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WESTFORD — Westford’s coronavirus cases have remained steady week over week according to data published by the Department of Public Health on Thursday.
Between Sept. 25 and Oct. 8, 48 positive cases have been reported in Westford. In those two weeks, Westford reported 52 total positive tests, with 9.87% of 527 of tests returning positive, an increase from 8.9% reported on Sept. 29.
96,579 total tests have been administered in Westford since the pandemic began.
A total of 5,034 total cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Westford as of Oct. 13. The state has reported over 1.89 million total cases of COVID-19. The state has reported 16,638 cases in the last two weeks. 7.87% of the total 233,030 tests administered, or 18,344 tests, have returned positive.
As of Oct. 11, 84 of the 100 intensive care unit beds remain occupied in Northeastern Massachusetts, while 946 of the 963 medical and surgical beds remain occupied in the region.
As of Oct. 13, Middlesex County has reported 3,530 positive cases in the last two week period between Sept. 25 and Oct. 8. 7.32%, or 3,878 of 52,988 total tests returned positive in the county.
In the last two weeks, Middlesex County has reported 30 confirmed and probable deaths, while the state has reported 156 confirmed and probable deaths.
Updated booster shots available, expected for children by mid-October
On Aug. 31, the Food and Drug Administration authorized an updated booster to target the currently circulating variants of the virus.
The United States government has ordered over 170 million doses of the updated vaccines to be available this fall. Though the updated vaccines remain free, the Biden administration noted that Congress will have to approve additional funding for vaccines and tests to remain free beyond the short-term.
“Unfortunately, the timeline to make the transition has accelerated over the past six months without additional funds from Congress to support this work,” wrote Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell in an Aug. 30 post.
On Sept. 26, Pfizer submitted an application to the FDA seeking authorization of its updated bivalent COVID-19 booster for children between the ages of 5 and 11. This request comes days after Moderna submitted its request for authorization for its booster to be used in children as young as 6 years old.
Moderna’s booster shot is available for adults, while Pfizer’s shot is available for those 12 years old and up.
The Centers for Disease Control expects the bivalent vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech to be available for children aged 5-11 years and Moderna’s vaccine for those aged 6-17 years to be available by mid-October, pending FDA authorization.
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