Md. COVID-19 hospitalizations drop below 1,500, other health metrics continue substantial decline

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – COVID-19 hospitalizations in Maryland have dropped below 1,500, Governor Larry Hogan announced on Thursday.

Thursday also marks the end of the 30-day State of Emergency that the governor declared last month. The state is continuing to report substantial declines in several key health metrics.

The state’s COVID-19 case rate has declined by 85% to 31.5 per 100,000, and the state is continuing to report the lowest case rate in the country. Additionally, the state’s positivity rate has declined by 76% to 7.15%, the 5th lowest positivity rate in the country. Maryland’s COVID-related hospitalizations have declined by a total of 57%, currently at 1,458. These hospitalization rates are dropping at the second fastest rate in the country.

Maryland is close to 95% of adults vaccinated with at least one dose of a vaccine.

During the 30-day State of Emergency, the state took a number of actions, including:

• Enacting executive orders to assist hospitals and nursing homes in addressing staffing shortages
• Mobilizing 1,000 members of the Maryland National Guard
• Standing up hospital-based testing sites and acquiring more rapid at-home test kits
• Distributing more than 20 million N95/KN95 masks
• Expanding testing for staff and visitors at nursing homes
• Ordering a new round of antibody testing for nursing home residents

In Wednesday night’s State of the State Address, Governor Hogan said, “With swift and decisive actions and the vigilance of Marylanders, I’m pleased to report that we have turned back another dangerous variant of COVID-19, and tomorrow, the state of emergency will end in Maryland. Our long-term public health response will continue. Our surge capacity, our testing and tracing operations, our vaccine clinics—all those things will remain in place as part of the ongoing operations of government.”