New Canaan First Selectman Kevin Moynihan COVID Update

This evening, Thursday, September 16^th First Selectman Kevin Moynihan provided a community COVID update. Please read his important message below.

WEEKLY COVID-19 REPORT 

Our reported COVID-19 positive cases so far this week for residents currently living in New Canaan are 9, the same as last week.  Five of the 9 cases are unvaccinated, which includes 3 children under the age of 12 who are ineligible to be vaccinated. The main sources of the new positive cases are family transmission and gatherings of various sizes.  We remind families to isolate positive family members to the extent possible from younger, unvaccinated family members to try to reduce family transmission.  For updated information on the weekly cases, by age brackets, visit the red COVID-19 alert box on the town website at www.newcanaan.info.  (Note: We are not including college students who are away at school but whose legal residence is New Canaan in our weekly reports of COVID-19 cases.) 

To date we’ve had a total of 38 “break-through” positive cases of fully vaccinated residents.  The 38 break-through cases are out of 14,475 fully vaccinated New Canaan residents which equates to 0.26%, so becoming infected with COVID-19 for those fully vaccinated continues to be extremely rare, but possible.  The majority of the break-through cases continue to be asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms so it is clear that the vaccine is effective in preventing severe illness and death. 

We continue to remind residents that it is very important to stay home from work, school, sports, daycare, etc. if you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 in order to prevent transmission to others. Symptoms include (but are not limited too): fever, sore throat, cough, body pain, loss of sense of smell and/or taste, vomiting, congestion, and fatigue. We encourage those who exhibit these symptoms to get tested and isolate until results are received to reduce the number of close contacts needing to quarantine. 

We also remind residents that if there is a positive family member you must quarantine all unvaccinated family members, including children under the age of 12, for 10 days.  Fully vaccinated (14 days post 2^nd dose for Moderna and Pfizer and 14 days post single dose of J&J) family members and close contacts do NOT have to quarantine as long as they remain symptom free.  There are test-out options after 7 days of quarantine with test taken on or after day 5 that you can discuss with our Health Department. 

Guidelines from CT DPH regarding booster vaccine doses for the general public still are still pending. The anticipated start date of September 20^th will not be met. When CT DPH finalizes the guidelines we will update our residents.  Our Health Department is planning once again to provide community COVID-19 vaccination clinics to make vaccinations conveniently accessible locally to all residents who wish to participate. The best estimate for the large booster clinics is around October 1^st.  

COVID-19 TESTING 

Next week, we will continue with  twice-weekly community COVID-19 testing in partnership with Waveny LifeCare Network for residents who have traveled or otherwise wish to be tested.  PCR COVID-19 testing will be available (for New Canaan residents and Town employees only) next Tuesday and Thursday, September 21^st and 23^rd from 7:00 a.m.to 10 a.m. at the Paddle Lodge in Waveny Park.  Pre-registration is required and you must bring your insurance card, a credit card and a photo ID to your test appointment. (Your insurance may pay the $100 SEMA4 lab fee, but if not your credit card will be charged.)  No walk-ins are permitted. 

Turnaround time for PCR test results is 24-48 hours and results will be received via email in the SEMA4 portal, for which you will receive instructions on how to access at your test appointment. 

To register for COVID 19 testing for next Tuesday, September 21^st or Thursday, September 23^rd, please click on the following SignUpGenius link https://www.signupgenius.com/go/COVID19TESTSEPT21STAND23RD. You must complete a separate registration for each individual to be tested.  As a reminder, SEMA4 lab requires a separate email and registration for each individual being tested so if your child does not have an email address we suggest creating a free Gmail or similar free email account for your child’s registration. 

Our Health Department also has limited amount of Abott BinaxNOW rapid antigen tests available for New Canaan residents only who are symptomatic and seeking quick results. Contact the Health Department at 203-594-3020 to schedule a rapid test at their office at Vine Cottage. 

For additional testing locations in the area you can call 2-1-1, contact your primary care provider or visit the town website or click here for list of COVID-19 testing sites in our area. 

VACCINATION UPDATE 

The New Canaan Health Department continues to provide vaccinations by appointment of all 3 vaccines for those still in need of either a first or second dose.  The Pfizer, Moderna and Jansen (J&J) vaccines are all currently available. The J&J vaccine will not be available after the current lot of vaccine expires on September 24^th since there is no supply from CDC or DPH to replace it. CT DPH and CDC have no estimated date for new J&J supply. Thursday September 23^rd will be the last day of J&J vaccinations with our Health Department until the supply chain is replenished. 

To schedule a vaccination appointment with the New Canaan Health Department please call 203-594-3020 or email Shannon.vallerie@newcanaanct.gov.  The Health Department office is located in Vine Cottage, 77 Main Street, next to Town Hall. 

As a reminder, J&J is a single dose vaccine for ages 18 and over, Moderna is a two dose vaccine taken at least 28 days apart for ages 18 and over, and Pfizer is a two dose vaccine taken at least 21 days apart for ages 12 & over. Pfizer is the only FDA EUA approved vaccine for those aged 12-17 years old.

CT WIZ PUBLIC PORTAL FOR VACCINATION RECORDS

Residents who have been vaccinated will now be able to access their immunization records online through the secure CT WiZ Public Portal, a free service provided by the state of CT DPH Immunization Program. [A press release can be found here.]

Vaccinated adults and legal guardians can access official immunization records for themselves and children under the age of 18 using the CT WiZ Public Portal with ‘two-factor authentication’ to verify identity. 

(Note: You won’t find the record if the contact information does not match what the vaccine provider reported to CT WIZ. If you are unable to locate your record in the portal, you can contact the DPH Immunization Program for assistance online at helpdesk or calling 860-509-7929 during business hours Mon-Fri 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.)