As of Friday, Maryland’s daily average number of cases per 100,000 people is the fourth lowest among U.S. states and territories. It is the second lowest specifically among the 50 states, behind Connecticut, according to the New York Times.
Despite experiencing one of the lowest average case rates in the U.S., Maryland continues to feel the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Maryland has recorded more than 1,000 new daily COVID cases nearly every day for the past two weeks, except for the 974 cases confirmed on Tuesday, Sept. 21.
For the past month, Maryland has seen daily case numbers reach levels last seen in April.
As COVID-19 continues to spread through Maryland communities, one area of concern has been the statewide shortage of nurses.
Gov. Larry Hogan on Thursday announced new efforts to grow Maryland’s nursing workforce., including allowing nursing students and nurses with out-of-state licenses to provide care in Maryland.
Maryland has confirmed a total of 525,123 COVID-19 cases to date, including 8,339 cases reported since last Friday, Sept. 17.
Maryland’s seven-day average rate of positive tests currently sits at 4.28%.
Meanwhile, 4,135,296 Marylanders have tested negative for coronavirus.
The number of confirmed coronavirus-related deaths in Maryland rose by 111 in the past week, reaching 10,134 deaths on Friday.
There are also 228 Marylanders who are suspected to have died from COVID-19 to date.
As of Friday, 772 Marylanders are currently hospitalized due to coronavirus, including 587 in acute care and 185 in intensive care.
This time last week, there were 792 Marylanders hospitalized due to COVID-19.
All but three Maryland jurisdictions are experiencing high levels of coronavirus transmission as of Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported.
Since last Friday, Kent County’s coronavirus transmission levels dropped from high to substantial, while in contrast Carroll County’s levels rose from substantial to high.
Howard and Montgomery counties’ levels remained substantial. All other Maryland jurisdictions maintained their high levels of coronavirus transmission.
The CDC recommends that all people, regardless of vaccination status, wear a face mask indoors in areas of the country with substantial or high levels of coronavirus transmission.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky on Friday endorsed a CDC committee’s recommendation for the use of Pfizer booster shots in certain populations, including immunocompromised individuals and residents of long-term care facilities. Walensky also recommended administering booster shots to people in “high risk occupational and institutional settings.”
The CDC announcement follows the Food and Drug Administration’s authorization of Pfizer booster shots.
As of Friday, 63.946% of Marylanders age 12 and older who are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine are fully vaccinated with either a single-dose vaccine or both doses of a two-dose vaccine. Meanwhile, 69.871% of the eligible population have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.
A total of 3,865,944 Marylanders are now fully vaccinated.
Of Marylanders age 18 or older, about 83.1% have received at least one dose.
