Martha’s Vineyard confirmed cases steady at 12

Updated 4:15 pm 

It’s now been eight days since a new patient at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital has tested positive for COVID-19. The hospital’s confirmed cases have held steady at 12, according to the hospital’s website.

The number of people tested on Island is up to 222 with 198 of those people testing negative for the virus. There are 12 pending tests.

While no one is hospitalized on Island, on Tuesday, hospital officials said three of the 12 patients who were “quite sick” were taken off-Island for treatment. Two were airlifted and one was driven off-Island in a private vehicle.

Despite the steady numbers, hospital CEO told reporters on Tuesday that she still expects a surge in cases on the Vineyard in the coming weeks. She asked the public to continue to do its part by participating in social distancing and good hygiene practices. Schepici was also expected to have a conference call with Island leaders Wednesday to talk about her concerns about lifting at construction moratorium.

Of those 12 confirmed cases, seven are female and five are male. Six of the cases are aged 50-59 years old, two cases are 60-69 years old, two are 30-39 years old, and two are 20-29 years old.

Of the negative tests, Schepici told reporters the majority of people who are being tested are members of the public with slightly more females than males. Since the symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, cough, and shortness of breath, Schepici said the people testing negative could have another fever or a cold.

At the state level on Wednesday, the death toll topped 1,000, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. DPH reported 1,755 new cases for a total of 29,918. There were 151 new deaths reported bringing the state’s total to 1,108. The state has tested 132,023 people.

Meanwhile, Cape officials have launched a new interactive map that shows the public where cases are by zip code. 

A month after Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency due to the spread of the coronavirus, Baker says the state has begun hitting its peak number of cases.

State officials predicted a surge would take place between April 7 and 10 and continue until April 20.

“At this point in time, based on the conversations we’re having everyday with our colleagues in the hospital community, we are in the surge, yes,” Baker said at a press conference Wednesday.

Updated to add current state numbers. — Ed.