White Plains CitizeNetReporter

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 WPCNR GOVERNOR CUOMO CORONAVIRUS UPDATE January 18, 2021:

Today we celebrate and honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. New York will relentlessly continue his battle for justice. We publish today to share important updates.

As of this morning, New York State has now administered over one million total doses: 903,131 first doses and 103,747 second doses.

The pace of vaccination is rapidly accelerating.

If the Federal Government can increase supply, we are ready to inoculate New Yorkers and scale up the vaccine distribution. 

Chart of the Day: Our statewide positivity rate has gone down from the post-holiday high. However, COVID still poses a serious risk. Please wear a mask and exercise caution. Here’s what else you need to know

tonight: 1. Tomorrow, I will present the Fiscal Year 2022 Executive Budget. This year’s budget proposal will help set our agenda for the year ahead. The presentation will be live-streamed tomorrow, Tuesday, January 19, at 11:30am ET, at governor.ny.gov. 

 2. Total hospitalizations rose 8,868. Of the 186,205 tests reported yesterday, 12,185, or 6.54 percent, were positive. There were 1,523 patients in ICU yesterday, down 27 from the previous day. Of them, 997 are intubated. Sadly, we lost 153 New Yorkers to the virus. While hospitalizations are still rising, it’s encouraging to see that the rate of increase has slowed significantly. 

 3. I have asked Pfizer if New York can directly purchase vaccine doses from them. Since Pfizer is not bound to commitments that are a part of Operation Warp Speed, I have asked Pfizer, a New York-based company, if they will sell vaccine doses directly to New York State. Read the letter here. 

 4. I issued a letter demanding U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar explain his false claim that vaccine doses in reserve would be shipped to states. In case you missed it, last week the Federal Government told not just New York, but all fifty states, that vaccine doses that had been “held in physical reserve” would be shipped to states. This came as welcome news, as federal supply of the vaccine is extremely limited.

But it turned out that this was false. These doses had already been distributed to the states. Whether this was an act of incompetence or an act of intentional falsehood, New York and the public deserve a full accounting.

5. The Statewide positivity rate has come down—but we should still be very cautious. The post-holiday spike that we anticipated has declined (see chart above), but the more contagious UK variant is in New York State and represents a serious risk to our hospital system and all New Yorkers. Continue to be vigilant and wear a mask, social distance and avoid gatherings.   

Ever Upward, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

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WPCNR GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO CORONAVIRUS REPORT. (EDITED) January 2021:

Following new guidance from the CDC, New York is now including individuals age 65 and up as eligible to schedule appointments to receive the vaccine.

 As of 3:00pm today, New York has administered 665,172 vaccine doses. Of those, 570,556 have been administered in hospitals and 94,616 have been administered in Long Term Care facilities. This represents an increase of 60,000 in the last 24 hours and represents 61.7 percent of what has been delivered to NY.  

Immunocompromised New Yorkers are also eligible to receive the vaccine. We are working with the CDC on how to best define the immunocompromised category.

In the meantime, people who are 65 or older can immediately begin finding vaccination locations near them through New York’s Am I Eligible? tool.

But I want to emphasize that New Yorkers should be patient.

(Editor’s Note: This afternoon one computer savvy, extremely patient, brilliant no-nonsense person, I know this –because this person is my wife, the legendary Brenda Starr — spent 2-1/2 hours attempting to schedule a vaccine shot. She was most exasperated with Mr. Cuomo, having scheduled me quite easily yesterday.)

Today’s change brings the number of eligible New Yorkers to at least 7 million people—and the State receives only 300,000 doses per week from the federal government.

That’s a huge gap between the supply and the number of eligible New Yorkers.

Hospitals will continue to prioritize hospital workers and other health care workers—as it is critical to get these workers vaccinated to keep our hospital system functioning and able to handle the continued rise in COVID hospitalizations.

If you are eligible, please be patient; unless the federal supply increases, it will take time to vaccinate the currently eligible groups.  

 New York has identified eight new cases of the UK variant. There are now 12 cases of the UK virus strain in New York and there are 80 cases in the U.S. As a reminder, the UK variant (also called B.1.1.7) is more contagious than other variants, although it is not believed to be more deadly or cause more severe disease. New Yorkers, as always, are asked to exercise caution. 

  Total hospitalizations rose to 8,926. Of the 196,671 tests reported yesterday, 15,214, or 7.73 percent, were positive. There were 1,492 patients in ICU yesterday, up 66 from the previous day. Of them, 909 are intubated. Sadly, we lost 164 New Yorkers to the virus.   

The Finger Lakes and Mohawk Valley Regions have the highest rate of COVID hospitalization by population. In contrast, the Mid-Hudson Region (inclusing Westchester County) has 1,053 holding steady at 5% .

There are 894 hospitalizations in the Finger Lakes, which represents 0.07 percent of the region’s population and there are 329 hospitalizations in Mohawk Valley, which represents 0.07 percent.

The Capital Region has 529 hospitalizations (0.05 percent); 

Central New York has 343 hospitalizations (0.04 percent);

Long Island has 1,612 hospitalizations (0.06 percent); New York City has 3,290 hospitalizations (0.04 percent); 

Southern Tier has 241 hospitalizations (0.04 percent); and Western New York has 518 hospitalizations (0.04 percent of its population).

The North Country, with 117 hospitalizations (0.03), has the lowest rate of hospitalizations due to COVID.   

Ever Upward, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo 

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WPCNR COVID RELIEF. From Westchester County Legislator Katherine Parker. January 12, 2021:

In an effort to support small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Raising the NYS Bar Restaurant Recovery Fund offers reimbursement grants of up to $5,000 to eligible businesses. T

he $3 million program is intended to support full-service restaurants during the winter months when outdoor dining is limited and as restaurants adjust to New York State’s COVID-19 safety restrictions and new mandates.

The Raising the NYS Bar Restaurant Recovery Fund is a partnership between New York State, Diageo Wine & Spirits, Southern Glazer Wines & Spirits and the National Development Council (NDC). Grant funding will be managed by The National Development Council (NDC).

Restaurants can apply to the Rising the NYS Bar Restaurant Recovery Fund starting Monday, January 11, 2021.  ​

For more information, visit https://esd.ny.gov/raising-nys-bar-restaurant-recovery-fund.

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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. January 12, 2021:

Robert Janowitz was appointed Acting Principal at Mamaroneck Avenue School in White Plains on Monday, January 11^th, at a Zoom meeting of the White Plains Board of Education, held under the COVID-19 Executive Order 202.87.   He will serve from February 1 to June 30, 2021. 

Mr. Janowitz has been Assistant Principal at the school for the last 14 years and temporarily replaces Eileen McGuire, current Principal, who will retire on January 31^st.  He began his administrative career in White Plains in 2004, as Assistant Principal at Ridgeway School.

            Mr. Janowitz has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Work from Mercy College and a Master’s Degree in Education, also from Mercy College.  He first worked in a residential facility for children and then began his teaching career in the New York City Board of Education.  He went on to teach third grade in the Lakeland Central School District before moving into administration.

            Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph L. Ricca said, “I am pleased to recommend Mr. Janowitz for this position and I have every confidence in his ability to successfully and collaboratively lead Mamaroneck Avenue School while the district conducts a broad search for a permanent Principal.  Mr. Janowitz is well respected by his students, colleagues, parents/guardians and the greater educational community and has demonstrated a deep commitment to the MAS community throughout his years of service.” 

            Board President Rosemarie Eller added, “We know Mr. Janowitz will maintain the continuity of the school.”