The group of anti-vaxxers camped outside Mayor Michelle Wu’s home are going to have to admit sooner rather than later that her vaccination mandate for indoor venues is working to combat the latest COVID surge in the city.
Less than a month after the mandate went into effect the infection numbers in the Back Bay and across the city have been on a steady decline. The city’s anti-vaxxers are going to have to come to the realization that the science is correct and being vaccinated against COVID is the best tool we have to end the pandemic.
Those still unwilling to get the vaccine should realize they are taking a big gamble with their lives by continuing to mix with the general public because the risk of severe disease among the unvaccinated is very real.
A month ago nearly 3 out of every 10 Back Bay residents and residents in neighboring communities tested for the virus turned out to be positive but last week only 1.3 out of every 10 residents tested were positive.
According to the weekly report released Monday by the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC), 2,104 Back Bay, Beacon Hill, North End, West End and Downtown residents were tested and 13.4 percent were positive. This was a slight 7.2 percent increase from the 12.5 percent that tested positive between January 24 and January 31. However, the weekly positive test rate has decreased 28 percent in the area overall since January 24.
Two hundred eighty two additional residents have been infected with the virus between January 31 and February 7 and the total number of cases in the area increased to 8,230 cases overall since the pandemic began.
The citywide weekly positive test rate decreased last week. According to the BPHC 18,703 residents were tested and 10.6 percent were COVID positive–this was a 38 percent decrease from the 17 percent that reportedly tested positive for the week ending on January 31. The weekly positive test rate has now decreased 56 percent in Boston since January 24.
The statistics released by the BPHC as part of its weekly COVID19 report breaks down the number of cases and infection rates in each neighborhood. It also breaks down the number of cases by age, gender and race.
Citywide positive cases of coronavirus increased 2.2 percent last week and went from 157,675 cases to 161,136 confirmed cases in a week.
There were 32 additional deaths in Boston from the virus in the past week and the total COVID deaths is now at 1,656. Deaths decreased 11 percent in Boston last week–four less than the 36 deaths reported by the BPHC two weeks ago.