Covid-19 Information
Sources: CT Department of Public Health Get the data; District 2 Councilwoman Kaitlin Shake; Hartford Health Care; Connecticut Hospital Association
Since April 2021, Stratford continues to have one of the lowest fully vaccinated rates in all of Fairfield County. The consequence of low vaccination and the Delta variant is our high community transmission rate.
Here in Stratford since early August our community transmission rate has been classified as High Risk designating us as a RED ZONE. The CDC, CT DPH, and World Health Organization recommend that vaccinated and unvaccinated people wear a mask when in indoor settings.
However here in Stratford the Mayor only reinstated a mask mandate for public buildings and excluded businesses—therefore ignoring public health official’s recommendations.
The science and data is clear: getting vaccinated and wearing a face mask will help save your life and slow the spread of COVID-19 as recommended for communities classified in substantial or high risk transmission zones. We all have to do our part to slow the spread and protect one another.
There is overwhelming evidence that by not having a mask mandate in Stratford is costing us. State Comptroller Kevin Lembo warned that the “lingering uncertainty” surrounding the fast-spreading COVID-19 Delta variant is impacting Connecticut’s economy and “jeopardizing the progress made over the last few months.” He said concerns about the variant and rising infection and hospitalization rates have led to modest drops in consumer spending and consumer confidence.
Stratford
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 65.70%
Fully Vaccinated: 60.83%
Population: 51,849
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Milford
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 69.32%
Fully Vaccinated: 65.95%
Population: 54,747
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Bridgeport
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 57.80%
Fully Vaccinated: 50.59%
Population: 144,399
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Fairfield
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 70.84%
Fully Vaccinated: 66.70%
Population: 62,045
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Westport
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 74.71%
Fully Vaccinated: 69.58%
Population: 28,491
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Trumbull
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 75.93%
Fully Vaccinated: 71.52%
Population: 35,673
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
Weston
Total 1st Dose Coverage: 75.58%
Fully Vaccinated: 71.14%
Population: 10,252
Vaccination data as of Sep. 15
And for all of those who continue to protest and argue about unmasking children, here’s a chilling statistic from the CT Department of Health:
In mid-August, the state had more than 65,000 child cases. Each week, there have been roughly 1,000 new infections. That brings the number of Covid-19 cases in Connecticut kids to more than 70,000 children right now.
Those infected kids have consistently made up around 18.5% of total Covid-19 cases in the state.
According to the latest data from the Connecticut Department of Public Health, a total of five children (Age 0-19) have died during the pandemic.
This spike comes after a decline in child cases in early summer.
“It’s not much of a surprise. We were seeing already an increase in cases in the pediatric population even before school started, and it really is all being driven by the Delta variant,” Dr. Melissa Held, pediatric infectious disease specialist and dean for Medical Student Affairs at UConn, said.
Many parents are wondering when the vaccine will be ready for their kids, especially as schools reopen.
“The transmission in schools is probably still very low as long as there are preventative measures being taken, including continued mask-wearing,” Held said. “Really it’s not until we get you know, into the 80%, maybe higher percent of coverage in our communities, that we’re going to start to see a slower rate of spread.”
“Thankfully, we have had no deaths here at Yale New Haven Health among any of our pediatric patients, but we have admitted more than 180 patients under the age of 18 … so this is not a trivial disease,” said Dr. Thomas Balcezak, Chief Clinical Officer for Yale New Haven Health.
“Does [mask-wearing] impede airflow? I think it does, but I think it’s minimal,” he said. “Is it uncomfortable? Sure, to some people. Is there a medical reason to not wear a mask? There are no contraindications to wearing a mask.”
As for the issue of the effectiveness of masks in slowing the spread of coronavirus, there is little debate in the medical community.
Balcezak said there is “no doubt about the science behind wearing masks,” and that more than a dozen studies have demonstrated that wearing masks in crowds prevents COVID-19 transmission.
COVID-19 Breakthrough Cases In CT (Data as of 09/23/2021
| Age Groups | # (%) Cases | # (%) Deaths |
| <=15 | 167 (1.3%) | |
| 16-24 | 1452 (11.5%) | |
| 25-34 | 1920 (15.2%) | |
| 35-44 | 1998 (15.8%) | 1 (1%) |
| 45-54 | 2115 (16.7%) | 2 (2%) |
| 55-64 | 2192 (17.4%) | 8 (8.2%) |
| 65-74 | 1469 (11.6%) | 9 (9.2%) |
| 75 | 1314 (10.4%) | 78 (79.6%) |
| TOTAL | 12627 | 98 |
My Tax Dollars, Your Tax Dollars
The estimated “preventable cost” of treating unvaccinated adults for COVID-19 in Connecticut’s 27 acute care hospitals was $4.2 million for June and $5.3 million for July, according to a new analysis by the Connecticut Hospital Association.
The final tally could be higher, however. The Connecticut Hospital Association, which provided the figures, relied on a national model developed by KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation) and the Peterson Center on Healthcare that assumed the approximate cost is $20,000 per COVID-related admission.
“I think it serves as sort of a directional data point to show there is just an enormous strain on the system, generally, for COVID,” said Paul Kidwell, Senior Vice President for Policy at the Connecticut Hospital Association, who noted how the disease has greatly impacted families, hospital staff and hospital expenses. “Also, it is an important piece of data to show that it’s really important that individuals who are eligible to be vaccinated get vaccinated because the vaccines have been proven very effective in keeping individuals out of the hospital.”
