The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported 39 new cases of coronavirus on Thursday.
The Maine CDC also reported one new death since Wednesday, bringing the total number of deaths caused by the virus to 53.
16 people have recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of recoveries to 631. The number of cases that are currently active jumped by 22 since Wednesday, with that number now at 411. The cumulative total of cases reported to date is 1,095.
16 of the new cases were confirmed Wednesday afternoon, but were added to Thursday’s total as they missed the midnight cutoff for when the Maine CDC adds them to the day’s official count. Those 16 cases were all from the Hope House homeless shelter in Bangor, where 20 people in total have tested positive.
There have been 170 hospitalizations to date. The total number of people who are hospitalized has remained mostly flat, with 35 people in the hospital as of Thursday. 18 are in critical care and 8 are on ventilators.
247 healthcare workers had tested positive as of Wednesday.
Maine’s CDC continues to closely monitor outbreaks at long term care facilities, and Maine CDC Director Dr. Nirav Shah says they’ve conducted universal testing of all staff and residents at those facilities. 20 of the 39 new cases reported Thursday were from outbreaks.
There have also been 10 confirmed cases at the Tyson plant in Portland. There were two new cases reported since Wednesday. None of those people are currently working. Dr. Shah says universal testing of all employees is being arranged, and a deep cleaning of the facility was underway.
As of Wednesday, 19,546 Mainers tested negative for COVID-19. The Maine CDC says it’s difficult to report an accurate daily number of negative tests, and is instead updating it every Wednesday.
Governor Janet Mills on Tuesday extended the state’s stay-at-home order until May 31st, but says certain businesses will be allowed to open back up this Friday as part of phase one of the state’s plan to get it’s economy back up and running.
The “Stay Safer at Home” order will allow Maine people to visit businesses or participate in activities “that are deemed safe to open under stage 1 of the reopening plan.” Those businesses and activities include but are not limited to: barber shops, hair salons, pet grooming, limited drive-in, stay-in-your-vehicle religious services, drive-in movie theaters, some outdoor recreation, and auto dealerships and car washes, as long as those places are able to operate safely and continue to follow guidelines outlined by the CDC to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The latest information on coronavirus from the Maine CDC can be accessed by clicking here.
