Big COVID-19 surge underway in Worcester

WORCESTER, Mass. — Nearly two years after the pandemic began, Worcester officials warned the state’s second-largest city is on the brink of a perhaps unprecedented surge of Covid cases.

The first evidence of that: Worcester just posted its highest weekly Covid count ever: 2,040 cases.

And city manager Edward Augustus, Jr. said the actual number is likely much higher than that. “That number is not reflective of the folks who are testing positive with the home kits, so that number could be 50 or 100 percent higher than the number I’m reporting,” he said at a news conference at the city’s library, which was also hosting a vaccination clinic.

But the actual numbers are bad enough. The average daily case count increased 98 percent over the past week -- from 131 cases a day on average to 259 cases.

And the average will no doubt climb higher -- as more than 900 cases were reported Tuesday alone.

So far, in total, Worcester has had 34,829 confirmed cases since the pandemic began and 407 deaths, Augustus said, with Omicron increasingly taking over from the Delta variant -- but not becoming dominant until recently.

“We expect case counts to continue to rise through at least mid-January as people return from holiday travel and events,” Augustus said. “If you do test positive, particularly with a home test, please immediately begin isolating and reaching out to anyone you may have been in close contact with.”

At least for the month of January, Worcester is putting in place some restrictions to force social distancing -- including a 25 percent capacity limit on municipal buildings and a switch to virtual city meetings instead of in-person ones. The senior center will also close, switching all programming to virtual mode -- and school sports will only allow parents and siblings as spectators.

Beginning February 1, all city employees must get a booster vaccination shot within 14 days of eligibility, Augustus said, or be subject to weekly Covid testing.

Overall, Worcester’s vaccination rate is 58 percent said Michael Hirsh, MD, the city’s medical director. But just 30 percent of eligible residents have gotten a booster shot -- considered crucial for fighting off serious illness due to Omicron -- and the vaccination rate in young children is abysmal.

“Only 20 percent of the five to 11 years olds in Worcester that are eligible to get the vaccine have been vaccinated,” Hirsh said. “We used to say, well, they don’t get that sick. They are getting sick. You don’t want a child to be in the ICU. My office is right opposite the pediatric ICU. When tragedies happen, the hallway outside is where the parents come to decompress and cry.”

Hirsh said he’s heard through some of these tears -- regrets -- about not getting children vaccinated.

At the moment, there are 178 Covid patients of all ages in Worcester hospitals, with 57 in ICUs, Augustus said.

“We have not yet discussed the need for a field hospital,” Hirsh said. “I don’t think anything is off the table. We’ll just have to reevaluate as the surge goes on.”

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