County Keeping Eye on COVID Cases as New School Year Looms
Westchester County officials continue to keep a wary eye on the progression of COVID-19 cases as the number of active infections as most schools are set to reopen on or about Sept. 1.
Through Sunday, there were 2,398 active COVID cases, up 571 over the past week, Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins reported on Monday.
“It’s very concerning that the numbers in testing positive continue to increase, and 95 percent of the individuals that have tested positive for the coronavirus are unvaccinated,” Jenkins said. “So, we do have a series of things that we can do; however, we want to remind people that they have to continue to do things – mask up indoors, which we’re doing in here except when we’re speaking – and we have to keep people as safe as possible.”
Joan McDonald, the county’s director of operations, said officials have been in ongoing discussions with school districts on the issue of vaccines and mandatory mask wearing. The county is prepared to establish a satellite vaccine clinic within any Westchester school district to help eligible students and staff receive their shots.
Districts throughout the area are wrestling with how to institute workable protocols for their staff and students.
COVID-19 cases have continued to rise over the past month and a half since the Delta variant has become the dominant strain of the virus.
Westchester isn’t alone in looking to contain cases. On Sunday, the Mid Hudson region, which included Westchester and Putnam counties, recorded a 2.8 percent positivity rate, the lowest of the state’s 10 regions. Three upstate regions – Central New York, Finger Lakes and the Southern Tier – were all above 6 percent on Sunday. On the seven-day rolling average that concludes with the most recently completed weekend, New York City had the lowest positivity rate at 2.6 percent with Central New York the highest at 4.7 percent.
On Sunday, Westchester saw 146 new positive cases from 4,998 administered tests, while Putnam County had 10 positive cases out of 402 tests.
As of this week, 81.8 percent of Westchester adults 18 years old and up are vaccinated. More than 609,000 adults in the county are fully vaccinated and about 671,000 have received at least one dose, according to Jenkins.
An encouraging sign has been the slowing of fatalities in the most recent wave of the virus. In the past week, Westchester topped 2,300 fatalities among residents, but there has been a significant reduction in the pace of the deaths. In July, there were three COVID-19-related deaths in the county.
Jenkins urged residents to do what they need to do to keep themselves safe. If you haven’t been vaccinated, consider getting a shot, and to put on a mask indoors in public spaces.
“We want to continue to remind people that the Delta variant is real, and we want to continue to do things that the CDC recommends,” he said.
Health Care Worker Vaccine Mandate
All health care workers in New York State, including staff at hospitals and long-term care facilities, which includes nursing homes, adult care and other congregate care settings, will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by Sept. 27.
Assemblyman Thomas Abinanti (D-Pleasantville) said Monday that the state Department of Health will issue orders requiring all such facilities to develop and implement a policy mandating employee vaccination, with limited exceptions for those with religious or medical reasons.
State employees who choose to remain unvaccinated will be required to undergo weekly COVID testing.
The Department of Health has authorized a third COVID-19 vaccine dose for New Yorkers with compromised immune systems, following a CDC recommendation last week. Eligible New Yorkers can receive their third dose 28 days after the completion of their two-dose vaccine series. New Yorkers should contact their health care provider about whether getting an additional dose is appropriate for them at this time.
To date, 75 percent of the state’s roughly 450,000 hospital workers, 74 percent of the state’s 30,000 adult care facility workers and 68 percent of New York’s 145,500 nursing home workers have completed their vaccine series.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
