New York kicks off holiday weekend under COVID alert; New CDC Map Reduces Highest Risk Counties – NBC4 New York

NEW YORK – The latest wave of COVID-19 that has overtaken all three states in recent weeks appears to be winding down, according to the latest update from the CDC, just as the wildly contagious strain that has been running rampant in New York for weeks asserts national dominance.

The number of US counties considered to be at high risk for community spread of COVID was reduced to 250 in the CDC’s Friday update, a 16% decrease from the 297 with that distinction last week. (Here’s how to get a free COVID test sent by the federal government.)

At that time, 54 of New York State’s 62 counties, or 87% of the total, met the CDC’s threshold for high risk of community spread of COVID, representing nearly one-fifth of all counties in New York State. USA that had the same distinction.

The situation has changed, with the number of New York counties that meet that standard reduced to a third of the total (30). The state added more green, posing a low risk of community spread of COVID, according to the CDC, since last week, when Orange County was New York’s only representative in that category.

Orange County retains that distinction as of Friday’s report, which adds another eight counties to the low-risk category. However, all five New York City boroughs are still in the CDC’s high-risk category. City health officials raised the COVID alert level to high last week in accordance with guidance from the CDC, which follows its own system.

Under that system, the current COVID alert means masks are recommended indoors for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, but no new mandate applies.

New York City’s core COVID data has continued to rise since the alert level transition, with the new hospitalization rate now at 12.4 per 100,000 residents and the rolling rate of new cases at 348.58 cases. for every 100,000 residents. The CDC (and NYC) thresholds for high risk require both rates to reach 10 and 200, respectively.

Although the city’s hospitalization rate continues to rise, its rate of mobile cases appears to have leveled off. That means new admissions, which lag increases in cases, should level off and start to decline before long. The death rate has not increased significantly and is not expected to do so, given the power of vaccines and boosters to thwart severe COVID-related illness, even amid the risk of reinfection and breakthrough cases.

New York City was hit later than other Empire State regions by BA.2.12.1, but health officials said, even as they raised the threat level, that they expected the current wave fueled by BA.2.12.1 It will be over in a matter of weeks. , if not before.

The subvariant of the BA.2 strain that was first descended from omicron is said to be the most contagious COVID strain so far and has been locally dominant since late April. It accounted for the majority of national cases for the first time this week, but had been spreading at a much faster rate in parts of New York than elsewhere for some time.

New Jersey and Connecticut, which also saw cases associated with the rise in the subvariant, are still struggling with high infection rates. Neither state has a county in the CDC’s low-risk level. Half of the Garden State (10 of 21 counties) and all but one of Connecticut’s eight counties remained at high community risk for COVID as of Friday.

Still, those neighboring states may not have to wait much longer to improve.

The latest COVID data supports recent statements from Governor Kathy Hochul’s office indicating that the first regions to see increased spread associated with the omicron subvariant, BA.2.12.1, such as central New York and the Finger Lakes, experience continuous declines. Cases are also trending down across all regions compared to last week.

In his latest COVID update, Hochul said the statewide seven-day average case rate is at its lowest level since May 8 and has seen nine straight days of decline.

Hospitalizations remain at their highest total since late February, with Hochul reporting 2,518 admissions statewide as of Thursday, but 58.1% of those patients did not have COVID listed as a reason for admission, suggesting mild cases that may have not even been diagnosed if the patients I did not seek help for another topic.

There is no scientific evidence to date linking BA.2.12.1 to more severe COVID-related illness or decreased vaccine efficacy at this point, and while the increased transmissibility seems clear, medical experts and researchers believe that preventive efforts, especially around vaccination, should produce overwhelmingly little results. cases that do not need treatment.

That means taking advantage of all the free options available to New Yorkers, including the city’s free online personalized diagnostic tool and COVID test kits and care packages, plus basic prevention strategies like masks to stop tide.

COVID positivity rates in parts of New York City have once again exceeded 20% as a fifth wave of the pandemic unfolds across the state, fueled by a new, highly contagious subvariant.

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