Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19

Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19.

"With school back in session, I urge New Yorkers to remain vigilant in keeping themselves, their loved ones, and their communities safe and healthy," Governor Hochul said. "Take advantage of the vaccine by staying up to date on doses. Test before gatherings or travel and if you test positive, talk to your doctor about potential treatment options."

Last week, Governor Hochul announced the availability of bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters from Pfizer-BioNTech for anyone age 12 or older and from Moderna for those 18 or older. To schedule an appointment for a booster, New Yorkers should contact their local pharmacy, county health department, or healthcare provider; visit vaccines.gov; text their ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find nearby locations.

In addition, Governor Hochul announced that masking will now be optional in multiple settings where they were previously required, including on public transportation, in for-hire vehicles, at airports, homeless shelters, correctional facilities, and detention centers. Masks will continue to be required at adult care and health care facilities regulated by the state Department of Health, and in clinical settings regulated by the Office of Mental Health, Office of Addiction Services and Supports, and Office for People With Developmental Disabilities.

Today's data is summarized briefly below:

• Cases Per 100k - 26.77
• 7-Day Average Cases Per 100k - 19.90
• Test Results Reported - 75,114
• Total Positive - 5,231
• Percent Positive - 6.17 %**
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 6.79%**
• Patient Hospitalization - 2,159 (-33)
• Patients Newly Admitted - 359
• Patients in ICU - 229 (-2)
• Patients in ICU with Intubation - 86 (+10)
• Total Discharges - 340,953 (+378)
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 17
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 57,874

** Due to the test reporting policy change by the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and several other factors, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.

The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.

Important Note: Effective Monday, April 4, the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is no longer requiring testing facilities that use COVID-19 rapid antigen tests to report negative results. As a result, New York State's percent positive metric will be computed using only lab-reported PCR results. Positive antigen tests will still be reported to New York State and reporting of new daily cases and cases per 100k will continue to include both PCR and antigen tests. Due to this change and other factors, including changes in testing practices, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.

• Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC - 73,958

This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.

Each region's 7-day average of cases per 100K population is as follows:

Each region's 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows**:

** Due to the test reporting policy change by the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and several other factors, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.

Each New York City borough's 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows **:

** Due to the test reporting policy change by the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and several other factors, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.

Yesterday, 5,231 New Yorkers tested positive for COVID-19 in New York State, bringing the total to 5,972,214. A geographic breakdown is as follows:

Below is data that shows how many hospitalized individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 were admitted for COVID-19/COVID-19 complications and how many were admitted for non-COVID-19 conditions:

The Omicron variant now represents more than 95% of the viruses in circulation. For more information on variant tracking, please visit here: (COVID-19 Variant Data | Department of Health (ny.gov).

Yesterday, there were 17 total new deaths were reported due to COVID-19, bringing the total to 57,874. A geographic breakdown is as follows, by county of residence:

New Yorkers looking to schedule vaccine appointments for 5-11-year-old children are encouraged to contact their child's pediatrician, family physician, county health departments, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), rural health centers, or pharmacies that may be administering the vaccine for this age group. Parents and guardians can visit vaccines.gov, text their ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find nearby locations. Make sure that the provider offers the Pfizer-BioNTechCOVID-19 vaccine, as the other COVID-19 vaccines are not yet authorized for this age group.

Visit our website for parents and guardians for new information, frequently asked questions and answers, and resources specifically designed for parents and guardians of this age group.