Massachusetts Total Cases as of July 29 (weekly data)
Positive Statewide  671,644
Berkshire County  6,648
Deaths Statewide  17,678
Berkshire County deaths  290
Seven-Day Positive Test Rate   1.92
Number of Doses to Date  8,864,900
Residents Fully Vaccinated  4,339,778
www.getvaccinatedberkshires.org
 
July 29: The Berkshires has seen a rise in positive cases since the end of June after weeks of two or fewer cases a day. Positive cases took a dramatic drop — after 202 cases during the entire month of May, only 11 cases were reported from June 1 to 15. The uptick came toward the end of the following week, with 111 new cases as of July 29 with nearly 60 of those in the past two weeks, as well as two deaths. 
 
In the two weeks ending July 24, Adams and Pittsfield saw the highest number of positive cases at nine each; Great Barrington had 5, Lenox 7 and North Adams 6. Alford had the highest 14-day positivity rate at 20 percent but this indicated five tests and fewer than five positives. 
 
As of Thursday, the state had 671,711 total cases, and 3,204 more than last week. This is five times the number of cases reported in the third week in June and almost three times that of second week in July. The average for this past week is 400 a day compared to 75 at the end of June. The largest number of new cases are in the 20-39 age groups at about 1,240 and the average age is 35. There have been 33 deaths over the past week for a state total of 17,711. 
 
The state's seven-day positive average rate has climbed to 1.92 percent, more than twice what it was last week. The county's 14-day positive average rate is up at 0.87 percent and the state's is at 1.46 percent. More than 4.3 million people have been fully vaccinated and the county's rate is now 68 percent of eligible residents. More than 800,000 people eligible statewide have not received at least one dose.
 
Hospitalizations have also climbed to almost 200 again with 17 intubated. 
 
July 23: The number of cases continues to rise despite a majority of residents having been vaccinated. Berkshire County saw one death and 28 new cases over the past week; the state reported 2,603 cases and 23 deaths. The numbers are nearly double that from the week before of 16 and 1,395, respectively. 
 
Adams and North Adams both saw the most new cases -- six each -- in the two weeks ending July 17; all other communities had zero or less than five. The 14-day positivity rates remain low, although Savoy had a rate of 4.76 percent because of the low number of tests (21).
 
Hospitalizations remain fairly low across the state and BMC on Friday reported no inpatients but six were pending tests. The seven-day average positive test rate for the county was 0.57 percent and 0.88 percent for the state.
 
The front-page coronavirus box was being updated once a week but because of the rise in cases, that will now change to Mondays through Thursday, when the state releases information. The COVID-19 tracker is not being updated on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and those figures are being rolled into Monday. 
 
The box above will continue to be updated on Thursdays with totals to date. 
 
July 15: Both Adams and North Adams showed a spike in case counts over the past two weeks ending July 10, with Adams reporting five cases for a total of 358 and North Adams 13, for a total of 592. All other communities had counts of five or less. However, the 14-day positivity rate percentages were high for Florida (6.67), Hancock (12.5), North Adams (3.73), Savoy (4.35) and Stockbridge (4.17) largely because the numbers of tests taken during this time were low in comparison. 
 
There were 30 reported cases in Berkshire County between June 27 and July 10, with North Adams accounting for 43 percent of new cases. The number from the week ending July 15 was 16; for that state it was 1,395, or nearly three times that of the week before of 508. The state over the past week averaged 200 new cases a day compared 81 the last week of June. 
 
The total number of cases in the county since March 2020 is now 6,590 and the number of deaths has been at 288 since mid-June. The total number of cases statewide is 665,801 and deaths 17,655, for nine more deaths in the past week. 
 
The state's seven-day average positive rate has ticked up to 0.87 percent after being in the 0.30 range for several weeks. The county's 14-day average positive rate as of July 13 was 0.69 percent compared to the state's 0.51. 
 
There are about 100 people hospitalized and 18 intubated. BMC has no COVID-19 patients and four inpatients pending tests. The number of vaccine doses administered as of July 19 stands at 8,786,702 and the number of people fully vaccinated at 4.3 million. The state's population is about 6.9 million and the number 18 and older 4.9 million.
 
July 8: the seven-day average positive rate has risen to 0.47 percent after weeks in the low 0.30s or less. The average age of infection is 37 and more than 500 new cases were reported in the last week. 
 
There have been 664,406 cases statewide and 17,646 deaths, 13 in the last week. There have been a dozen new cases in Berkshire County since last week but no deaths.
 
North Adams had 12 new cases for the two weeks ending July 3. Most of these cases are linked to an outbreak at a local establishment. The next closest was Pittsfield with five. Both Hancock and Florida had high two-week percent averages (12.5 and 6.25, respectively) but had fewer than five positive cases each. North Adams had the next highest rate of 2.98 percent. The county's 14-day positivity average was 0.43 percent.
 
There are fewer than 100 patients and only nine who are intubated. The number of fully vaccinated individuals now stands at 4.25 million and more than 70 percent of residents have received at least one dose. 
 
July 1: There have been 11 new cases in the county over the past week including four reported Thursday for a total of 6,562. There have been no deaths in the past week. Sheffield continues with the highest case count of 5 and a 14-day average positive rate of 3.47 percent. Peru also has a rate higher than 1 percent, at 1.14. Eight communities, including North and Pittsfield, had fewer than five cases reported in the two weeks ending on June 26.
 
The state has had 420 new cases including 76 reported Thursday and 11 deaths, three of those reported Thursday. The state numbers now stand at 17,633 deaths and 663,898 cases. The seven-day average positive rate is 0.37 percent.
 
Hospitalizations remain at about 100 statewide and 11 patients are currently intubated. BMC has one patient on precautions and nine pending tests. The average age of people testing positive is 36 and the average age at death is 72.
 
National cases stand at 33,675,013 and deaths at 604,972. Globally, there have been 182,427,888 cases and 3,950,395 deaths. More than 3 trillion doses of vaccine have been administered. 
 
Pittsfield reports 57 percent of its residents fully vaccinated. There have been 8,636,025 doses of vaccine administered statewide and 4.2 million people are now fully vaccinated. 
 
June 24: Since our last update on June 15, there have been 14 new cases reported in Berkshire County, including one today, for a total of 6,551. There has been one death, bringing the toll to 288. Nine of the county's 32 communities have a 14-day positive average rate above zero, including Sheffield with the highest at 4.35 percent. This accounts for a spike of six cases between June 6 and June 19. Seven other communities had counts of less than five each, including Adams and Pittsfield. 
 
The five communities with the highest total case numbers as of June 19 were 352 for Adams, 461 for Great Barrington, 337 for Lee, 579 for North Adams and 3,002 for Pittsfield. 
 
The seven-day positive average rate for the state is 0.32 percent and the 14-day positive average rate for the county is 0.31 percent.
 
Since last week, there have been 568 new cases statewide and 36 deaths for totals of 663,478 and 17,622, respectively. However, the number of active cases stands at less than 1,700 and the number of hospitalizations is below 100, with only 15 patients intubated. 
 
The number of single doses of vaccine stands at 8,505,005 and the total of people fully inoculated at 4,125,320.
 
 
June 15: the state of emergency declared in March 2020 ends as of today, Tuesday. The Legislature is still working through some extensions of the public health regulations and related issues such as mail-in voting and remote participation at public meetings. 
 
The state's active cases are now below 2,500 and hospitalizations were at 124,  with 24 intubated. There was one case in Berkshire County for a total of 6,357 and no deaths; statewide there were 55 cases and two deaths. Nationally, the number of deaths from COVID-19 passed 600,000 and total cases are at 33,485,557.
 
In good news, the state passed 4 million fully vaccinated individuals at 4,003,540; 8,329,413 have had at least one vaccine dose.
 
This is the last daily update for this page; we will shift to an end of week update beginning this week and through the next month. 
 
June 14: The county again recorded no deaths and no new cases. The state now has 2,636 active cases, adding 44 new cases Monday for a total of 662,855 and eight deaths, bringing that total to 17,584. The seven-day average positive rate is 0.42 percent. The governor had set a goal of 4 million fully vaccinated individuals by this week but we are still 30,000 short. Vermont reached the 80 percent goal of vaccinating the population and has fully reopened. Massachusetts' emergency order expires tomorrow, Wednesday, with some caveats and the Legislature is expected to pass some extensions until later this summer. 
 
June 13: There were only 33 new cases in the state on Sunday, one of which was in Berkshire County. There were no deaths from COVID-19 at all. The seven-day positive average rate was 0.42 percent.
 
June 12: there were no deaths and no cases reported in the county. The state reported 113 new cases for a total of 662,778  and two more deaths for a total of 17,576. The seven-day average positive rate is 0.44 percent. There are only 136 patients statewide.
 
June 11: The county's numbers ticked up by two for a total of 6,535 and no deaths. There were eight more deaths statewide for a total of 17,574 and 121 new cases for a total of 662,665. There are now fewer than 3,000 active cases in the state.
 
The seven-day average positive rate has dropped below a  half percent, to 0.47, and 3,934,823 of the state's residents and out of state students and workers are fully vaccinated.
 
June 10: Berkshire County is completely in the gray for the first time since last October. There were only two reported cases, no deaths and no patients at BMC, although three people were pending tests. 
 
Over the past two weeks, only four communities reported new cases with Pittsfield the highest at nine. Lee, Lenox and Stockbridge reported fewer than five each. Those same four communities also had the only 14-day positivity averages: Lee had 1.78 percent, Lenox  0.47, Pittsfield 0.57 and Stockbridge 1.41. The county's 14-day average was 0.9 percent with a total case count of 16. The only county lower in cases was Franklin with 10; Hampshire had 17.
 
The state reported 85 new cases for a total of 662,544 and seven deaths, bringing the toll to 17,566. The seven-day average positive rate is 0.51 
 
The number of active cases in people 60 and older has dropped dramatically to 315 total. The highest group for some time, ages 20 to 29, stands at 397 after months in the thousands. The total number of active cases is 3,191.
 
More than 8.2 million vaccine doses have been administered in the state and 3.9 million people are now considered fully vaccinated. Nationally, about 306 million doses have been administered and about half the population age 12 and older is vaccinated. More than 2.2 billion doses have been given globally.
 

 

 

 

1) Wash your hands frequently

2) Cover sneezes and coughs

3) Avoid close contact with people if you or they are ill

4) Don't touch your eyes, face or mouth

5) Disinfect frequently touched surfaces

 

Health Secretary Marylou Sudders demonstrates the correct way to wash your hands.

Cancellations, Closures & Changes 😷

Phase 3, Step One of state reopening began on July 6.

Please assume that your local governmental offices, libraries and COAs are closed or operating under limited conditions. Use your town's official website for business or call to find out what precautions have been put in place. Always call ahead to ensure your destination is open.

July 21: Gov. Charlie Baker extended the pause on evictions and foreclosures for 60 days, until Oct. 17, 2020, through the authority granted to the governor by Chapter 65 of the Acts of 2020, An Act providing for a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures during the COVID-19 Emergency, which was signed into law on April 20, 2020. 

 

• The Pittsfield RMV is appointment only for only critical services that cannot be done online or over the phone. Check the website for licenses and certificates that have been extended.

• Restaurants are open to outside dining and limited in-door dining; many are still offering takeout options. Bars are closed to on-premise consumption.

• Most performances, clubs, fundraisers still cannot be held.

• Indoor activities cannot exceed 25 people in a single enclosed, indoor space. This includes worship, movie theaters, museums and other cultural institutions.

• Fitness centers, health clubs, indoor recreational activities and personal services such as nail salons, barbers and hairdressers can open if abiding by masking, sanitation, social distancing and limited access.
 
• Most state programs are canceled and non-essential executive branch employees have been ordered to stay home.  

• Banks are currently open for drive-up, online banking, ATMs; some lobbies began opening on July 6. Check with your bank. 

• All groceries, pharmacies, department, convenience and other retail stores are open; masking and social distancing required. 

• Child-care centers open only for essential personnel. Visitation at nursing homes and medical facilities have been broadened although anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 should avoid entering care facilities. 

• Other services and organizations are mainly open for phone consultation and limited person-to-person contact. 

What you can do 

Take a walk or a bicycle ride. Spring clean. Call friends or Facetime. Get your garden ready. Check on folks who may need help. Watch a movie. Order from your favorite restaurants. Take a deep breath. Wash your hands.

 

 

Northern Berkshire COVID-19 Operations Center

Residents can call with questions at 413-662-3614, answered between 8 and 5 weekdays and voicemail for after hours, or use nbcovid@gmail.com. 

Berkshire Medical Center

Toll-free hotline for questions staffed seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m: 1-855-BMC-LINK or 1-855-262-5465.

Berkshire Health Systems also has page with upated information here.

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center 

Southwestern Vermont Health Care has an information page with links to public health websites for area states. 

The COVID-19 hotline is staffed weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The number is 802-440-8844.

 

Communities

North Adams COVID-19 updates has links to information and to subscribe to a daily email update.

Pittsfield's COVID-19 page has links to a daily update page and to subscribe for alerts

 

Other Information Sites

Massachusetts Department of Public Health: 617-983-6800

Vermont Department of Health: 802-863-7240

New York Department of Health: 888-364-3065

New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services: call 603-271-4496 (after-hours 603-271-5300)

U.S. Centers for Disease Control has information and latest updates.

 
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