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161,655 Cumulative vaccinations (An increase of 3,584 from Tuesday)

120,027 First doses administered (An increase of 2,414 from Tuesday)

41,628 Second doses administered (An increase of 734 from Tuesday)

40,233 Total cases (An increase of 273 from Tuesday)

627 Deaths (An increase of 9 from Tuesday)

273 New daily cases (A decrease of 144 from Tuesday)

158 Currently in hospital (An increase of 1 from Tuesday)

Another 9 Mainers have died as health officials on Wednesday reported 273 more coronavirus cases across the state.

The number of coronavirus cases diagnosed in the past 14 days statewide is 5,270. This is an estimation of the current number of active cases in the state, as the Maine CDC is no longer tracking recoveries for all patients. That’s up from 5,698 on Tuesday.

It marked a sharp turnaround from Tuesday when 417 new cases were reported. That comes as Maine appears to be emerging from the dizzying heights new cases reached amid a holiday-related surge in virus transmission. READ MORE

With COVID-19 drastically altering education in Maine, some schools have seen big dips in attendance this fall, with some students nearly dropping off the map entirely. In response, many districts are trying out new strategies, including going door-to-door, to help reengage students and get them back in class.

Early on a chilly Tuesday morning, Dirigo High School Teacher Rachel Buck drives across her small district in western Maine, her car loaded up with boxes full of packets and other school supplies.

She isn’t scheduled to teach for another two hours. But as the district’s remote learning coordinator, she’s going from doorstep to doorstep, distributing supplies to students she may not have seen in-person for weeks or months.

The weather is brisk, so the visits are quick. Buck drops off the materials and answers a few questions, like one from a mom about whether to keep her kids remote or bring them back to school. Buck promises she’ll follow up. LISTEN TO THIS REPORT

Maine’s third large-scale coronavirus vaccine clinic is expected to be opened by mid-February in a shopping center in hard-hit York County.

Details are still being finalized, but the location will likely be the closed Marshalls store in Sanford, said Art Cleaves, the director of the York County Emergency Management Agency. It will be staffed by a combination of York Hospital and MaineHealth’s Southern Maine Health Care location in Biddeford. The clinic is expected to vaccinate older Mainers as the state works its way through the second part of its first vaccination phase, he said.

Maine Center for Disease Control Director Nirav Shah said on Tuesday the clinic could vaccinate up to 1,200 people a day, making it the third-largest clinic in the state. The Cross Insurance Center and Scarborough Downs, where Northern Light Health and MaineHealth, respectively, have created two clinics, are capable of vaccinating up to 2,000 people a day, though limited supply is keeping those clinics far under capacity as they ramp up. READ THIS STORY

Maine lawmakers will consider legislation that would create data-driven tools to analyze the racial impacts of proposed state laws or amendments.

Sponsored by Rep. Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, the assistant majority leader in the House, the bill aims to reduce systemic racism in state policy and minimize adverse effects on Maine’s historically disadvantaged racial groups.

“L.D. 2, An Act To Require the Inclusion of Racial Impact Statements in the Legislative Process, is the first step in recognizing that many of our laws have produced disproportionate outcomes for generations of Black and Indigenous populations in Maine,” Ross said. “To disrupt this historical pattern, legislators must be intentional in factoring in race throughout the development, review and adoption of public policy.”

Racial impact statements are a tool for lawmakers to assess potential disparities of proposed legislation prior to adoption and implementation. The bill would create a nonpartisan agency that would research and recommend racial impact data for policies taken up by the Legislative Council in areas such as wages, housing, education, criminal justice and health outcomes, Ross said. READ MORE

US-Canada border agencies crack down on gun smuggling in wake of deadly mass shooting

Androscoggin County commissioners to consider anti-mask resolution