More Than Half Of All Massachusetts Residents Have Had COVID-19

MASSACHUSETTS — On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that more than half of all Massachusetts residents have been infected with COVID-19 - with a large chunk of those numbers occurring since December during the rise of the omicron variant.

This compares to the rest of the nation, where nearly 60 percent of all Americans have contracted the infection since it first came into fruition, the CDC said. Prior to December, only one-third of Americans had been infected with COVID-19 - but by the end of February, that number jumped to about 58 percent.

The omicron variant was the driving factor behind this sharp increase, showing a drastic rise in children aged 11 and younger. Before December, only 44 percent of children that age had been affected, but now the CDC estimates that at least 75 percent of children 11 and younger have been infected.

Health officials maintain that getting vaccinated is still the best strategy to prevent major complications from COVID-19. While being infected does provide a form of a shield, it is unclear how long that lasts.

"Vaccination remains the safest strategy for preventing complications from [COVID] infection, including hospitalization among children and adults," Dr. Kristie Clarke, the agency researcher who led the study said in the new report.

On Monday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu spoke to WBUR for their segment Mondays With The Mayor, explaining her choice to keep the Boston Public Schools mask mandate in play.

"I understand the fatigue, understand the desire to just move on. Unfortunately, Boston Public Schools has pretty big vaccination gaps when it comes to our young people, and that has factored into our decision-making as well, especially relative to other districts," Wu said. "We are watching the numbers very closely. We are working to balance every bit of public health knowledge and information with the needs of schools and school leaders on the ground."