Waltham No Longer High Risk After Positive Test Rate Falls

WALTHAM, MA — Waltham fell out of the high-risk category in the latest state town-by-town coronavirus report Thursday.

The city was designated moderate risk, or yellow, in the latest Department of Public Health report, after more than two months in the red category.

The city's positive test rate over the last two weeks was 2.46 percent, well below the 5 percent threshold and down from 4.23 percent last week. The past two weeks the average daily incidence of the virus per 100,000 people was 42.7, down from 53.2 the period before.

The city had 397 cases in that period, down from 495 last week. Those cases bring Waltham to 4,365 total cases, according to the state report.

>>MA Town-By-Town Coronavirus Stats: High-Risk List Falls Sharply

Waltham was one of dozens of municipalities that transitioned out of the high-risk category Thursday, as more than three-quarters of communities reported test rates declining.

This coincided with the state expanding vaccine eligibility to all people older than 75 Monday, although Gov. Charlie Baker said this week he was "unhappy" with the rollout, as accessibility was a challenge for many eligible residents.

The news also comes as Baker loosened restrictions on businesses effective Monday following the dramatic decline in virus cases recently. Many businesses will be allowed to operate at 40 percent capacity, up from 25 percent.

There were 2,602 new confirmed cases and 74 deaths statewide Thursday. Friday there were 2,982 new confirmed cases and 74 deaths.

Read more: Waltham Restaurants On Capacity Relief: Better Than Nothing

Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how.