Massachusetts health officials confirmed 1,820 new coronavirus cases and 60 more deaths on Sunday, as the state's COVID-19 metrics continue to trend down.
There have now been 529,255 confirmed cases and 15,176 deaths in the Bay State since the pandemic began, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Another 308 deaths are considered probably linked to COVID-19.
According to the Department of Public Health's interactive coronavirus dashboard, the state's coronavirus metrics have been trending down in the past several weeks, with the average number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths peaking in the second week of January. The testing rate peaked Jan. 1.
The latest report report shows the percentage of coronavirus tests coming back positive, on average, continues to fall, dropping from 2.40 on Saturday to 2.17 on Sunday. The number of estimated active cases also declined again, with health officials estimating there are 45,916 currently active cases.
The number of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 decreased to 1,125. Of that number, 290 were listed as being in intensive care units and 183 were intubated, according to health officials.
More on the Coronavirus in Massachusetts
Sunday's daily report came shortly after the DPH announced 19 new cases of the highly contagious United Kingdom COVID variant had been identified in Massachusetts, bringing the total number of known cases infected with this strain in the commonwealth to 29.
Doctors and infectious disease experts have voiced concerns over the new COVID-19 strains, saying they could reverse recent trends of declining cases and hospitalizations.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, only four of the total 29 cases of B.1.1.7 have evidence of recent travel, suggesting that the majority of cases identified in the Bay State are community-acquired.
State health officials are urging residents to take continued protective measures to prevent the spread of COVID, which is the best defense against a rapid rise in cases from variants.
Health officials say continued critical public health measures to help prevent the spread of COVID include wearing masks, social distancing (staying 6 feet away from others), avoiding groups, staying home when you are sick, getting tested if you have symptoms or are identified as a close contact of someone with COVID, and getting vaccinated when it is your turn.
