The state reported eight new COVID-19 cases in Harvard for the week ending June 18, one fewer than reported the previous week, bringing the town’s cumulative number of state-reported cases since the pandemic began to 704. Testing at the schools is over for the year.
The Board of Health told the Press that the Food and Drug Administration has authorized a three-month shelf-life extension for all iHealth COVID-19 tests with expiration dates on or before Sept. 29, 2022. Other test brands may also be extending expiration dates; check the manufacturer’s website for further information.
Between June 21 and June 27, the state reported 9,873 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, up from 8,834 new cases the previous week. On June 27, there were 501 hospitalizations reported, 32 more than a week earlier; the number of ICU patients decreased from 53 to 43 during the week ending June 27. The state reported 68 deaths during that same week, 25 more than the previous week.
The percentage of the 5,373 Harvard residents eligible for the vaccine (5 and older) and fully vaccinated increased from 86.9% to 87% over the week ending June 21; the partially vaccinated percentage increased from 9.2% to 9.3% that same week. For the week ending June 21, the total number of residents with at least one booster increased by 17 and is currently 3,274. Vaccination numbers in the state report for Harvard do not include Devens residents or inmates at its Federal Medical Center.
On June 28 the Federal Bureau of Prisons website reported one new COVID-19 case among inmates at the Federal Medical Center in Devens after eight weeks in a row of no cases. There were no cases among staff, one fewer than last week. Since the pandemic began, 372 of the current inmates and 204 staff have recovered from COVID-19; 13 inmates died of the virus.
Note that case numbers reported by the state do not include people who tested positive only with an at-home test.
