Natick Jumps To 'Moderate' On Coronavirus Risk Map

NATICK, MA — Coronavirus cases in Natick appear to be moving in the wrong direction: The state has moved the town from the green low-risk category to the yellow moderate-risk one on a weekly statewide pandemic map.

Natick was adding about 4.2 cases per day over the past two weeks (per 100,000 people). The state considers any community that adds between four and eight new cases per day on average over two weeks per 100,000 people to be in the moderate category.

One week ago, Natick was adding 3.6 cases per day per 100,000 people. The town's positive test rate over the past two weeks was 0.70 percent, below the statewide average of 1.17 percent. Natick has seen a total of 509 cases over the course of the pandemic.

Average daily cases per 100,000 people need to be above eight before a community joins the red high-risk category. The state added 23 communities to that list on Wednesday, bringing the state total to 63.

Nearby, Framingham, Marlborough, Southborough, Hudson, Holliston and Milford have all either remained on the high-risk list or joined it this week.

With coronavirus cases clearly rising across the state, Gov. Charlie Baker is not signaling another shutdown — yet. He held a new conference Tuesday and said the state is well-prepared to face a second surge this winter. Health officials are also focused on increasing the number of people being vaccinated for flu to prevent a "twindemic" from overwhelming hospitals.