Gov. Baker points to low positivity rate as proof vaccines are working

With high testing rates, low percent positivity, and robust vaccination rates, Gov. Charlie Baker says Massachusetts is leading the country in protecting residents against COVID-19.

In a Sunday Twitter thread, Baker pointed to several data points as proof that the state is doing well.

“Massachusetts tests more than any other state but our positivity rate is the lowest in the nation,” he said. “More of our population is vaccinated than almost any other state. With more of our residents protected, fewer are getting very sick than almost anywhere else.”

According to Baker, Massachusetts is leading the nation in COVID-19 testing, with 17.608 tests per 100,000 administered in the last month.

The state’s percent positivity is also the lowest in the country, he said, with only 2.8% of tests positive for COVID-19 in the last month.

All of this, he said, is thanks to the state’s high vaccination rate.

Massachusetts’s hospitalization rate is the second-lowest in the country, he added, with 24.6 admissions per 100,000 cases. 

“The facts are clear: Vaccines are working,” Baker wrote. “By vaccinating more people than almost anywhere else, Massachusetts is leading the country protecting our residents from getting sick. Getting the vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and your loved one.”

On Aug. 27, there were 1,591 new reported cases of COVID-19 and 6 new deaths. There were also 572 patients hospitalized, with 149 in the ICU and 72 intubated.

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