Governor Lamont Provides Update on Connecticut's Coronavirus Response Efforts

(HARTFORD, CT) – As the State of Connecticut continues taking actions in response to the global spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Governor Ned Lamont provided the following updates as of 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 12, 2020:

Data updates on testing in Connecticut

The following is a summary of the day-to-day newly reported data on cases, deaths, and tests in Connecticut. It is important to note that these newly reported updates include data that occurred over the last several days to a week. All data in this report are preliminary, and data for previous dates will be updated as new reports are received and data errors are corrected.

County-by-county breakdown:

For several additional graphs and tables containing more data, including a list of cases in every municipality, visit ct.gov/coronavirus and click the link that is labeled, “COVID-19 Data Tracker.”

Weekly update of the Department of Public Health’s COVID-19 Alert Map: One-hundred municipalities now in red

The Connecticut Department of Public Health today released its weekly COVID-19 Alert Map, which indicates that 100 cities and towns in Connecticut are now in the red zone alert level, the highest of the state’s four alert levels. They are:

• Ansonia
• Beacon Falls*
• Berlin
• Bethel
• Bethlehem
• Bloomfield*
• Bozrah
• Branford*
• Bridgeport
• Bristol
• Brookfield
• Brooklyn
• Chaplin
• Cheshire*
• Clinton
• Cromwell*
• Danbury
• Deep River*
• Derby
• Durham*
• East Granby
• East Hampton
• East Hartford
• East Haven
• East Windsor
• Easton
• Essex*
• Fairfield*
• Franklin
• Goshen*
• Greenwich*
• Griswold
• Groton
• Hamden
• Hampton
• Hartford
• Killingly
• Killingworth*
• Ledyard
• Manchester*
• Meriden
• Middlebury
• Middlefield
• Middletown
• Milford*
• Monroe
• Naugatuck
• New Britain
• New Canaan*
• New Fairfield*
• New Haven
• New London
• New Milford*
• Newington
• Newtown*
• North Branford
• North Haven
• North Stonington
• Norwalk
• Norwich
• Orange*
• Oxford*
• Plainfield
• Plainville
• Plymouth
• Portland*
• Preston*
• Prospect
• Redding*
• Rocky Hill*
• Seymour
• Shelton
• Sherman*
• Southbury*
• Southington
• Sprague
• Stamford
• Stratford
• Thomaston
• Tolland
• Torrington*
• Trumbull*
• Wallingford
• Washington*
• Waterbury
• Waterford
• Watertown
• West Hartford*
• West Haven
• Westbrook*
• Weston*
• Westport*
• Wethersfield
• Willington*
• Wilton*
• Windham
• Windsor
• Windsor Locks*
• Wolcott
• Woodbury

*Newly added to the red-level alert list this week

The towns of Ellington, Montville, North Canaan, Putnam, and Woodbridge were in the red zone last week and have been downgraded to a lower alert level this week.

The red zone indicates municipalities that have an average daily COVID-19 case rate over the last two weeks of greater than 15 per 100,000 population. The orange zone indicates those that have case rates between 10 to 14 cases per 100,000 population. The yellow zone indicates municipalities that have case rates between 5 and 9 per 100,000 population, and those indicated in gray have case rates lower than five per 100,000 population.

The weekly alert map is also accompanied by a chart that provides guidance on recommended actions based on the alert levels for individual residents; institutions such as schools, houses of worship, and community organizations; as well as municipal leaders and local health directors.

The Department of Public Health will be working with individual cities and towns in the higher-alert levels, including their local health departments, to provide community resources and help make community-level decisions.

The COVID-19 Alert Map is updated every Thursday around 4:00 p.m. and can be found in the Data Tracker page of the state’s coronavirus website at ct.gov/coronavirus.

Connecticut CARES Small Business Grant Program will accept applications beginning 8PM Thursday

The Connecticut CARES Small Business Grant Program, which Governor Lamont announced last month, will begin accepting applications from small businesses starting at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 12.

The program will provide small businesses and nonprofits that have a 2019 annualized payroll of less than $1.5 million or 20 or fewer employees with a one-time grant of $5,000. All funding will be disbursed by the end of December and will not require repayment.

The grant can be used for rent, payroll, utilities, inventory or complying with the CT Reopen Business Sector Rules. Full details including eligibility requirements, a schedule for virtual office hours, FAQs, other resources, and the application can be found here.

The $50 million program, funded from Connecticut’s portion of the federal CARES Act, will provide aid to small businesses and nonprofits that continue to be negatively impacted by COVID-19.

The grant application will only be available for a limited time. It is anticipated that the application period will close by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 19, however that is highly dependent on demand. All interested small businesses and nonprofits are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

Providing information to Connecticut residents

For the most up-to-date information from the State of Connecticut on COVID-19, residents are encouraged to visit ct.gov/coronavirus. Residents can also subscribe to text message alerts from the state by texting the keyword COVIDCT to 888-777.

Individuals who have general questions that are not answered on the website can call 2-1-1 for assistance. The hotline is available 24 hours a day and has multilingual assistance. Anyone who is out-of-state or requires a toll-free number can connect to Connecticut 2-1-1 by dialing 1-800-203-1234. This is intended to be used by individuals who are not experiencing symptoms but may have general questions related to COVID-19. Anyone who is experiencing symptoms are strongly urged to contact their medical provider.