Public health officials in Pittsfield, Massachusetts say that while the city remains in the state’s high-risk designation for COVID-19 transmission, new data shows a dip in cases.
Dr. Alan Kulberg is chair of the Pittsfield board of health and medical advisor to the mayor’s COVID-19 taskforce. He says Pittsfield’s number of cases per 100,000 is dropping after a peak on January 17th, citing data from the 20th.
“It went from 61 to 54 per 100,000, so there’s been a definite drop there, as well as a slight drop in the percent positivity rate – and that went from 4.8% to 4.5%, so that’s encouraging,” he told WAMC.
Kulberg says evidence of COVID-19 in the city’s sewage also show signs of dropping to its lowest level since mid-December after peaking in early January.
Pittsfield, which entered the high-risk designation in December, continues to struggle with COVID-19 in long-term care facilities like the Springside Rehabilitation & Skilled Care Center, which reported over 80 cases between residents and staff as of January 19th.
