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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo identified Long Island, the Bronx, and the Finger Lakes region as areas to keep an eye on as the state continues monitoring the rapid spread to ensure the hospitals aren’t overwhelmed.
Currently, there are nearly 1,600 COVID-19 patients being treated for the virus in Long Island hospitals, which represents 0.06 percent of the population, the highest percentage in the state.
Long Island’s 6.92 percent infection rate on Sunday, Jan. 24 was also the highest of the state’s 10 regions.
“When you look across the state at the percentage of population hospitalized by region, you see Long Island and the Finger Lakes, and then the highest positivity is on Long Island,” Cuomo said. “We’re working on three tracks (control COVID-19 spread, vaccinate New York, rebuild the economy) simultaneously to keep the spread down and control COVID.”
Cuomo said that overall, the state is trending in the right direction, with an overall infection rate of 5.85 percent, down from a peak of 7.94 percent on Monday, Jan. 4 following the holiday season. Projections of new daily positive COVID-19 cases are also trending down beginning on Jan. 25.
“You can see it all across the state, the curve in every region is a little different, but overall in every region, you’re seeing a decline,” Cuomo noted. “Projection models done by experts show New York’s positivity rate continuing to decline, so not only are we on the way down, but the experts tell us they believe it’s going to continue.”
In New York, more than 1.5 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, with 91 percent of doses allocated to the state having already been distributed.
Cuomo said that with thousands of distribution sites up and running, and the possibility of the National Guard being called in for mass vaccination sites, New York could theoretically administer millions of doses daily if the supply is increased from the federal government.
“We are going week to week at this point, and that starts again tomorrow,” Cuomo said. “The issue now with the vaccination is the supply … it’s about how much (of the) vaccine we are getting.
“This is not just a New York issue, it’s a problem across the country and globe. Every state, every country is trying to get more vaccine, so that’s the situation.”
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