What to Know
- NYC health officials are issuing a new warning to people 75 and up, citing concerning case growth rates and more disturbing numbers on hospitalizations and deaths in the last 30 days
- Merely an hour after Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a plan to start providing vaccines to most officers, fellow Democrat and frequent foe Gov. Andrew Cuomo shot that idea down
- The more contagious strain first detected in the U.K. has now been found in New York; the case is an upstate man in his 60s with no recent travel history and authorities are probing more potential cases
New York City health officials issued a new and heightened warning Wednesday to people age 75 and up, citing concerning case growth rates and more disturbing numbers on hospitalizations and deaths in the last 30 days.
That age group has accounted for 6 percent of new citywide cases over the last 30 days but 30 percent of hospitalizations and 58 percent of deaths in the same time, health commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi said. The positivity rate for that demographic is higher than the rolling citywide one (about 12 percent versus 9.3 percent). More than half of the new cases are thought to be community spread, while 38 percent are likely cases of household transmission, he added.
“This message is as urgent as it’s ever been,” Chokshi said. “Avoid activities outside of the home except for essential purposes, including medical care and other necessities. Remain vigilant. Don’t let the numbers make you numb.”
That’s also been the consistent message from New York state, where health officials are expected to learn this week whether three individuals tied to the upstate jewelry store traced to the state’s first case of the more contagious U.K. strain also have the variant.
