Northwestern reported 28 positive tests out of 5,500 administered in the last week, half the number of tests taken the week prior.

There were 51 positive tests the previous week, nearly double this week’s positive test count. The positivity rate remained steady at about 0.50%.

The city reported 84 new cases last week, compared to 71 the previous week. Evanston’s COVID-19 positivity rate is at 0.51%.

The majority of last week’s positive tests came from 23 non-undergraduate students. Out of the remaining positive tests, four were from staff and five were from undergraduate students. There were no reported positive tests among faculty. Testing was not mandatory last week for vaccinated students. 

In recent weeks, positive cases have significantly declined among the undergraduate population. Last week’s number of positive cases was one-fifth that of the previous week.

Booster shots are also slowly becoming more accessible. Some residents whose last vaccine in this series was at least six months prior are eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 booster. This includes individuals 65 or older, those working or living in high-risk settings or those with immunocompromised systems 18 and older. In the earlier vaccine rollout plan, this includes individuals who qualified in Phase 1A, 1B or 1C.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @amittal27

Related Stories:

— Northwestern’s COVID-19 on-campus requirements, activities: Explained

— NU researchers develop “ultra-rapid” COVID-19 test that demonstrated 100% accuracy

— Northwestern reports 51 positive COVID-19 tests, down by 30 from week one