This web report was updated from the version in our print edition with the latest state COVID-19 numbers, and added details about testing at state agencies.

* * * *

Another cross section of businesses and sites started reopening locally and statewide June 17 — albeit under a new normal as guidelines set forth detailed restrictions and protocols to help ensure the health and safety of staff and visitors alike.

That Phase 2 rollout also returned more traffic to local roadways as more folks headed back to work, and saw more cars dotting parking lots at Newtown shopping areas and businesses.

In announcing Phase 2, which was originally set for June 20, Governor Ned Lamont stressed that the decision to reopen continues to rest with each individual business owner. They are not required to open if they do not choose, however if they do they must follow the rules as prescribed.

Phase 2 includes the following sectors: amusement parks, hotels, indoor dining, indoor museums, zoos and aquariums, indoor recreation (bowling, movie theaters, etc), libraries, outdoor events, and personal services (nail salons, tattoo parlors, etc), as well as sports and fitness facilities (gyms, fitness centers, pools, etc).

The state’s website detailing sector rules also states that Phase 3 will see reopening authorized by mid-July for indoor private gatherings of no more than 50 people; outdoor private gatherings (including graduations) of 250 people max; outdoor organized gatherings like fireworks and municipal concerts with 15 feet of space blanket to blanket; and outdoor venues like amphitheaters and race tracks at 50 percent of capacity with distancing practices being enforced.

View the website and Sector Rules by CLICKING HERE

At the same time, state and local health officials are continuing to see COVID-19 testing along with corresponding positive cases and related deaths continuing to increase — although at much slower rates in recent weeks — while hospitalizations for the coronavirus keep declining off the highs seen in April and early May.

Connecticut’s June 18 report stated that the total of COVID-19 cases reported among state residents had reached 45,440, including 43,493 laboratory-confirmed and 1,947 probable cases. There were 176 patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19, and 4,226 state residents had lost their lives to the virus.

That same day, the number of COVID-19 PCR tests administered statewide had reached 370,638. Fairfield County continued to rack up the largest number of positive and probable cases statewide, with 16,398 reported and 1,352 deaths.

On the morning of June 18, Newtown Health District Director Donna Culbert said she had logged a total of 236 positive cases and 40 deaths. Every death the district has reported involves an individual age 60 or older, with the highest combined number involving men and women between the ages of 80 and 89.

‘This Isn’t Over’

Lamont noted that the latest test results represent the lowest percentage of positive COVID-19 tests in Connecticut since the pandemic began. Out of the 6,430 tests reported since yesterday, only 80 were positive, representing a 1.2 percent positivity rate.

In addition, with a total of 188 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19, hospitalization rates in the state dipped below 200 for the first time since mid-March.

“I can’t stop saying how impressed I am at the people of Connecticut for listening to the advice of public health professionals and taking the appropriate actions to bend the curve,” Lamont said.

“The people of Connecticut are having an impact, and that is exactly why our state has been identified as one of only a handful in the nation to be ‘trending better.’ However, this isn’t over, and the last thing we want is to set ourselves back and erase all of the progress we’ve made,” the governor added.

“Each of us needs to continue doing our part to prevent a renewed spread of this virus. Seeing so many people wearing masks and having this resulting data tells me our residents are looking out for each other.”

Lamont’s 54th executive order on June 17 in part waived a standing requirement that now allows agricultural and horticultural societies to continue to receive certain tax benefits without conducting a required annual agricultural fair.

It also modified the mandatory testing program for staff at nursing homes and other congregate settings to set conditions for testing to cease after 14 consecutive days without a positive case and to require resumed testing if any staff member or resident tests positive.

DOT, State Testing Details

Also on June 17, the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CT DOT) announced a number of steps it has taken prioritize safety for all users of the transportation system as the state enters Phase 2 of its return to pre-COVID operations.

Train and bus service is gradually being augmented to provide service to additional riders who are beginning to travel again for work and other purposes, according to a release.

First and most important, public transportation users can help protect themselves, fellow riders, and transit workers by wearing face coverings and not riding public transportation when they are sick. This is the most effective way to promote public safety, the department stated.

CT DOT has also directed service providers to continue intensive daily cleaning of buses and rail cars until further notice. On the bus system, riders will continue to board through the rear door on buses so equipped.

Some buses already feature clear plastic dividers between the bus driver and the general public, and CTtransit is moving forward with the procurement and installation of additional driver barriers on other buses.

These barriers are expected to be installed before Labor Day.

Rail service on the Danbury and Waterbury lines remains suspended to accelerate ongoing capital projects while ridership levels remain at historic lows.

Bus service continues to operate on regular weekday and weekend schedules, providing service to countless essential workers who have continued to ride throughout the public health emergency.

As the weather has improved and traffic volumes were depressed, the state saw a larger number of individuals walking and biking in many cities and towns.

CT DOT is encouraging pedestrians to “Stop the Spread, Bump the Button” at pedestrian crosswalks, where pedestrians are advised in English and Spanish to use an elbow or arm, rather than a finger, to push the button for a walk signal.

On June 18, Lamont announced that employees of five Connecticut state agencies who have frequent contact with constituents in congregate settings, hospitals, and nursing homes have been identified by the agencies and the Office of Labor Relations, under the guidance of the Connecticut Department of Public Health, as meeting the requirements to receive mandatory COVID-19 testing.

The testing is being required to ensure the safety of state employees who work in these settings, as well as the constituents who receive the services.

The identified agencies include the Department of Correction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, the Department of Children and Families, and the Department of Developmental Services.

Decisions on which employees in these agencies will receive mandatory testing will be based on the latest guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Staff who have been identified for mandatory testing are in the process of being notified.