Massachusetts cities hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic are showing 14-day positivity rates well above the state average, according to new data that prompted the Baker administration to step up testing in many of those communities.
See city and town statistics
The state’s 14-day positivity rate was 2.25% on Wednesday. In comparison, Chelsea – which has the highest cumulative infection rate in the state since January of 7,846 per 100,000 residents – reported a 7.46% positivity. Lawrence, which has the third highest infection rate of 4,127, recorded a rate of 7.05%.
“We are going in the right direction. We are going in the right direction more slowly than the rest of the state, “said Mayor Daniel Rivera.
Lawrence and Chelsea join Everett, Fall River, Lowell, Lynn, Marlboro and New Bedford to get a test push from the state in the coming month. While those communities represent 9% of the state’s population, they accounted for 27% of COVID-19 infections detected in the past two weeks, said Governor Charlie Baker. Testing in these municipalities has also decreased by 39% since late April.
Rivera, who at one point was aiming to swab 1,000 a day in his city, criticized the decline in tests to “a false sense of security” as new infections remain low in Massachusetts and “early stigma” about how much he has been. difficult to test.
To Everett, who recorded a two-week positivity rate of 4.47%, Mayor Carlo DeMaria said: “The more tests are performed, the more we can stop spreading.”
But DeMaria attributed concerns about Everett’s number in part to the state’s method of calculating infection rates, stating that while his city has 1,770 cases, “we are classified as one of the most vulnerable communities due to the per capita approach.”
As Baker tries to increase testing, lower demand has led to the closure of some sites, including the Cambridge Health Alliance locations in Cambridge and Malden. In Brockton, which has the second highest cumulative infection rate of 4,330 and a 14-day positivity rate of 4.87%, Mayor Robert Sullivan said high school startup tests were downsized to three half-days a week.
“Of course it is necessary, but the trend is positive,” said Sullivan.
About 80 communities have positivity rates above the state average. The highest were Russell with 11.54%, Granville with 9.38% and Monterey with 9.09%, all small towns in western Massachusetts with only a handful of cases each, according to the data. Of the other cities affected by further testing, Fall River posted a positivity rate of 6.17%, New Bedford 5.7%, Lynn 4.81%, Lowell 4.1% and Marlborough 2.7% .
