Mass. Confirms 1,362 New COVID Cases, 15 More Deaths

Massachusetts health officials reported another 1,362 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 15 new deaths Wednesday.

The report pushed the state's number of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 721,537 since the start of the pandemic and its death toll to 17,936.

Massachusetts' COVID metrics, tracked on the Department of Public Health's interactive coronavirus dashboard, dashboard, are far lower than they were in spring, and while all of the major ones have risen from their lowest points, some have dipped in recent weeks.

Massachusetts' seven-day average of positive tests ticked up to 2.38% Wednesday. It was once above 30%, but had dropped under 0.5% until the delta variant began surging in the state.

The number of patients in Massachusetts hospitals with confirmed COVID-19 cases rose to 622; the figure was once nearly 4,000, but averaged under 85 at one point in July. Of those currently hospitalized, 164 are fully vaccinated, 167 are in intensive care units and 93 are intubated.

Nearly 9.3 million vaccine doses have been administered in Massachusetts. That includes more than 4.7 million first shots and above 4.2 million second shots of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. There have been more than 304,000 doses of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine administered.

Health officials on Wednesday reported that a total of 4,534,825 Massachusetts residents have been fully vaccinated.