The COVID-19 positivity rate in Connecticut has increased to 3%, the highest it has been since June.
“We haven’t had 3 percent infection rate, 3 percent of all the people tested testing positive, going back to June,” Gov. Ned Lamont said during a news conference on Tuesday.
The state was a COVID-19 hot spot early in the pandemic and the governor issued several executive orders that closed many businesses in an effort to get the pandemic under control.
The state then launched a plan to reopen in phases and Connecticut is now in Phase Three except for communities with a higher percentage of COVID-19 positivity that opted to return back to Phase 2.
On Tuesday, 14,653 new tests were reported, with 434 coming back positive. There are 217 patients currently hospitalized, a net increase of 22 from Monday. Five more people have died from COVID-19, bringing the state's death toll to 4,559.
Connecticut's coronavirus positivity rate was 2.4% on Friday, but declined over the weekend to 1.7%.
The U.S. COVID-19 positivity rate stands at about 5.3%.
Lamont said an additional 22 people have been hospitalized due to COVID-19.
"I just urge each and every one of you, when you see these sobering numbers on the infection rate and the hospitalizations, be careful, stay disciplined, hang with us a little bit longer. We are going to through this. We're going to get through it together," Lamont said.
The governors of Connecticut, New York and New Jersey issued instituted a travel advisory months ago to keep the infection positivity rates low in the region. Connecticut has required people traveling here from COVID-19 hotspots or returning from one of then to quarantine for two weeks or present a negative COVID-19 test.
Cuomo said he is open to limiting non-essential tri-state travel and will have more to say on that, after speaking with Lamont and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, on Wednesday.
