 (23.6) 307 (19.0) | 7,047 (31.3) 258 (13.2) | 5,367 (18.4) 228 (6.0) | 4,534 (35.0) 215 (7.5) |
| New Haven Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 69,832 (6.6) 1,905 (4.7) | 65,488 (9.0) 1,820 (4.7) | 60,085 (19.5) 1,738 (9.7) | 50,290 (20.5) 1,584 (11.2) | 41,723 (16.8) 1,425 (6.7) | 35,720 (34.6) 1,336 (11.1) |
| New London Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 18,791 (6.8) 405 (7.7) | 17,587 (12.1) 376 (9.6) | 15,684 (35.0) 343 (29.9) | 11,616 (29.9) 264 (25.1) | 8,940 (21.9) 211 (11.6) | 7,335 (31.2) 189 (16.0) |
| Tolland Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 7,673 (7.1) 161 (10.3) | 7,163 (11.5) 146 (15.9) | 6,422 (22.9) 126 (11.5) | 5,225 (24.5) 113 (13.0) | 4,197 (17.0) 100 (16.3) | 3,588 (27.1) 86 (19.4) |
| Windham Cases (% increase) Deaths (% increase) | 9,081 (6.0) 178 (14.8) | 8,571 (12.2) 155 (29.2) | 7,642 (34.6) 120 (39.5) | 5,676 (36.7) 86 (68.6) | 4,153 (26.2) 51 (41.7) | 3,290 (42.2) 36 (33.3) |
Connecticut Cumulative Statistics by Month for Age and Race/Ethnicity
| COVID Cases (Deaths) by Age | Feb. 21 | Feb. 4 | Jan. 22 | Jan. 4 |
| 0 – 9 cases (deaths) | 14,905 (2) | 13,690 (2) | 12,049 (1) | 9,264 (1) |
| 10 – 19 cases (deaths) | 29,269 (3) | 27,065 (3) | 24,331 (1) | 19,142 (1) |
| 20 – 29 cases (deaths) | 46,977 (9) | 44,256 (7) | 40,725 (6) | 33,520 (6) |
| 30 – 39 cases (deaths) | 42,253 (36) | 39,838 (33) | 36,634 (32) | 30,471 (29) |
| 40 – 49 cases (deaths) | 38,496 (111) | 36,326 (103) | 33,398 (95) | 27,560 (87) |
| 50 – 59 cases (deaths) | 42,505 (373) | 40,147 (349) | 36,783 (323) | 30,580 (280) |
| 60 – 69 cases (deaths) | 29,318 (947) | 27,714 (903) | 25,529 (858) | 21,494 (781) |
| 70 – 79 cases (deaths) | 15,902 (1,691) | 15,120 (1,612) | 14,022 (1,523) | 12,058 (1,364) |
| 80+ cases (deaths) | 15,593 (4,390) | 15,145 (4,202) | 14,293 (3,980) | 12,824 (3,642) |
| COVID Cases (Deaths) by Race/Ethnicity | ||||
| Hispanic cases (deaths) | 40,391 (757) | 38,252 (711) | 36,003 (664) | 32,285 (600) |
| American Indian or Alaskan Native cases (deaths) | 388 (3) | 382 (3) | 353 (3) | 313 (3) |
| Asian or Pacific Islander cases (deaths) | 2,835 (82) | 2,632 (81) | 2,408 (78) | 2,085 (71) |
| Black cases (deaths) | 18,884 (897) | 17,851 (872) | 16,504 (851) | 14,472 (802) |
| Multiracial cases (deaths) | 16,392 (320) | 14,349 (263) | 12,035 (188) | 7,736 (94) |
| Other cases (deaths) | 14,750 (38) | 13,630 (34) | 12,046 (32) | 9,047 (34) |
| White cases (deaths) | 80,842 (5,342) | 75,634 (5,135) | 69,352 (4,894) | 59,527 (4,493) |
| Unknown cases (deaths) | 100,852 (123) | 96,642 (115) | 89,114 (109) | 71,503 (95) |
- As of February 22nd, the Yale New Haven Health System currently has 210 hospitalized patients with a COVID-19 diagnosis, down from 313 last week. For context, at the height of the April peak in cases 750 patients were hospitalized.
- Yale New Haven Health Hospital currently has 104 patients, 31 of whom are in the ICU and 16 of whom are on ventilators. Greenwich Hospital currently has 27 patients, Westerly Hospital has 2, Bridgeport Hospital has 61, and Lawrence and Memorial Hospital has 16.
Connecticut developments
- In a major break from federal guidance, Governor Ned Lamont has announced that Connecticut will shift to an age-based COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Beginning March 1st, those aged 55-64 may sign up followed by those aged 45-54 on March 22, aged 35-44 on April 12th, and aged 16-34 on May 3rd. Previously, those with underlying medical conditions and essential workers would have been the next group to become eligible for vaccinations. However, school staff will still be given priority with special clinics for educational staff opening March 1st.[23]
- Professor Gregg Gonsalves of the Yale School of Public Health has criticized Connecticut’s new vaccine strategy, as essential workers and those with comorbidities will no longer necessarily be next in line for vaccination. Professor Gonsalves recommends a strategy that balances age-based prioritization with strategies that will allow some of the state’s residents that are also vulnerable to COVID-19 to be vaccinated.[24]
- Connecticut has one of the highest rates of vaccination with 16.7% of residents receiving one dose and 7.8% receiving both doses. Almost 70% of those aged 75+ have received their first dose and 37% of those aged 65+.[25]
Known cases in Rhode Island (call 401-222-8022 for information)
As of February 19, 2021[26]
- 123,145 confirmed cumulative cases (+4,041 from 2/8/21; a 3.39% increase in the two-week period)
- 2,853,784 total tests conducted (+185,934 from 2/8/21)
- 138,673 people have received the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine (+51,923 from 2/8/21)
- 60,776 people have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine (+24,779 from 2/8/21)
- 177 patients currently hospitalized (-64 from 2/8/21)
- 29 patients currently in ICU (-13 from 2/8/21)
- 2,376 deaths in the state (+140 from 2/8/21)
Rhode Island developments
- Rhode Island is continuing to ease some of its COVID-19 restrictions. Bar areas in restaurants are now open with 4-person maximums per table along with maximum stay time restrictions and curfews. Houses of worship are now able to accommodate up to 40% of their in-person capacity, up to 125 people total, with social distancing measures in place.[27]
- All Rhode Island residents 65 and older are now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Many eligible residents are reporting difficulty with scheduling an appointment due to demand and the state’s slow roll out of vaccine distribution.[28]
- Although it has been a leader in COVID-19 testing, Rhode Island is falling behind most other states in vaccine distribution. The state attributes the slow administration of COVID-19 vaccines is due to the state only receiving about 16,000 doses per week and because health care workers and seniors in nursing homes were prioritized in the first wave of vaccination. Incoming Governor Daniel McKee has pledged to increase the pace of vaccination administration.[29]
CovidTracker 