Gov. Ned Lamont reported Thursday that Connecticut’s rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine continues apace, with nearly 102,000 doses administered, the most per capita of any state with a population of more than 2 million people.

By Friday, all of the state’s nursing home residents will have had access to their first dose of the vaccine, Lamont said during a virtual news briefing.

Still, officials have encountered some wariness on the part of those eligible to receive vaccinations as part of so-called Phase 1a, which includes nursing home residents and staff and health care workers who have contact with COVID-19 patients. While more than 85% of nursing home residents have gotten the vaccine, only 40% to 50% of nursing home staff and 50% to 70% of health care workers have gotten it.

“Hesitancy is real,” said Dr. Reginald Eadie, president and chief executive officer of Trinity Health of New England and co-chairman of the governor’s COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Group. “We see it especially in communities of color.”

As the state works to determine eligibility for the vaccine in Phase 1b, it will seek to ensure the vaccine is equitably distributed to populations that have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus disease, officials said.

Lamont said he was comfortable with the preliminary findings of an advisory group subcommittee that this week recommended that those 75 and older, certain front-line workers, including first responders, and residents of congregate settings be eligible for inoculations in the next phase. Deidre Gifford, acting commissioner of the state Department of Public Health and also co-chairman of the advisory group, said the subcommittee was weighing whether Phase 1b should include those 65 and older.

A final recommendation is expected early next week, with instructions on how to register and schedule appointments for vaccinations to be issued over the next couple of weeks, Gifford said. Phase 1a should be completed in the next two to three weeks.

Lamont also reported that 3,304 new cases of COVID-19 had been detected in the state since the previous day and that 52,633 new test results had been recorded, yielding a one-day positivity rate of 6.28%. That was down from 8.55% the day before. Hospitalizations declined by 52 to 1,087, while 57 additional deaths associated with the disease pushed the pandemic’s statewide toll to 6,287.

In New London County, 12,164 cases and 275 deaths have now been linked to COVID-19, according to the state’s figures. Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London reported it had 41 COVID-19 patients while Westerly Hospital had five.

Earlier Thursday, Lamont announced that two cases of a highly transmissible strain of the coronavirus that originated in the United Kingdom had been detected in Connecticut. Both cases involve New Haven County residents between the ages of 15 and 25 who traveled outside Connecticut — one to Ireland and the other to New York state — the governor said.

Genetic sequencing of the virus has confirmed that the two cases are unrelated. The individuals’ specimens were collected earlier this month and subsequently tested positive.

“As we said last week, given the speed of this new strand of the virus and its identification in several states throughout our country, we presumed it was already in our state and this information this morning confirms that fact,” Lamont said in a statement. “This is another reason why everyone should continue taking precautions to prevent transmission of this disease, including wearing face coverings and practicing social distancing. The health of Connecticut residents remains our top priority, and our public health officials will continue to closely monitor these cases and any other developments with this contagious virus.”

The variant has so far been detected in 27 countries and five other U.S. states.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com