CT Coronavirus Update: 23 More Deaths, 608 New Cases

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut saw one of its lowest net increases for coronavirus hospitalizations Tuesday, but the fight against the virus rages on.

Connecticut had another 23 coronavirus-associated deaths reported Tuesday, along with 608 new lab-confirmed cases and a net hospitalization increase of 19 patients. A total of 1,532 tests were conducted in the latest batch.

There have been 13,989 confirmed coronavirus cases, 671 deaths and 1,779 current hospitalizations in Connecticut.

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Gov. Ned Lamont noted that Fairfield County’s hospitalization cases were leveling off, but recently there has been an increase due to a spike of cases in Bridgeport, which now has 859 confirmed coronavirus cases.

The state continues to be challenged by a bottleneck of testing supplies.

Testing key to reopening Connecticut economy

Testing kits continue to be a bottleneck for testing capacity in Connecticut, Lamont said.

The governor is sticking to keeping nonessential businesses and schools closed until at least May 20. By then Connecticut will have greater testing capacity and more personal protective equipment.

“That will give us a lot stronger indication of who and when and how people can start getting to work,” he said.

There are a number of potential ways to boost capacity in the works, said state COO Josh Geballe.

The state testing lab is using CDC guidelines to use sterile saline solution to transport test samples. A potential saliva test could also be a game-changer, he said.

Testing strategy advice will come from the seven-state coalition, Geballe said. That will include where to perform antibody testing, which will determine who has immunity to the virus.

Connecticut mayors detail coronavirus impacts

Lamont included Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling and Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton in his news conference. Both cities were hit hard as the coronavirus crossed into Connecticut. Both mayors agreed with Lamont that working with neighboring states is key to success in fighting the virus and getting the economy going again.

Boughton said that around 50 percent of Greater Danbury economic activity comes from neighboring New York. He and officials in Putnam County across the state border worked closely before the coronavirus pandemic and especially since it has ravaged both areas.

Boughton, a popular Republican mayor and former gubernatorial candidate, said now wasn’t the time for politics.

“There is really no value in sniping at each other, I think the governor has struck a solid path,” Boughton said. “I want to get open too, but I don't’ want to go to our residents and say you have to shelter in place for another six weeks because we didn’t do it right the first time.”

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Rilling noted that Norwalk has 780 confirmed cases to date and 36 deaths. The city got hit hard at the beginning because like Danbury, it has strong ties to the New York area and also serves as a business and shopping hub for surrounding towns.

"Every one of those deaths cuts to your core because it’s a member of your community," he said.

Working quickly with the state and neighboring towns was key to helping prevent the spread of the virus as much as possible, he said.

Record rainy day fund helps businesses

Lamont said that Connecticut has been able to help its business community by offering bridge loans and deferring sales tax and income tax remittances; some measures have been greater than other nearby states. That was largely thanks to a record rainy day fund, he said.

Lamont had been wary about tapping into the fund before the coronavirus pandemic. He said he is optimistic that there is enough in the fund to help state government get through the current fiscal year as well as the next.

Connecticut to date has had about $450 million in coronavirus-related expenses due to expansion of Medicaid, state overtime and other costs, Lamont said.

“Connecticut right now is doing better, but don’t get any false sense of confidence, when you have an unemployment rate like we do even our cash cushion is going to get squeezed,” he said.

Connecticut could potentially see a peak unemployment rate of 20 percent, Lamont predicted. So far the state has processed more than half of the claims that have come in.

Connecticut coronavirus breakdown by county

Connecticut coronavirus breakdown by town