A man in his 80’s from Suffolk County is the first Massachusetts resident to die from illness related to COVID-19. The man had pre-existing health conditions that put him at higher risk.
COVID-19 is the disease caused by the recent outbreak of the novel coronavirus that the World Health Organization (WHO) called a global pandemic on March 11.
Across Massachusetts, 3,132 residents undergone testing with 328 positive results as of March 20, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH). In Worcester Country there are 14 confirmed cases, including five among Worcester residents.
As of Tuesday, March 17, the last time DPH updated its statistics, 1,168 individuals in Massachusetts were undergoing monitoring or were under quarantine. Another 886 had completed monitoring and were no longer under quarantine.
The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus infections is rising sharply across the United States as the capability of testing expands nationwide.
On March 20, the United States reached 16,462 confirmed cases throughout the country with 219 deaths from illness related to the pandemic.
During the morning of March 20, Governor Charlie Baker activated the Massachusetts National Guard to support various state agencies for equipment, logistics, warehousing, and related duties.
