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WATCH: Maine Now Has 155 Cases Of COVID-19, 13 More Than A Day Ago

Nick Woodward
/
Maine Public

Updated March 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. ET.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Mainehas grown by 13 in a day to 155.  That's according to Maine Center for Disease Control Director Dr. Nirav Shah, who presented the new numbers Thursday morning at an Augusta press briefing.Ninety of the cases are in Cumberland County, and 27 are in York County.  Shah said community transmission of the new coronavirus has been occuring for a while in Cumberland County, and is now also occuring in York County.  The other 38 cases are scattered around 9 other Maine counties.

Shah said 16 people have recovered from the disease, and 22 are hospitalized. Shah said 16 of Maine's cases are among health care workers.

"And our age ranges are wide," he said. "The range of our cases ranges from fewer than 10 years old, to over 90 years old, with an average age of 55."

Shah said 3,394 tests for the coronavirus have come back negative.

Shah said the state CDC has investigated a case of the disease found in an employee at a Maine Department of Health and Human Services office in Lewiston, which has been closed as a result. He said the employee's contacts have been identified and are self-quarantining. He said he expects the office to reopen soon.

He said the state now has 86 available ICU beds, and 150 ventilators. As the number of COVID-19 cases grows, he said the state still needs Personal Protective Equipment.

"What we have received from the National Stockpile is approximately half of Maine's allocated distribution.  We have also heard that more may not be on the way."

Shah said the federal government might be reserving the rest of Maine's allocation for harder hit jurisdictions. He said the state is still pressing for the equipment.

Meanwhile, he said, the state is looking for ways to manufacture some of the equipment in Maine.

Originally published March 26, 2020 at 11:25 a.m. ET.