Maine is reporting a record-high single-day jump in COVID-19 cases.
The state CDC is reporting 867 new infections on Wednesday, as the delta variant keeps driving this surge into early fall.
The previous single-day record was set during another surge last winter. On Jan. 15, 823 new infections were reported.
The seven-day average of new infections is now 558. That's an eight-fold increase from two months ago.
No additional deaths were reported on Wednesday.
The current surge is mostly affecting Maine communities with lower vaccination rates.
COVID-19 hospitalizations in Maine remain high, with 225 people receiving inpatient care across the state.
Some health systems have seen a slight decrease, including Northern Light Health. But Dr. James Jarvis says the decline is not always due to people being discharged to go home.
"Unfortunately some of that is due to the fact that we have had people who have died at a more frequent rate than we've seen before, and that's a tragedy," Jarvis says.
Health officials say the highly contagious Delta variant continues to be a threat, and vaccination remains the best protection against hospitalization and death.
