COVID In Maryland: State Positivity Rate Continues To Climb Above 9%, Hospitalizations Rising; Vaccination Rate Just Over 1% Of Population
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) — Maryland's positivity rate continues to climb as over 2,400 new cases and 33 new COVID-19 related deaths are reported Monday morning, state health officials say.
LATEST: Over 1,900 New Cases, 54 More Deaths Reported
A total of 2,483 new cases were added to the state, bringing the total number to 287,802 since the pandemic began. There have now been 5,859 Marylanders who have died from the virus.
Hospitalizations went up by 42, now at 1,751. Of those, 418 are in ICU beds and 1,333 are in acute care. The statewide positivity rate went up 0.32%, now at 9.47%.
CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES:
- TIMELINE: Coronavirus In Maryland, Tracking The Spread
- Coronavirus Resources: How To Get Help In Maryland
- Latest coronavirus stories from WJZ
- Latest CDC Guidelines
Since the pandemic began, 5,869,617 coronavirus tests have been administered in the state. A total of 65,692 vaccinations have been administered as of Monday morning, up 2,112 in the last 24 hours. The Baltimore Metropolitan area has the highest amount of vaccinations so far, with 35,318 vaccinated in the area.
More public schools are online only for now because of climbing positivity rates.
In Worcester County, which includes Ocean City, the positivity rate is above 16%. Schools canceled the planned start of small group in-person classes. Frederick County, meanwhile, has now moved all learning online.
"The metrics are devastating at this point," Daryl Boffman of Frederick County's school system told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren. "Out of concern for the safety of our faculty and staff, we're saying, 'Let's back off a little bit.'"
Frederick County Public Schools is suspending small group instruction and winter sports practices following worsening health metrics in the county. All instruction will be virtual.
— FCPS-MD (@FCPSMaryland) January 3, 2021
These changes will take effect Monday, January 4.
MORE DETAILS: https://t.co/Fd9Tq59dS7
While cases rise, vaccine rollout is slow. Only 1.28% of people in the Baltimore region have been vaccinated.
Just under one percent of the population in western Maryland has been inoculated. That figure is 1.5% on the Eastern Shore and .58% in Maryland's D.C. suburbs.
Statewide, 65,692 people had been vaccinated as of Monday, 1.09% of the state's population. Both the governor and Baltimore's mayor will address vaccine distribution at press conferences scheduled for Tuesday.
Last week, research from Bloomberg showed Maryland used the smallest percentage of allotted vaccines of any state in the country.
Also Monday, Howard County began vaccinating first responders.
.@HoCoHealth has begun to distribute #COVID19 vaccine 1st dose to healthcare providers & 1st responders. If u r a #HoCoMD healthcare provider w/ direct patient care responsibilities, pls cmplt this short ?naire: https://t.co/xkbTFJPLao, to assist HCHD in its vaccination process. https://t.co/080rdUOdB2
— Howard County Gov't (@HoCoGov) January 4, 2021
In Montgomery County, Holy Cross Health said employees shared a link meant only for them, leading family, friends and others to register for vaccination appointments when they were not eligible. Those appointments have now been canceled.
An internal email about COVID-19 vaccination opportunities for staff only was broadly shared in the community leading to several external appointments that had to be canceled. Learn more: https://t.co/yTnHeOrWcs. pic.twitter.com/C7qb09cYaU
— Holy Cross Health (@holycrosshealth) January 3, 2021
There is still uncertainty for many businesses.
Baltimore's Mount Washington Tavern closed Monday and won't reopen until the city's indoor dining ban is lifted. The owners said they cannot sustain their business on carryout alone.
Here's a breakdown of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Maryland (probable deaths are listed with an asterisk):
By County
County | Cases | Deaths | |
Allegany | 5,524 | (155) | 0* |
Anne Arundel | 25,629 | (357) | 13* |
Baltimore City | 32,503 | (703) | 21* |
Baltimore County | 39,851 | (925) | 29* |
Calvert | 2,378 | (45) | 1* |
Caroline | 1,378 | (10) | 0* |
Carroll | 5,392 | (166) | 5* |
Cecil | 3,744 | (76) | 2* |
Charles | 6,288 | (128) | 1* |
Dorchester | 1,438 | (24) | 0* |
Frederick | 12,054 | (190) | 8* |
Garrett | 1,515 | (52) | 1* |
Harford | 8,957 | (167) | 4* |
Howard | 11,657 | (175) | 6* |
Kent | 783 | (26) | 2* |
Montgomery | 48,089 | (1,097) | 43* |
Prince George's | 56,391 | (1,073) | 27* |
Queen Anne's | 1,745 | (27) | 1* |
Somerset | 1,848 | (22) | 0* |
St. Mary's | 3,413 | (89) | 0* |
Talbot | 1,247 | (8) | 0* |
Washington | 8,766 | (155) | 2* |
Wicomico | 4,896 | (80) | 0* |
Worcester | 2,316 | (49) | 1* |
Data not available | 0 | (60) | 1* |
By Age Range and Gender
Age/Gender | Cases | Deaths | |
0-9 | 13,202 | (1) | 0* |
10-19 | 26,159 | (4) | 1* |
20-29 | 53,055 | (27) | 1* |
30-39 | 50,500 | (63) | 6* |
40-49 | 44,481 | (176) | 4* |
50-59 | 43,330 | (455) | 20* |
60-69 | 29,009 | (911) | 17* |
70-79 | 16,633 | (1,480) | 30* |
80+ | 11,433 | (2,740) | 89* |
Data not available | 0 | (2) | 0* |
Female | 151,053 | (2,829) | 82* |
Male | 136,749 | (3,030) | 86* |
By Race and Ethnicity
Race/Ethnicity | Cases | Deaths | |
African-American (NH) | 82,912 | (2,143) | 60* |
Asian (NH) | 6,019 | (188) | 7* |
White (NH) | 94,324 | (2,823) | 86* |
Hispanic | 49,403 | (575) | 14* |
Other (NH) | 13,280 | (63) | 0* |
Data not available | 41,864 | (67) | 1* |
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.