Cuomo: Beware the 'COVID Grinch' this holiday season
(WETM) — "Think COVID Grinch and be on alert, because that is part of this holiday season."
Coming out of the Thanksgiving holiday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo reminded New Yorkers to be vigilant during the 37 days between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day as cases of COVID-19 continue to rise across the Empire State.
"It's not a one- or two-day affair—it's going to be the entire holiday season. New Yorkers need to stay vigilant, wash their hands, wear masks, socially distance, and follow the rules as we move through the next 37 days and beyond."
The governor likened the virus to the Dr. Seuss character the Grinch, saying that like COVID, the Grinch is "an opportunist" during a time of increased mobility and social activity.
"We're now all happy and cheery and we're going to come together and we'll do gift-buying and we're going to do holiday celebrations. We're going to start to have meals together. The family's coming back together for the holiday season. Students are all coming home. Religious celebrations during the holiday season! Yeah. COVID is the Grinch, think of it that way. And the COVID Grinch is an opportunist, and the COVID Grinch sees this as the season of viral transmission. All those things that the holiday season brings."
The governor also said he expects to see an increase in COVID-19 cases over the next two weeks because of Thanksgiving. Monday's coronavirus numbers are as follows:
- Patient Hospitalization - 3,532 (+160)
- Patients Newly Admitted - 457
- Hospital Counties - 54
- Number ICU - 681 (+14)
- Number ICU with Intubation - 325 (-1)
- Total Discharges - 85,556 (+269)
- Deaths - 54
- Total Deaths - 26,747
The governor said that there were 647,980 new cases and 54 deaths in the state on Sunday. The seven-day rolling positive test average was 5.38%:
| 11/8-11/14 % positive | 11/15-11/21 % positive | Current seven-day rolling average | 11/28 % positive | 11/29 % positive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All focus areas | 4.81% | 4.51% | 5.38% | 5.83% | 6.22% |
| Statewide, including focus areas | 2.86% | 2.89% | 3.71% | 4.27% | 4.57% |
| Statewide, excluding focus areas | 2.47% | 2.44% | 3.19% | 3.75% | 4.02% |
Micro-cluster zone 7-day average positivity rates for today, yesterday, the day before, last week, and the week prior is below:
| 11/8-11/14 % positive | 11/15-11/21 % positive | 11/28 seven-day rolling average | 11/29 seven-day rolling average | Current seven-day rolling average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Erie County orange zone | 7.22% | 7.30% | 7.14% | 7.20% | 7.43% |
| Erie County yellow zone | 5.34% | 7.36% | 6.81% | 6.83% | 6.61% |
| Niagara County yellow zone | 5.10% | 4.44% | 7.16% | 7.35% | 7.89% |
| Monroe County orange zone | 4.41% | 4.17% | 5.79% | 6.59% | 7.04% |
| Monroe County yellow zone | 5.95% | 3.58% | 4.90% | 5.62% | 6.44% |
| Onondaga County orange zone | 6.26% | 5.34% | 5.10% | 6.13% | 5.98% |
| Onondaga County yellow zone | 6.03% | 4.50% | 4.60% | 5.09% | 5.13% |
| Queens yellow zone | 3.40% | 3.40% | 3.52% | 3.61% | 3.78% |
| Bronx East yellow zone | 3.81% | 3.52% | 4.51% | 4.47% | 4.74% |
| Bronx West yellow zone | 3.80% | 4.70% | 4.30% | 4.64% | 4.81% |
| Brooklyn yellow zone | 3.92% | 3.70% | 5.32% | 5.64% | 5.73% |
| Rockland County yellow zone | 3.55% | 3.39% | 3.90% | 3.94% | 4.23% |
| Chemung County orange zone | 4.59% | 4.71% | 6.86% | 6.46% | 7.03% |
| Staten Island orange zone | 5.24% | 4.96% | 4.73% | 4.75% | 5.09% |
| Staten Island yellow zone | 3.75% | 3.61% | 3.94% | 4.08% | 4.18% |
| Tioga County yellow zone | 10.81% | 5.60% | 2.38% | 3.10% | 3.74% |
| Middletown yellow zone | 3.81% | 5.41% | 3.56% | 3.81% | 4.78% |
| Newburgh yellow zone | 8.07% | 7.89% | 8.85% | 8.57% | 7.76% |
| Manhattan yellow zone | 3.23% | 3.39% | 3.12% | 3.40% | 3.73% |
| Great Neck yellow zone | 3.69% | 3.69% | 3.01% | 3.93% | 4.34% |
| Massapequa Park yellow zone | 4.64% | 4.15% | 4.76% | 5.12% | 5.54% |
| Hampton Bays yellow zone | 9.26% | 5.69% | 6.28% | 7.00% | 6.68% |
| Riverhead yellow zone | 4.80% | 4.85% | 3.37% | 3.49% | 2.87% |
| Peekskill yellow zone | 10.36% | 7.15% | 6.14% | 7.23% | 8.43% |
| Ossining yellow zone | 9.88% | 10.22% | 9.97% | 9.96% | 10.65% |
| Tarrytown/Sleepy Hollow yellow zone | 8.47% | 8.27% | 7.37% | 7.05% | 6.38% |
| Yonkers yellow zone | 4.48% | 4.11% | 4.95% | 4.84% | 5.03% |
| New Rochelle yellow zone | 6.46% | 5.68% | 5.04% | 5.44% | 6.19% |
| Port Chester orange zone | 9.34% | 7.59% | 7.34% | 7.21% | 7.91% |
Each region's percentage of positive test results:
| Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Current seven-day average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 3.4% | 3.4% | 3.7% | 3.24% |
| Central New York | 8.4% | 6.9% | 4.2% | 4.79% |
| Finger Lakes | 6.6% | 6.6% | 6.6% | 5.76% |
| Long Island | 3.4% | 4.1% | 4.5% | 3.76% |
| Mid-Hudson | 4.8% | 4.9% | 5.1% | 4.55% |
| Mohawk Valley | 4.7% | 5.1% | 4.6% | 4.42% |
| New York City | 2.9% | 3.4% | 3.9% | 2.92% |
| North Country | 3.1% | 2.4% | 3.0% | 2.80% |
| Southern Tier | 4.4% | 4.1% | 3.8% | 2.11% |
| Western New York | 7.4% | 7.2% | 7.4% | 6.94% |
Of the 647,980 total individuals who tested positive for the virus, the geographic breakdown is as follows:
| County | Total Positive | New Positive |
|---|---|---|
| Albany | 5,816 | 104 |
| Allegany | 1,042 | 23 |
| Broome | 5,367 | 59 |
| Cattaraugus | 1,135 | 21 |
| Cayuga | 890 | 21 |
| Chautauqua | 1,580 | 18 |
| Chemung | 3,087 | 39 |
| Chenango | 643 | 4 |
| Clinton | 461 | 2 |
| Columbia | 1,027 | 7 |
| Cortland | 1,061 | 17 |
| Delaware | 363 | 4 |
| Dutchess | 7,284 | 87 |
| Erie | 25,427 | 485 |
| Essex | 286 | 1 |
| Franklin | 266 | 0 |
| Fulton | 508 | 13 |
| Genesee | 1,028 | 31 |
| Greene | 695 | 7 |
| Hamilton | 46 | 1 |
| Herkimer | 709 | 18 |
| Jefferson | 566 | 15 |
| Lewis | 368 | 8 |
| Livingston | 714 | 14 |
| Madison | 951 | 7 |
| Monroe | 15,660 | 522 |
| Montgomery | 494 | 10 |
| Nassau | 60,701 | 520 |
| Niagara | 3,874 | 106 |
| NYC | 311,979 | 2,504 |
| Oneida | 4,970 | 109 |
| Onondaga | 10,804 | 103 |
| Ontario | 1,326 | 22 |
| Orange | 16,891 | 90 |
| Orleans | 630 | 7 |
| Oswego | 1,625 | 54 |
| Otsego | 632 | 14 |
| Putnam | 2,844 | 55 |
| Rensselaer | 1,746 | 26 |
| Rockland | 21,632 | 130 |
| Saratoga | 2,293 | 48 |
| Schenectady | 2,481 | 38 |
| Schoharie | 197 | 1 |
| Schuyler | 316 | 2 |
| Seneca | 309 | 14 |
| St. Lawrence | 850 | 28 |
| Steuben | 1,797 | 26 |
| Suffolk | 61,072 | 658 |
| Sullivan | 2,202 | 11 |
| Tioga | 1,149 | 17 |
| Tompkins | 1,118 | 13 |
| Ulster | 3,381 | 56 |
| Warren | 583 | 6 |
| Washington | 452 | 3 |
| Wayne | 1,148 | 21 |
| Westchester | 50,693 | 583 |
| Wyoming | 546 | 13 |
| Yates | 265 | 3 |
On Sunday, 54 New Yorkers died due to COVID-19, bringing the total to 26,747:
| County | New Deaths |
|---|---|
| Albany | 1 |
| Bronx | 6 |
| Broome | 2 |
| Chemung | 7 |
| Columbia | 1 |
| Dutchess | 1 |
| Erie | 10 |
| Kings | 4 |
| Manhattan | 2 |
| Monroe | 1 |
| Nassau | 1 |
| Oneida | 1 |
| Onondaga | 1 |
| Orange | 1 |
| Rockland | 1 |
| Saratoga | 1 |
| St. Lawrence | 1 |
| Suffolk | 4 |
| Tioga | 2 |
| Ulster | 1 |
| Wayne | 1 |
| Westchester | 1 |
| Wyoming | 2 |
| Yates | 1 |