2,905,611 VISITORS VISIT 8,324,077 TIMES 3 TIMES EVERY DAY IN ONE YEAR. HIGHEST ACTIVITY IN WPCNR HISTORY.White PlainsCitizeNetReporter lifted its worldwide visits from unique visitors to wpcnr.com to 8,324,077,a 1,306,419 increase in visits in one year from 7,017,658 visits to the site last year which covers White Plains and Westchester County. The 8,324,077 visits were made by 2,005,611 unique visitors who visited wpcnr an average of 3 visits a day. ON JULY 20- -2026 visitors have accessed wpcnr and made 3,072 visits an average of 1.6 visits. In the last week 33,495 individual vistors made 54,458 visits, averaging 1.6 visits. In the last month, 152,940 visitors recorded 229,338 visits (1.5 visits)
WPCNR CORONAVIRUS REPORT. From Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner. April 20, 2020:
Every week the Town Board hears from department heads who share info on how their departments are operating during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many employees are working from home. Have employees tested positive? How are departments managing? We will hold our weekly department head update tonight at 6 PM. Meeting will be streamed live on the website:www.greenburghny.com and broadcast on channel 75 and verizon channel 35. I will post a link to the discussion later this week.
We invited the three paid fire Chiefs to participate. Have received confirmations from Hartsdale Fire Chief Ray Maseda and from Fairview Fire Chief Howard Reiss that they will participate. Waiting to hear back from the Greenville Fire department. Last week Chiefs Maseda and Reiss provided residents with useful information.
227 KNOWN COVID 19 CALLS—34% OF total EMS CALL VOLUME
Jared Rosenberg who is the EMS Supervisor for the Greenburgh Police department provided me with some interesting statistics:
Since we started tracking COVID 19 mid-March, we have seen mostly medical related calls, ranging from cardiac events, strokes, respiratory distress, and diabetes. These medical calls also have consisted of 227 known COVID 19 calls, which has consumed 34 % of the total EMS Call Volume .
In regards to trauma, What’s important , residents are staying safer, there’s less trauma, although we have had calls for back pain, lacerations, extremity pain, and other documented injuries, residents should use extra caution when driving, biking, hiking, or jogging to prevent any unnecessary trips to the emergency room.
WPCNR SUNDAY GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO BRIEFING REPORT. By John F. Bailey. April 19, 2020:
“ We are past the high point, we are now on the descent. The maximum inflo (of new corona virus hospitalizations) is less than what it is. The net intubations is down,” was the good news Governor Andrew M. Cuomo reported to day in Manhasset, Long Island where he was visiting the Northwell Health complex in Nassau County to give his daily report on the coronavirus battle.
“But this, (he pointed to the new hospitalizations rate) is a reality check, 1,300 people yesterday tested positive. A lot of people, but less than the overall curve of new cases (2,000 a day average previously). 507 persons died yesterday. 400 persons with the disease were put on intubations (ventilators).”
He congratulated health care workers across the state, and the 85,000 medical personnel who have volunteered to aid New York health care professionsals to care for the thousands with coronavirus.
He saluted the vital forces: police, fire, transit workers, EMS professionals who came to work to serve and help in a massive effort to help the sick, all risking their lives by going to the diseased and the suffering. The governor said he would be forever grateful for their sacrifice and courage and dedication to public service, most of whom are immigrants.
The Governor announced the New York State-developed antibody test for coronavirus antibodies presence in persons has been approved by the Federal Drug Administration.
He said beginning tomorrow New York Labs across the state would begin random testing across New York State to determine the possible scope of coronavirus spread in the population they will administer the anti-body test to at random.
In the “Q. & A” the governor said the goal of antibody testing statewide was to random-AB test 2,000 NY state persons a day, 14,000 a week to reach 500,000 in a month, 1.5 Million in 3 months and “hope to increase that number to a random sampling of the population (6%).
“This (percentage of who had coronavirus) will give us the first effective number of how many already have had the corona virus,” the governor said.
He said the state has 9 million workers in a 19 Million population, and the percentage of anti-body positives would show the state an idea of how many persons could be carrying the virus producing anti bodies but not hospitalized to ascertain the risk of reopening.
The Governor did not explain what percentage might be considered positive to reopen the state, or too high to risk a reopen, because the antibody test has not been done before.
He called on representatives in the state not to play politics. He called on the federal government to in the next recovery bill (that congress in Washington is working on) to include $500 Billion in funding for state governments, so the states can fund what they fund in states.
In New York, Mr. Cuomo said if the government did not deliver adequate compensation to NY, or none, he would have to cut 50% of state education aid in New York and cut Hospital aid, which he said “how ludicrous that would be” in view of the health workers’ “tremendous” medical achievement in turning back the march of the coronavirus better than any official prognosticators said they could.
He praised President Trump’s tweet statement that “the
federal government is with you(the states) all the way”.
“That’s teamwork,” Governor Cuomo said.
The Governor also said he had a discussion with the head of the CDC Center for Desease Control who assured him the need for reagents for every state and (presumably for NY’s 301 lab companies) was being addressed.
Governor Cuomo also praised President Trump’s briefing last night on the state of increasing testing, and what the federal government was doing.
He said that now is only halftime. The residents of the NY cannot think it is over, because, he said “the beast is not dead. It is still out there ready to send the hospitalization rate up again.”
He said he got that people were having problems with cabin
fever. He encouraged politicians not to politicize the issue based on the
complaints of their constiutents.
He suggested, “Blame me.”
The news conference “Q. & A.” protocol is in its third day of Cuomo Conference Rules. They are not allowed to shout questions all at once after every Cuomo answer. The Governor picks each reporter in turn who asks a question. This has stripped away the raucous pandomonium of every time reporter trying to yell louder than anyone else. It is a lesson in how news conferences should be conducted. It eliminates the groaning, shouting of the press remuda so you can hear the question since no reporter is miked. It is Cuomo calming.
The Governor confirmed 6,054 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 242,786 confirmed cases in New York State. Of the 242,786 total individuals who tested positive for the virus, the geographic breakdown is as follows (Metro areas of interest are in BOLDFACE:
WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From the Westchester County Board of Legislators. April 19, 2020:
On Friday, the Board of Legislators passed a measure authorizing towns in Westchester County to slash penalties by as much as 80% for late payments of county and town property taxes through July 15 of this year.
The approved measure applies to towns and not cities in Westchester, because the towns fall under a county law which is being changed. Cities do not fall under the same law and must take their own, separate actions on penalties, if they so desire.
The newly-passed measure authorizes towns to reduce the penalties they collect by 75% for taxes paid from May 1 – May 31 – to 0.5% from 2%. It reduces late-payment penalties by 80% for taxes paid from June 1- July 15 — to 1% from 5%.
The penalty-reduction measure passed by a bi-partisan vote of 14-3.
Town and county property taxes and assessments are due April 30. That date is set by state law and cannot be changed by county law.
The penalty-reduction plan was developed with and supported by a majority of Westchester’s Town Supervisors. It gives town governments which collect the taxes the ability to reduce the burden on taxpayers struggling during the COVID-19 epidemic, while ensuring that they have a program which they can manage for all taxpayers.
Towns may opt out of the penalty-reduction measure.
Board Chair Ben Boykin (D- White Plains, Scarsdale, Harrison), said, “This is a public health and an economic emergency that has touched every corner of this County. I’m grateful that we’ve been able to act to provide relief to taxpayers in our towns in a way that will also allow us to continue to provide essential services.”
WPCNR CORONAVIRUS GOVERNOR CUOMO BRIEFING REPORTBy John F. Bailey. April 18, 2020 UPDATED WITH VIDEO 3 PM:
The Federal Government controls whether New York State can double ability to test for coronavirus infections to control the pandemic effectively after New York “reopens.” This deserves to be repeated:
The Federal Government controls whether New York State can double its state labs capacity to test for coronavirus infections to control the pandemic with success after New York reopens.
GOVERNOR CUOMO REPORTED LABS ANALYZING TESTS IN NEW YORK STATE CONFIRMED THE LABS NEEDED SUBSTANTIALLY MORE ESSENTIAL REAGENT CHEMICALS FOR COVID-19 TEST ANALYSIS. MANY SAID THEY CAN DOUBLE TESTING CAPACITY IN A DAY IF THEY HAD THE CHEMICALS THE DISTRIBUTION OF WHICH IS CONTROLLED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THROUGH MANUFACTURERS. (Albany Feed)
The reagents “react” when exposed to the coronavirus testing samples showing the person is Covid-19 positive or negative.
These essential reagents are needed in greater supply to ramp up testing to the 2,000,000 tests a day level (the scale Governor Cuomo believes is needed for testing persons to assure a successful reopening is not compromised by infected persons coming back into work without knowing they have the virus.
The distribution of those essentials to analyze the tests and what companies get them is controlled by the federal government in Washington. (The Governor has consistently maintained that without aggressive greatly escalated testing, any reopening could quickly send COVID-19 new infections exploding again.)
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in his briefing today reported he had his staff call 50 companies that conduct analysis of coronavirus testing samples in New York State to find out how how they could analyze a volume of 2 million test samples a day.
In written quotes posted on televison today (See video above), the Lab companies shown contacted all wrote they needed an extreme increase in supply of the reactants required to analyze the tests at a 2,000,000 a day level.
The conclusion implied : if the federal government holds back the reagents or does not assure a supply enough to a state, any reopening could fail and create a whole city in coronavirus lockdown, facemasked and social distancing again very quickly.
Previously the Governor had touched on the supply needs of increased testing referring to swabs, antibody testing, fingerprick blood tests, and needs for reagents. The state staff explored with the 301 labs in New York State and found that reagent supply is controlled by the federal government, which controls where they go from the manufacturers, what states get them.
The Governor speaking with one of his daughters recently asked him what is all about this testing (not a direct quote). The governor realized he needed to make the need for testing clearer, why it had to ramp up substanially in reopening, and what had to be done to ramp it up and what was the problem.
His staff found out by asking. Previously the governor had mentioned that the reagents come from China. Today he shared what the labs told them: the federal government rations the reagents out.
No reporter in the news conference asked the Governor whether the federal government has an adequate supply of reagents in a stock pile; whether the reagents could be knocked off generically by pharmaceutical companies, to ease the supply or whether the federal government would direct the reagents they have to the states that request them or hold them back and why. Yesterday Governor Cuomo said the President did not want to do more testing because it was hard to do.
The governor focused on testing because the infection rate of new cases continued to hover at 2,000 new cases a day that has been consistent since mid-march. as he explained in the above video as well as the necessity for substanial more testing AFTER the Reopening begins, implying if the reopening proceeds without at least 2 million tests a day, it would be compromised and perhaps fail. (Video Feed)
The Governor said the Apex of the curve continued to flatten and the new case rate remained steady. He is concerned and so explained the fact nobody knew until today: the federal government controls the supply of the reactant chemicals needed to identify and isolate population that don’t know they have the virus and are returning to work.
The deaths Friday from Covid-19 numbered 540. The Hospitalization rate was down. The intubation rate (converting patients to ventilators) continued to go down.
In the news conference, the governor turned aside a question asking if the governor felt nursing homes were negligent in their care, resulting in the deaths of so many nursing home residents. The governor said no, that he felt the nursing homes were just “overwhelmed. Staff are getting sick. Residents are dying,” the governor explained about lagging nursing home reports and failure to respond. He said when complaints are made about nursing homes not providing information to relatives of a person in their care, the state calls the home.
The Governor did say that persons could get marriage licenses and tests online and could get married by video ceremony.
Asked about prisoners being released from prision terms, Melissa DeRosa Secretary to the Governor, said only prisoners with 90 days of their sentences remaining were being released to avoid exposure to Covid-19. The release affects 200 inmates
The Governor confirmed 7,090 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 236,732 confirmed cases in New York State. Of the 236,732 total individuals who tested positive for the virus, the geographic breakdown is as follows (surrounding counties in bold face)::
