Massachusetts health officials on Saturday announced that there are 550 new cases of coronavirus in the state and 21 more deaths related to the virus.
Saturday’s new cases are based on 12,395 molecular tests. The seven-day, weighted average of positive tests is 1.3%, according to data from the state Department of Public Health. In August and September, that rate was at a low of 0.8%.
Currently, 500 people are hospitalized with coronavirus, with 88 in the intensive care unit.
So far during the pandemic, Massachusetts has seen at least 139,903 cases of the virus and 9,503 related deaths. Of those who have died, 98.2% had underlying health conditions, according to the department.
A total of 5,088,797 molecular tests have been administered to 2,499,045 people in Massachusetts.
On Friday, DPH announced the state was adjusting its metric to determine which states are considered low-risk for travel amid the pandemic and loosened restrictions on California, Hawaii, New Jersey and Washington state.
As of this week, 63 communities in Massachusetts have been labeled at high risk for spread of the virus. Schools with students learning in-person or in a hybrid model this week reported 160 cases of the virus among student and school staff members from Oct. 8 to Oct. 14.
Boston Public Schools, among the high-risk communities, has delayed in-person return dates by one week because of coronavirus rates in the city.
With Halloween approaching, Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll on Friday said “this is not the year to come to Salem,” adding that while the city has seen fewer than average visitors this October, there are still too many people visiting the city’s restaurants and businesses.
Some Massachusetts towns and cities are banning trick-or-treating this Halloween, while others are allowing the tradition to continue with restrictions.
As of Saturday, here are the number of coronavirus cases in each Massachusetts county:
Barnstable County: 1,888
Berkshire County: 736
Bristol County: 10,919
Dukes County: 71
Essex County: 21,865
Franklin County: 434
Hampden County: 9,014
Hampshire County: 1,389
Middlesex County: 29,845
Nantucket County: 133
Norfolk County: 11,085
Plymouth County: 10,573
Suffolk County: 26,250
Worcester County: 15,412
Unknown location: 289
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