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New York’s weekly COVID-19 case tally plummeted 50% last week as authorities faced pressure to begin lifting pandemic restrictions such as mask and vaccine mandates.
New York added 96,271 new coronavirus cases in the week ending Sunday. That’s down from the previous week’s tally of 193,918 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.
New York ranked 48th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.
Nationally, coronavirus cases decreased 30% from the week before, with 3,451,287 cases reported. With 5.84% of the country’s population, New York had 2.79% of the country’s cases in the last week.
Since mid-January, the winter COVID-19 surge has rapidly receded in New York, with the daily case tally hitting about 8,700 on Sunday. That’s down from a peak of about 90,000 cases on Jan. 7.
The drastic turnaround in coronavirus infections has unfolded as court challenges to pandemic-related restrictions on daily life mounted, including a high-profile case last week seeking to force state officials to lift New York’s mask mandate.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, however, said New York would extend the mask mandate, which was set to expire Tuesday, to Feb. 10, despite an ongoing appeals court case that will determine if a judge’s order that struck down the measure is upheld.
“New Yorkers are doing the right thing — getting vaccinated and receiving their booster, wearing their masks, and staying home when they’re sick,” Hochul said in a statement Sunday, asserting her plan to combat the winter surge contributed to dropping COVID-19 cases.
The pending appeals court decision, however, could have far-reaching implications for Hochul’s efforts to extend pandemic restrictions, as leaders in some other states, including New Jersey, have increasingly voiced support for policies that reduce COVID-19’s disruptions to society.
Meanwhile, COVID-related hospitalizations and deaths in New York have been declining slower than cases, underscoring the lingering impacts of the highly contagious omicron variant.
In New York, 1,365 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 1,601 people were reported dead.
More: After NY’s battle over mask mandate, fights over vaccine, testing mandates loom large
COVID cases drop off in New York
- In the latest week, Westchester County saw coronavirus cases plummet 46%, reporting 3,423 cases and 47 deaths.
- Rockland County saw cases drop 54%, reporting 1,372 cases and 21 deaths.
- Putnam County’s cases fell about 42%, reporting 444 cases and one death.
- Dutchess County’s cases dropped 37%, reporting 1,440 cases and 18 deaths.
- Orange County was the only county to see an increase in cases, which were up nearly 21%, reporting 4,478 cases and 50 deaths.
- In upstate, Monroe County’s cases fell 37%, reporting 3,170 cases and 37 deaths.
- Broome County’s cases declined 31%, reporting 1,086 cases and two deaths.
- Oneida County’s cases dropped 37%, reporting 1,422 cases and 11 deaths.
Within New York, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in:
- Orange County with 1,163 cases per 100,000 per week.
- Clinton County with 1,112.
- Montgomery County with 874.
The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.
>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases
New York ranked 7th among states in share of people receiving at least one shot, with 87.6% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 75.3%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.
In the week ending Sunday, New York reported administering another 425,246 vaccine doses, including 104,911 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 581,185 vaccine doses.
A total of 4,797,903 people in New York have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 64,778 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 74,333,001 people have tested positive and 884,260 people have died.
>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States
New York’s COVID-19 hospital admissions falling
USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Jan. 30.
Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:
- Last week: 7,955
- The week before that: 9,921
- Four weeks ago: 11,030
Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:
- Last week: 170,411
- The week before that: 183,931
- Four weeks ago: 147,900
Hospitals in 13 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 15 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 18 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.
The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.
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