New York’s COVID Rate Lowest Since December; CDC Report Suggests Omicron Was Here Earlier Than First Thought
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Gov. Kathy Hochul said New York’s latest COVID numbers show good news in the fight against the Omicron variant.
For the first time since December, the state’s positivity rate is less than 10 percent.
As CBS2’s Nick Caloway reported, cases continue to fall but the push to vaccinate isn’t letting up.
As New York looks to put the Omicron surge in the rearview mirror, experts say the way forward is still with vaccines.
Watch Gov. Hochul’s Friday COVID Update
About 73 percent of New Yorker are fully vaccinated and boosted. Health experts are trying to bring that number up.
The Goddard Riverside Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center hosted a vaccination event Friday, offering Pfizer and Moderna shots.
“Vaccination plus a booster is kind of the baseline at this point, and it’s a great thing to do, not just for yourself, but for your neighbor. It helps us all to prevent COVID from spreading,” said Trish Anderson.
COVID VACCINE
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New York is seeing a rapid fall in cases. Friday, there were just more than 28,000 new cases. The total has plummeted from 90,000 on Jan. 7.
“That’s a 66.6 percent drop in two weeks. We have been waiting for this moment. We are finally trending, the direction we want to go down, and that is downward, downward, downward,” Hochul said.
New CDC data suggests Omicron probably arrived in New York earlier than first thought.
Wastewater samples suggest someone in New York City was infected with Omicron as early as Nov. 21, more than a week before the first confirmed case was reported.
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
- Complete COVID Vaccine Coverage
- Vaccination Sites In New York City | Call 877-VAX-4NYC
- Track NYC Vaccinations By Zip Code
- Find NYC Testing Site Near You
- Check NYC Testing Wait Times
- CDC’s COVID Vaccine FAQ
- CDC’s COVID Tracking Map By County
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The effects of the latest wave are still being felt in the workforce. Nearly 9 million Americans were out of work earlier this month, either because they were infection or were caring for someone who was.
The surge in sick workers has impacted industries from hospitals to airlines.
CBS2’s Nick Caloway contributed to this report.
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January 21, 2022 at 10:51PM
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