Compared to other regions across the state, Hampshire County has had a relatively smaller number of COVID-19 cases per capita as the winter months quickly approach.
According to the state Department of Public Health, Hampshire County reported 459 cases between Nov. 7 and Nov. 20, which translates to a 14-day average daily incidence rate of 20 cases per 100,000 residents.
That’s the lowest of such rates in the state except for Dukes and Nantucket counties, which were reported together with a rate of 13.9 cases per 100,000 residents. Other counties, such as Essex and Worcester, have rates reaching 40.4 and 36.4 respectively.
Stephen Bell, the health director in Belchertown, attributed Hampshire County’s success in controlling the virus partially to high rates of vaccination — along with mask mandates.
According to the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, 65% of the county’s eligible residents over 5 years old have been fully vaccinated as of Nov. 23. Although this is not a particularly high rate compared to other Massachusetts counties, it’s higher than many states in the American South and Midwest.
“Also, we are a little bit more of a rural population,” Bell explained, meaning that diseases are generally harder to spread in areas with sparse foot traffic.
Bell said Belchertown renewed its mask mandate for all nonresidential indoor spaces on Sept. 9 due to rising cases involving the Delta variant.
“Wearing masks is a method of source control,” he said, noting that the Delta variant showed that even vaccinated people could asymptomatically spread COVID-19 to others. “With no mask mandate in place, there will be no protection,” he said.
“Last year we saw a pretty big surge in January because of the holidays,” Bell said. As those approach amid news of the spreading Omicron variant, he said mask mandates are increasingly important.
Despite the wide range of 14-day average daily incidence rates across Massachusetts counties, the New York Times reported the current COVID-19 risk for unvaccinated people to be “very high” or “extremely high” in all counties except for Nantucket, which received the downgraded risk status of simply “high.”
Although the COVID-19 risk across Hampshire County was assessed to be “very high” for unvaccinated people, it certainly varies between the region’s towns and cities.
The most populated areas in the county, Amherst and Northampton, had among the most cases between Nov. 7 and Nov. 20. Amherst reported 62 cases across its population of nearly 40,000 and Northampton reported 77 cases among its nearly 30,000 residents.
Hampshire County’s smaller towns tell a different story. For example, Pelham has only reported two cases among its roughly 1,300 residents since Oct. 1, according to William Pula, chair of Pelham’s Board of Health.
He attributes this success to his town’s small size and its ongoing mask mandate for indoor public spaces. Also, he said Pelham is populated by “pretty highly educated people” that are “pretty careful” when it comes to COVID-19, lending itself to high vaccination rates as well.
With this in mind it might be surprising that Huntington, over the same period, reported 20 cases between Nov. 7 and Nov. 20 across its roughly 2,000 residents. This makes its 14-day average daily incidence rate 64.9 cases per 100,000 residents, a number three times higher than Hampshire County’s rate as a whole.
A contributing factor could be the lack of a townwide mask mandate, as Huntington merely recommends the use of masks instead of requiring them.
Similarly, Hatfield has a mask recommendation in place but only requires usage for public schools. The town has had 14 cases during the same time period.
Other towns and cities, such as Amherst, Northampton, Hadley, and Belchertown, have comprehensive mask mandates in place for all indoor public spaces, from restaurants to gyms, churches and workspaces.
Because these towns are some of the most populous in Hampshire County, the mandates likely go a lot further in preventing the spread of COVID-19 than they might in more rural towns.
Although Bell said “it’s too early to say for sure” what impact Omicron might have on Massachusetts, he urged residents to keep an eye on the news.
Also, he said, “if you haven’t already, go get that booster shot.”