Pittsfield COVID-19 Cases Continue to Decline
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city is inching down to the low end of the "red zone" after a spike in mid-May.
"What we've been seeing is the downward trend that's gone further down from the last month that was before you," Director of Public Health Andy Cambi said to the City Council on Tuesday.
On Sunday, the positivity rate for COVID-19 cases was 8.5, compared to 14.8 in mid-May, and Pittsfield saw 11 new cases. There were 41.9 cases per 100,000 people, compared to 133.3 in mid-May.
There are around 84 estimated actively contagious cases in the city.
Cambi reported that hospitalizations due to the virus have drastically decreased. There were eight patients at Berkshire Medical Center on Monday, compared to more than 20 early last month. These are patients who tested positive for COVID-19 but may not be hospitalized because of the virus. Only about 30 percent of patients statewide who tested positive have been primarily treated for the virus.
Biobot sewage testing is also trending lower, showing 574.4 thousand copies per liter compared to 1.2 million earlier this month.
The city remains in the red incidence for transmission, which is the most severe.
Pittsfield entered the "red zone" in April when the positivity rate rose to 5.3 percent. This risk category is defined by having equal to or more than 10 average cases per 100,000 and having a five percent or higher positivity rate in a 14-day period.
Cambi told the council that the city has lowered its focus age range for contact tracing from 70 and above to 65 and above and that the state has offered the city more at-home test kits to distribute to residents. They will arrive in the next few weeks.
Ward 5 Councilor Patrick Kavey told Cambi that he was displeased to hear of an outbreak in the city from The New York Times and asked if the council could be notified.
COVID presentations were decreased to once a month due to declining metrics. Cambi asked if Kavey would like them twice a month and the councilor said he would just like notification of such events.
"When I asked you about our outbreak if you weren't sure what was happening, I would appreciate if you would keep an eye on that and just let us know before we read it on the front page of a newspaper," Kavey said.
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