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This story was updated at 6:17 p.m.
The Vermont Department of Health confirmed three new cases of COVID-19 in the state Sunday, bringing the total number of individuals diagnosed in Vermont to eight.
Half of the total number of patients who have contracted the disease are from Vermont, the rest are from other states.
The department, under Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, is now tracking in-state and out-of-state cases. The latest cases all involve out of state patients.
The patients include a 70-year-old Berkshire, Massachusetts, man who is being treated at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center.
The second case is a male in his 50s from Suffolk County, Massachusetts, is self-isolating at his second home in Windsor County.
A woman in her 20s who tested positive for the virus is from Kings County, New York. She is self-quarantining in Chittenden County at her family’s home.
UVM Medical Center announced Sunday afternoon that one of the patients identified who is self-quarantining at home was referred for testing through the hospital.
States no longer need to refer to positive results as “presumptive positive,” according to the latest protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. All such cases are considered confirmed going forward, the department said in a press release.
[Read answers to some frequently asked coronavirus questions here.]
Health officials announced a total of six new positive tests for the coronavirus in Vermont over the weekend. The three individuals announced Saturday included a 90-year-old undergoing treatment at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, a Washington County resident in home isolation, and a second homeowner from New York who is in self-quarantine at home after he was treated at Springfield Hospital.
On Saturday, a Department of Health official told lawmakers that more than 100 COVID-19 specimen tests were conducted that day, with more than one specimen per person in some cases.
Health officials are encouraging the public to try to prevent the spread of the virus by taking steps like frequent hand-washing, avoiding touching their face, limiting contact with others who are sick, and staying home when unwell.
State officials are asking individuals returning from most European countries, China, Iran and South Korea to contact the Health Department Epidemiology at (802) 863-7240.
Individuals who are sick should contact their health care provider by phone, and should not go to the hospital unless it is a life-threatening situation, the Health Department says.
