KEY POINTS

  • More than 2,300 fully vaccinated people in Massachusetts have died of COVID-19
  • The number of new breakthrough cases declined by 48.5% from late-January
  • The state's caseload also fell by 67% over the past two weeks

More than 120 fully vaccinated residents in Massachusetts died of COVID-19 over the past week even as the number of breakthrough cases across the state continues to see a decline.

Between Feb. 12 and 19, health officials registered 124 new breakthrough COVID-19 deaths, raising the state’s death toll among the fully vaccinated to 2,346. The figure represents 0.04% of all vaccinated individuals in Massachusetts.

During the same period, there were also 198 new breakthrough hospitalizations with COVID-19.

A total of 7,232 fully vaccinated people have been admitted to hospitals with COVID-19 since the state first rolled out the vaccine shots on Dec. 14, 2020. The number represents 0.14% of all fully vaccinated individuals, according to the latest COVID-19 vaccine data from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Despite the increasing number of breakthrough deaths and hospitalizations, the number of weekly breakthrough cases dropped by 2.8% from the week beginning Feb. 5 and saw a 48.5% decrease from the week beginning Jan. 29. Between Feb. 12 and 19, there were only 6,312 breakthrough infections reported.

Massachusetts has now recorded a total of 447,200 breakthrough infections, representing 8.5% of the state’s 5.2 million fully vaccinated individuals.

On Tuesday, Massachusetts health officials recorded 4,118 new confirmed COVID-19 infections and 37 additional deaths among the unvaccinated and vaccinated. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the state has recorded a total of 1,534,071 cases and 22,445 deaths.

The state’s caseload has fallen by 67% over the past two weeks, an analysis of data conducted by CNN showed. The state’s seven-day rolling average of positive tests, which does not include at-home tests, has fallen to 2.44%, according to the agency’s dashboard.

The state recorded a 22.14% seven-day positivity rate near the peak of the most recent COVID-19 surge caused by the Omicron variant.

There are currently 573 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 across Massachusetts. At least 113 patients have been admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICU) and 68 required intubation.

As of Feb. 17, Massachusetts had fully vaccinated 5,259,939 residents and gave at least one dose to 88% of the state’s population.

In the hospital's morgue, rows of bodies in black plastic bags testify to the deadly surge in infections
In the hospital's morgue, rows of bodies in black plastic bags testify to the deadly surge in infections AFP / Sergei SUPINSKY
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