Masks and temperature checks will likely be the norm for many U.S. school-going kids until a COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for children under age 12 (NurPhoto/Getty Images).
State health officials confirmed 4,197 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, down slightly from Wednesday’s tally of 4,391 new infections. But hospitalizations increased, as did the number of people in hospital intensive care wards.
Statewide, 2,118 people were hospitalized, up from 2,082 on Wednesday, according to data posted to the state Health Department’s pandemic tracking website. A total of 523 people in hospital intensive care wards, with 296 requiring a ventilator to survive, the data showed. That’s up from Wednesday’s tally of 506 people in intensive care, and 250 people on ventilators, the state data showed.
The new, confirmed infections brought the total number of positive cases to 1.33 million since the start of the pandemic. Officials also confirmed 52 new fatalities, for a total of 24,498 deaths since the start of the pandemic. That’s up from the 38 new deaths the Health Department reported on Wednesday.
The cumulative death rate per 100,ooo people has been rising steadily.
As of Wednesday, more than two-thirds (66.7 percent) of all adults, aged 18 and older, were fully vaccinated, the agency said in a statement.
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