Congressman Bowman of the 16th District Gives update on the Israeli-Gaza War

Posted on November 4, 2023 by John Bailey

Dear Neighbor,

As my team and I continue to monitor the unfolding events in Israel and Palestine as well as the rise in antisemitism and hate here, I wanted to share some updates with you on Congress’ response – and to reaffirm my belief in centering compassion and our shared humanity as we consider policies to address the tragic loss of precious lives and do everything in our power to bring peace and de-escalation to violence.

First of all, I want to offer my profound thanks to the families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for meeting with me today. I am in awe of their strength and courage and their willingness to share their stories with me. I will continue to push for the safe return of the hostages and make sure their stories are heard.

The profound fear and trauma from the events of October 7th in Israel are deep and shocking. I hear daily from our Jewish neighbors about the enormous impact it has made. Our office is hosting a series of roundtables for those impacted and to process the events and work together toward solutions, even if we all cannot agree. Please register here if you’d like to attend a Healing Breakfast specifically discussing antisemitism and protecting our Jewish neighbors that we are hosting on Monday November 6th at 11AM. Location will be provided upon registration. Please be on the lookout for more events that will bring our communities together in the face of extreme violence and hate.

I recognize that the attacks by Israel on Gaza did not occur in a vacuum. They were triggered by the atrocities of Oct 7: the murder by Hamas, a recognized terrorist organization, of 1400 civilians and the kidnapping of over 240 people including children and the elderly. I believe that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas and to do everything in its power to ensure the safe return of all the hostages that have been taken into Gaza. I further understand that a military response by Israel is made more difficult by the fact that Hamas, in violation of international law, places its military infrastructure in civilian locations including hospitals and schools.

The deaths of Palestinian children and other innocent civilians in Gaza is now numbering in the thousands and is continuing at a horrific rate. As a result, I have called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza because every life is precious. This must also include a release of the hostages.

Still, Israel does not have the right to respond to Hamas’ war crimes with war crimes of its own: by cutting off food, water and energy to civilians or by disproportionately killing non combatants. That is what I believe is happening now and why a cease fire is imperative.

But a ceasefire is needed for an additional reason: to face the root causes of the conflict. As horrific as Oct 7 was, those events also did not occur in vacuum. Palestinians have for decades suffered under a brutal stifling military occupation in the West Bank that have deprived Palestinians of civil rights and under policies that have allowed for the systematic annexation of Palestinian land. The blockade of Gaza has ensured a life of massive unemployment and poverty for Gazans for decades. It is these conditions that have allowed Hamas to maintain its authoritarian grip on Gazans and ultimately commit the heinous crimes of Oct 7. The cycle of violence will not end until these unjust realities are addressed and Palestinians have their own state. It is imperative that we cease the fighting now so that the root causes of the conflict can be addressed in a real and meaningful way.

With that said, we must do everything in our power to return to peacekeeping and commitment to creating a two state solution. This is the way that both Israeli and Palestinians can have true safety, security, and self determination.

Votes taken this week:

The House voted on H.R. 6126, providing military funding to Israel while undoing the IRS program intended to catch tax cheats. 194 of my Democratic colleagues voted against this legislation and I submitted an amendment to the bill that would require a detailed assessment of the Israeli government’s compliance with international law, and a certification that none of our support or training is being used to commit human rights violations, in accordance with U.S. law. As always, we have a responsibility to support our constituents, uphold human rights, and protect innocent civilians.

Republicans also brought a resolution to the floor, H. Res. 798, related to student conversations and protests on the ongoing conflict. While I agree with the thrust of the resolution that antisemitism is a major issue on college campuses, we are unable to support this resolution. As it is currently written, the resolution falsely implies that certain instances of antisemitism have gone unchallenged by university administrations, and its attack on Brandeis students is inaccurate and will be harmful to a number of Jewish students. I was pleased to see Senator Rosen and Blackburn’s resolution condemning antisemitism on college campuses last week, and we wish the drafters of H. Res. 798 had followed their example. Let me be very clear: I strongly condemn hatred, antisemitism and I will continue to do everything I can to combat hatred and harassment at schools across the country.

Lastly, earlier this week we voted on H.R. 340, which puts restrictions on funding sent to the Middle East. I absolutely support robust efforts to cut off financing from Hamas. They must be defeated through counter terrorist methods while keeping civilians safe. However, Republicans removed a humanitarian aid exemption from the bill that would have protected innocent Palestinian civilians’ access to food, water, and medicine. To make it worse, on the floor of the House, the bill’s lead sponsor Brian Mast cruelly compared all Palestianans to Nazis on the House floor, further revealing the bad intentions behind the bill. Along with dozens of other Democrats, I could not support a bill intended to hurt children and withhold life saving aid.

I understand that we are all feeling the weight of the collective trauma and grief that these events have impressed upon us. I will continue to call for a de-escalation of violence, the immediate release of hostages, and measures that move us toward lasting security and ensure everyone can thrive. I hope you will join me in our ongoing fight for peace.

WHITE PLAINS WEEK THE FRIDAY NOV 3 REPORT WITH JOHN BAILEY AND THE NEWS 7:30 EDT ON WPTV YOUR WHITE PLAINS TV STATION! CH 45 FIOS CH 76 OPTIM OR WWW.WPCOMMUNITYMEDIA.ORG====

Posted on November 3, 2023 by John Bailey

JOHN BAILEY ON THE VOTER’S JOB AND THE POLITICIAN’S RESPONSIBILITY

CHRISTOPHER GOMEZ ON THE GALLERIA WHAT’S NEXT

THREE FOR THE 16TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT– SHOCKER OF THE WEEK

OVERFLOWING WHITE PLAINS EMERGENCY ROOM PROMPTS BUILDIING EXPANDED FACILITY

COVID CASES DOWN 7 OF LAST 8 WEEKS. ON TRACK FOR LOWER COVID DECEMBER

JOHN BAILEY REVIEW: HOW INCOMPETENCE , GREED, EGOS, CORRUPTION , HOSPITALS

BUREAUCRACIES KILLED THOUSANDS AND STILL HAVE NOT STOPPED COVID.

PLUS JANET LANGSAM OF ARTSWESTCHESTER ON THE ARTS ROLE IN THE COUNTY ECONOMY

EARLY VOTING SURGE

AND HONORING COUNTY LEGISLATOR BEN BOYKIN

JOHN BAILEY AT LARGE

23 YEARS REPORTING THE NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW

THIS WEEK EVERY WEEK ON WPTV THE WHITE PLAINS TELEVISION STATION

EVERY WEEK ON WHITE PLAINS WEEK

SATURDAY at 7 RESIDENTS ON “THE NEW ONEWHITEPLAINS COMPREHENSIVE PLAN SPECIAL” ANALYSIS ON “PEOPLE TO BE HEARD” WPTV YOUR TELEVISION STATION: 8 PM CH 45 FIOS , OPTIMUM CH 76 IN WHITE PLAINS AND www.wpcommunitymedia.org

Posted on November 2, 2023 by John Bailey

THE ANALYSTS

WHO HAVE READ THE DRAFT ONEWHITEPLAINS PLAN:

MILAGROS LECUONA,

INTERNATIONAL PLANNER, 12-YEAR COUNCILWOMAN

GARY O’BRIEN

ON ZONING OBSERVATIONS

BENJAMIN BROWN

ON OBJECTIVES

JOHN BAILEY INTERVIEWS THREE WHITE PLAINS RESIDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING THE ONEWHITEPLAINS PLAN CLOSELY AND THEY WEIGH IN ON WHAT THE PLAN DOES AND DOES NOT DO.

THEIR IMPRESSIONS OF THE DRAFT ONEWHITEPLAINS PLAN PRESENTED LAST WEEK

THE OBJECTIVES OUTLINED BY THE PLAN

FEASIBILITY

WILL DEVELOPERS BUY IN TO THE IDEALISTIC GOALS

CAN THE CITY PAY FOR THE PROJECTS NOT DEVELOPMENTS

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN IS IT INCLUSIVE?

AND MORE

WESTCHESTER DOWN 41%% IN COVID CASES COMPARED TO LAST OCTOBER. 7TH WEEK OF REDUCED CASES 7 IN LAST EIGHT.

Posted on November 2, 2023 by John Bailey

WPCNR WESTCHESTER COVID SURVEILLANCE. Data from NY State Health Department. Observation and Analysis By John f. Bailey. November 2, 2023:

Westchester County has reduced the rate of covid spread 41% compared to last October.

Westchester new covid positives October 2 to October 29 were 2,687, (1,876 FEWER CASES) compared to 4,563 in October 2022.

This is a significant lowering of the disease spread from last October that set the stage for a rise in infections in November that produca reduction last rate of the disease spread which built in the month of November and generated 10,091 new covid cases in the county last December.

Last week October 22 to 28, Westchester reported 474 persons testing covid positive, 68 per day. Sunday the County recorded 39.

The County averaged 7.5 persons positive per 100,000 people, (Westchester has 1,004,000 population or 10.04 segments of 100,000) which computes to 75 new cases a day, and 527 for a week which works out to 2,108 over 4 weeks. The month October 2023 the figure is 2,687 indicating more persons were testing positive early this month when the average cases in Westchester averaged 10 new cases per day. This indicates to me that less people are getting sick the last two weeks than the first two weeks of October. That is a good trend.

The figures bear that out.

Oct 1 to 7: 887 positives

Oct 8-14: 697 positives

Oct 15-21: 629 positives

Oct 22-28: 474 positives

White Plains Hospital Medical Center last week reported 77 hospital beds occupied as of Oct.31 and of those 77, 32 were found positive for covid, or 41%, which is down from 57% positives a week ago.

The hospital according to Health Department data reported 87% of beds occupied, two weeks ago October 15.

The lowering positives figure (after admission) continues going down.

The 41% positive found in persons admitted to beds not for covid but found positive once admitted is the lowest percentage in a month..

From October 2 through October 31, White Plains Hospital Medical Center reported 319 admissions to hospital beds, and of those 200 tested positive with covid, a percentage of 63%. From October 24 through October 31, the hospital had a lower rate of “after admission covid positives:

Oct 20: 21 Admitted to beds, 10 found positive after admission

Oct 23: 21 Admitted to beds, 10 found positive after admission

Oct 24: 14 Admitted to beds, 4 found positive after admission

Oct 25: 12 Admitted to beds , 5 found positive after admission

Oct 26 14 Admitted to beds 4 found positive after admission

Oct 27 11 Admitted to beds 5 found positive after admission

Oct 30 12 Admitted to beds 7 found positive after admission

Oct 31 14 Admitted to beds 7 found positive after admission

Total 119 Admitted to beds 52 found positive after admission (43% )

In November last year Westchester reported 6,676 covid infections, compared to 4,563 covid cases in October. Because Westchester has lowered infections in October 2023 to 2,687 and with more persons scheduled to vaccinate with boosters at this time the November December social spread may by cut to 6,000 in December if the present lowering infections trends continue.

We’ll keep an eye on it for you

WASTEWATER SWITCH. CDC CHANGES WASTEWATER DATA SUPPLIER. 100 DAY STOP WORK ORDER FOR NEW VENDOR

Posted on November 2, 2023 by John Bailey

Wastewater switch

BY DR.KATELYN JETELINA

NOV 2, 2023 REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION

A change is brewing in the public health world about wastewater. And there’s a lot of misinformation circulating.

Here’s what’s going on.

First, setting the playing field.

It’s not an understatement to say that wastewater surveillance has transformed public health. (See my previous post on its pros and cons.) It picked up a SARS-CoV-2 wave before any other metric. We are now using it for flu, RSV, and even opioids. The potential is endless.

Over the past 4 years, the CDC has built a network of wastewater sites—now up to 1,200 sites representing 40% of the U.S. population. (There are over 16,000 wastewater sites in the U.S.; CDC isn’t at all of them.) At each site, a lab processes the samples. Who processes the samples at each site differs:

75% of sites: public health laboratories process data
The other 25% of sites: Biobot—a wastewater startup company—has processed the samples. CDC paid Biobot to do this through a contract.

All of this data is fed back to the CDC. And is displayed on their website.

However, I have consistently used Biobot’s graphs, like the one below, in the YLE newsletter. Their ability to tell a data story is one reason people love them. It’s easy to understand and, thus, act on.

Verily vs. Biobot

This summer, Biobot’s contract was up for renewal. But other companies threw their names in the ring. In September, a big surprise was unveiled: Verily (not Biobot) got the contract.

Verily is an arm of Google’s parent company, Alphabet. They have conducted wastewater testing at ~300 sites (none overlapping with CDC) throughout the pandemic and supported Stanford’s WWScan to display data.

The two companies have similarities and differences, but as seen below, both have shown similar trends throughout the pandemic, which we would (hope and) expect, and both collect pools of data (i.e., we’re not giving our individual stool samples to Google). It’s not clear why the CDC made the switch. But word on the street is that Verily can do it for less money because of how they process samples.

Graph of biobot and verily wastewater data. Both show similarly timed waves but vary in magnitude. — Biobot (blue) versus Verily (black) wastewater data. Source here

Okay, why does a switch matter to me?

In theory, it shouldn’t. Switching processors wouldn’t normally create a huge data lag. Verily has the operations in place, they just need to engage with the sites. Probably would take weeks.

But, as you can imagine, this switch is not welcome to Biobot. So in mid-October, they contested this decision through the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Because of this, Verily has a stop work order for 100 days.

It’s hard to understand the implications for you and me in trying to stay up-to-date on Covid-19 today. But this is what I’ve gathered:

Right now, not much changes. For those of us who like using the Biobot site, you can still visit their site to see graphs to understand regional or national transmission. And they have funding to keep up through this respiratory season (beyond this, sustainability is unclear). But keep in mind:

Biobot has reduced reporting frequency to once per week. To the average person, this doesn’t matter.
Biobot data is less representative. They have about 2/3 the coverage as before. And, even before, they were a small chunk of the big picture. This matters because we want data that is closest to the “truth” of transmission so you are well-informed of risk in your state or region.

Changing your internet browser bookmark to another source may make sense. Eventually. Going to the CDC site is theoretically better, as they have the most comprehensive data view. And, this Verily stop work order really will only impact 25% of their data. However, it’s nearly impossible to navigate their dashboard. This needs to change quickly (and will soon).

Bottom line

There is a substantial switch happening with wastewater surveillance in the U.S. Will this impact you and me? Not really. But the confusion and switch timing is certainly not ideal, given this is the respiratory season. If any of this changes, I’ll keep you updated.

Love, YLE

Disclosure: I am a consultant to the CDC, including recently working with the wastewater team to overhaul their dashboard and data story.

“Your Local Epidemiologist (YLE)” is written by Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH Ph.D.—an epidemiologist, wife. During the day, she is a senior scientific consultant to several organizations, including the CDC. At night she writes this newsletter. Her main goal is to “translate” the ever-evolving public health world so that people will be well-equipped to make evidence-based decisions. This newsletter is free, thanks to the generous support of fellow YLE community members. To support this effort, subscribe below:

61 Likes

6 Comments

Peg Aloi

Writes The Witching Hour

31 mins ago

This is a great post and very informative. Seems sometimes wastewater data is all we have left. I agree the CDC site is a bit tricky, but the link you provide shows a page where users only have to scroll down to find the place to choose their state and county. In my part of NY state the numbers seems to show a rapid and huge spike coinciding with school and college starting up again in person…

LIKE (2)

Gerry Creager

Writes Random Neural Firings: Epidemio…

2 hrs ago

I knew this was coming, but thanks for the additional information. In a perfect world, I’d like to see several systems collecting non-overlapping data, allowing comparison and correlation.

LIKE (2)

CANDIDATE FOR 16TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT “PAUSES” CAMPAIGN TO GIVE COUNTY EXECUTIVE LATIMER TIME TO DECIDE IF HE WILL GET IN THE RACE.

Posted on November 1, 2023 by John Bailey

WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2024. November 1, 2023:

The Daily Voice and The New York Times reported this morning Westchester County Executive George Latimer, is apparently seriously considering running a primary against Jamaal Bowman to run for the 16th Congressional District, or is at least seriously considering it, though not saying he is running.

The Times on page A13 this morning, reporter Nick Fantos wrote “The American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobby has spent millions of dollars targeting Mr. Bowman’s left-leaning allies in recent cycles, has privately offered its support to Mr. Latimer. So have local businesses…two dozen local rabbis have condemned his (Bowman’s) calls for a ceasefire as “a position of appeasement toward Hamas’s terror regime.”

In reporter Fantos’ interview with Mr. Latimer, the County Executive said he would announce “his plans” in mid November

The Daily Voice reported today Michael Gerard announced yesterday he was “pausing” his campaign to primary Mr. Bowman, “until Latimer decides if he is running for the same seat or not.”

This “pause” indicates Mr. Gerard who was going to primary Mr. Bowman, believes Mr. Latimer is seriously considering the run. However, if Mr. Latimer does not run, it hurts Mr. Gerard. Gerard told the Voice,Latimer would be a great candidate.

Mr. Latimer, Mr. Fandos, the Times Reporter noted Mr. Latimer appeared at Kol Ami in White Plains to offer support to the Jewish congregation.

Michael Gerald, a Democratic candidate for the NY-16 Congressional District seat, announced on Tuesday, Oct. 31 that he would be pausing his campaign until Latimer decides if he is running for the same seat or not.

The 16th district is made up of White Plains, Mount Vernon, Yonkers, New Rochelle, and Rye, and a small portion of the northern Bronx.

It should be noted the Democratic Party was furious that Mr. Bowman a black man, defeated the former Congressman Eliot Engle in a primary for the seat Engle had held for decades. No connection, but shortly thereafter the party redrew the 16th to make the district more white in population to make it a more difficult race for Mr. Bowman, who is black. The district is 50% Black and Latino.

First Arrest Under Idaho Abortion Trafficking Law–the new surveillance to expect law enforcement has at its disposal

Posted on October 31, 2023 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE LETTER TICKER. October 31.2023L:

Idaho’s first ‘abortion trafficking’ arrest

Police used geo-location data to place teen at Oregon clinic

JESSICA VALENTI

OCT 31, 2023

104

Last week, an Idaho teenager and his mother were arrested for bringing the teen’s girlfriend out-of-state for an abortion. The pair were charged with multiple felonies, including second degree kidnapping, for taking a minor under 16 years-old “with the intent to keep or conceal [her] from her custodial parent…by transporting the child out of the state for the purpose of obtaining an abortion.”

The 15 year-old, identified in court records as K.B., was living in Pocatello with her 18 year-old boyfriend Kaydn* and his mother, Rachael, when she became pregnant. In May, they brought her to Oregon, where K.B. received abortion medication. Idaho’s ‘abortion trafficking’ law went into effect that same month.

The investigation into the mother and son began shortly after K.B.’s mother reported to police that her daughter had been sexually assaulted. Though K.B. became sexually active when Kaydn was 17 years-old, he turned 18 during the course of their relationship; so in addition to the kidnapping charge, court documents show that he’s also been charged with rape and sexual exploitation of a child.

During this conversation with law enforcement, K.B.’s mother also reported that her daughter had been taken to Oregon for an abortion without parental permission. This sparked a far-reaching investigation that included accessing geolocation data to place the teenager at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Bend, and tracking her movement with Kaydn and Rachael from Idaho to Oregon. (A search warrant, for example, shows that law enforcement accessed the phones of all three, and found that they were pinging cell towers in the area of the clinic.)

What’s also noteworthy is that while Kaydn and Rachael were charged with second degree kidnapping based on the fact that they brought K.B. out-of-state for an abortion, prosecutors declined to use the ‘abortion trafficking’ statute specifically. This may have something to do with the fact that the law is being challenged, and abortion rights advocates are asking for a temporary injunction against it while the case makes its way through the courts.

A ruling is expected in the next few weeks: if the judge blocks the law, prosecutors wouldn’t be able to enforce it in this, or any other, case. And so instead of citing the trafficking statute, prosecutors used the exact language of the trafficking law in the kidnapping charge.

I mean that literally: Idaho defines ‘abortion trafficking’ as an adult who “with the intent to conceal an abortion from the parents or guardian of a pregnant, unemancipated minor…procures an abortion.” The kidnapping charges against both Kaydn and Rachael accuse them of taking a child “with intent to keep or conceal K.B. from her custodial parent…by transporting the child out of the state for the purpose of obtaining an abortion.” It’s actually a pretty slick move, allowing prosecutors to charge the two with abortion trafficking without citing the statute specifically in case it gets blocked.

All that said, it’s evident from multiple court documents that this is a complicated story and a really sad situation. In one of the affidavits, for example, Bannock County prosecutor Erin Tognetti reports that Rachael was providing K.B. with methamphetamine and smoking it with her regularly. (In addition to kidnapping, Rachael has been charged with a litany of drug-related offenses.)

It’s also clear that K.B was treated poorly by her boyfriend and his mother. K.B. told law enforcement that her relationship with the pair deteriorated after she ended the pregnancy. Prosecutor Tognetti writes in the affidavit that they would “pick at everything she did and make her feel like everything she did was wrong.”

And while texts show the teen saying that she’s glad she ended the pregnancy, Tognetti writes that K.B. reported that Kaydn and Rachael pressured her into the abortion and dissuaded her from telling her mother—threatening to kick her out if she did.**

It’s unclear where the teen’s parents were during all of this; K.B. was supposed to be living with her father, but had moved in with her boyfriend six months prior.

It’s not surprising that the people at the center of this case seem to be having a really difficult time—we know that the most marginalized among us are much more likely to be charged or targeted by law enforcement in abortion-related cases (and all others). We also know that prosecutors seeking to test out laws like this are likely to go after people who won’t garner much sympathy from the public.

The hope is that people will be a little less outraged over an objectively outrageous law.

Abortion, Every Day will continue to bring you more information on this story as we get it. In the meantime, I’m sure like all of you—I’m just hoping that K.B. is safe.

Opinions on ONEWHITEPLAINS Draft due November 7. Schedule for Review Detail. Commissioner of Planning Explains How Galleria Will be Reviewed Under the New Plan

Posted on October 31, 2023 by John Bailey

PLANNING COMMISSIONER CHRISTOPHER GOMEZ COMMENTS ON HOW REVIEW OF THE GALLERIA DEVELOPMENT WOULD BE HANDLED UNDER NEW ONEWHITEPLAINS DRAFT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE LEDGER. By John F. Bailey. October 31, 2023:

White Plains Commissioner of Planning, Christopher Gomez went into more detail on the OneWhitePlains draft Comprehensive Plan last night with a 20-minute address to the Common Council at the Monday night Special Meeting at City Hall. Citizens are urged to provide the city with their comments on the draft statement 7 days from now, November 7. Comments may be made in writing by letter or by writing comments on the OneWhitePlains.com website.

The complete worksession may be viewed on the City of White Plains website at

http://whiteplainsny.swagit.com/play/10302023-518

The Commissioner’s remarks to the council begin at the 30-minute in mark, as well as details on the implementation schedule with a decision on the Common Council approval or disapproval of the plan targeted for March or April

Common Council members expressed admiration and thanks to all citizens who participated and made comments on the plan. Councilpersons Jennifer Puja was enthusiastic about the plan. Victoria Presser said it included a 2021 trolley/shuttle system suggestion and a Multi-Generational Center, which she thought were essential.

Councilwoman Nadine Hunt-Robinson was complimentary to the citizens who participated and praised them for being “Questioning” and “very opinionated.”

Councilman Justin Brasch said he was still in process of reading the document and appreciated the great effort. Mayor Roach said he was proud of the plan, proud of the citizens who contributed their judgement and experience and we have to try and make it better.

Councilman Richard Payne praised the plan but raised the question on the Galleria mall, now vacant and awaiting a detailed site plan and how the recommenations for that site will be handled. The Commissioner responded in this clip:

Commissioner Gomez, said the Draft plan commentary He said the “very targeted recommenations” for areas as well as the draft plan itself were to be a “Guiding Policy Document” and that zoning changes suggested in the plan were needed to be enacted in order to implement the plan suggestions. The Commissioner said the plan is meant to “guide policy,” and set up the zoning to that. Here is what the Commissioner said:

The Commissioner emphasized that given the “Front-loaded” community outreach of 16 Listening Tour presentations over 2-1/2 years that the expressions of the citizens’ visions of what the city appeared to be clear, expressed in the larger words illustrated in this slide:

WHITE PLAINS HOSPITAL TO DOUBLE EMERGENCY ROOM CAPACITY. PLANS NEW EMERGENCY BUILDING ACROSS FROM PRESENT ONE. NEW PARKING GARAGE IN 5 YEARS

Posted on October 31, 2023 by John Bailey

WPCNR DOWNTOWN DAILY By John F. Bailey. October 31, 2023:

The Chairman of the Board of Montefiore White Plains Hospital Medical Center, William Null of Cuddy & Fedder presented a request to the Common Council last night for zoning changes needed to proceed with the hospital development of a new Emergency Room across from Davis Avenue including new operating rooms.

A new parking garage across from the main buildings of the present hospital

.The completion date is envisioned in five years, Mr. Null explained to the Common Council at a Special Meeting last night. The entrance to the new Emergency Room would be from East Post Road.

Davis Avenue in front of the present main hospital entrance would be closed.

Null said the design of the new medical building has not been completed yet.

He said the facility is needed because the previous White Plains Emergency Room expansion opened in January 2010 13 years ago,( before Montefiore acquired the hospital) has doubled its visits since the previous emergency room expansion.

He said the new parking garage envisioned would increase the already stressed parking facilities on Davis Avenue.

The present bridge between the present entrance to the hospital from the Davis Avenue facility would be removed and a new entrance cul-desac entrance would be built. A new bridge would be built between the new Emergency Room and the original “Legacy” hospital and the present Emergency facility, connecting the two.

Proposed rezoning of yellow areas to be included in Central Parking District, enabling contruction of new Emergency Building with parking garage in the white square. Temporary Parking would be on surface level parking outlined by the red dots.

OUTBREAK OUTLOOK: THE GREAT NORTHEAST

Posted on October 30, 2023 by John Bailey

Outbreak Outlook – Northeast – October 30

By Dr. Caitlin Rivers (Reprinted with permission)

Welcome to the Northeast edition of Outbreak Outlook! It is only available to paid subscribers. If you wish to become a paid subscriber and access region-specific information, please click the Subscribe Now button below. Thanks for reading! -Caitlin

(EDITOR’S NOTE FROM JOHN BAILEY: WESTCHESTER HAS CUT THE RATE OF INFECTIONS THE FIRST 3 WEEKS IN OCTOBER 2023 BY 66% LOWER THAN THE FIRST 3 WEEKS OF OCTOBER 2022. 6,575 IN OCTOBER 2022 THROUGH OCT. 22 AND AS OF THE END OF OCTOBER 15 THROUGH 21, 2023 ONLY 2,213 WESTCHESTER PERSONS CAME DOWN WITH COVID. PROJECTING AHEAD THIS MAY LIMIT DECEMBER INFECTIONS TO BELOW 6,000 IN DECEMBER. THE MIDDLE OF WEEK HIGH POSITIVES HAVE DROPPED TO AN AVERAGE OF 72! LAST WEEK DELIVERED JUST 629 INFECTIONS 89 A DAY.

THE ONLY TROUBLING STAT IS WHITE PLAINS HOSPITAL FROM OCTOBER 13 TO OCTOBER 24 (11 DAYS) WAS OF 129 PATIENTS ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL 74 WERE FOUND WITH COVID—57% WITH COVID WHICH IS WHAT THE HOSPITAL IS AVERAGING.)

Respiratory diseases

Influenza-like illness

The Northeast continues to experience relatively low flu levels, though activity is beginning to pick up in some states as we enter the heart of flu season.

New York saw influenza-like illness tick up slightly over the past week from 3.5% to 3.8% of doctor’s visits. Nearby New Jersey declined from 3.6% to 3.3% ILI.

Further north, Massachusetts and Connecticut experienced minimal flu changes week-over-week, holding around 1.5% and 1.7% ILI respectively.

Maine and New Hampshire remain on the lighter side for flu activity, with ILI rates of 0.8% and 0.3%. However, Vermont did see a notable jump from 0.5% to 0.8% influenza-like illness.

Rhode Island and Pennsylvania were essentially flat, with ILI rates holding below 1.5%.

Overall flu prevalence is still relatively low across most of the Northeast as we head deeper into fall. But some states are beginning to see upticks, so do get your flu vaccine sooner rather than later.

At the national level, young kids (still!) continue to experience the highest rates of influenza-like illness. Nearly 9% of doctor visits for children aged 0-4 involve symptoms like fever, cough, or sore throat. This rate compares to approximately 4% in the 5-24 age group and less than 2% in older age groups.

RSV

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is ramping up across the Northeast as we head into the winter virus season. Several states saw jumps in RSV prevalence over the past week. I expect test positivity to continue to rise in the weeks to come.

Massachusetts experienced one of the largest increases regionally, with RSV positivity rising from 6.2% to 7.2% of samples tested. This indicates more than 1 in 14 tests are coming back positive for RSV.

New Hampshire and Connecticut also saw sizable RSV gains over the past week. Positivity increased from 2.7% to 3.6% in New Hampshire and 2.6% to 3.1% in Connecticut.

While still lower compared to other states, New York and New Jersey reported RSV upticks as well, rising to 1.0% and 2.1% positivity respectively.

Vermont and Maine continue to show relatively low RSV activity, with positivity holding below 1% in both states.

Other Respiratory + Stomach Bugs

Seasonal coronavirus activity in the Northeast remains low, with no concerning increases. Adenovirus and parainfluenza virus activity appears to be trending upward slightly nationally; no data is available at the regional level.
Human metapneumovirus activity has picked up in the Northeast. Metapneumovirus causes cough, runny nose, fever, and sometimes wheezing or difficulty breathing.
Norovirus (stomach bug) activity appears to be ticking up a bit in the region, now at 5.7% from a recent low of 4.2%. It’s something I will keep an eye on, though current levels of activity still remains far below typical winter surges.

Food recalls

The following foods are being recalled because they are contaminated. Please check your cupboards and throw out any of these items:

New this week:

Over the counter eye drops sold at CVS, Leader, Rugby, RiteAid, Target or Velocity Pharma (more info)
WanaBana fruit puree pouches (more info)
Fresh diced onion products by Gills Onions (more info)
Enoki mushrooms by Qilu Enterprise (more info)
Lobster by Greenhead Lobster (more info)

Previously reported:

Bagged collard greens sold at Kroger (more info)
Frozen, ready to eat carne asada burritos (more info)
Ready-to-eat ham produced by Sunnyvalley Smoked Meats (more info)
Ion and Restore brands Sinus Spray (more info)
Organic Chicken and Beef Broth sold at Costco and Whole Foods (more info)

If you have food allergies, you may wish to review these FDA safety alerts and USDA alerts for foods with undeclared allergens.