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ALBANY – As the capital region sees a record number of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations this holiday season, three senior county leaders – Albany County leaders Dan McCoy and Steve McLaughlin County Rensselaer, and Schenectady County Director Rory Fluman – expressed their commitment during a briefing Saturday to coordinate responses and strategies to tackle the ongoing outbreak.
While no formal plan has been outlined and no clear answer given on the counties’ position on microcluster designations, the county heads, all wearing masks as they entered the briefing, gave the assurance that they were ready to help each other in winter. this is bound to be dangerous, health experts say.
“What’s happening here in Albany County is happening in Schenectady, in Rensselaer, and throughout the Capital District,” McCoy said.
County leaders have each said they are waiting for state guidance to determine how yellow, orange or red micro-cluster areas will be assessed and designated.
“We hope to get this soon next week,” McCoy said.
The capital region is one of the only metropolitan areas in the state not to have additional restrictions due to the increase in the number of cases and deaths in recent weeks. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a revised strategy that adds hospitalization and death rates, beds available in hospitals and intensive care units, and available healthcare personnel to the settings the state uses to make decisions about zone designation.
The cadre rally came at the end of what has been a dark week for every county.
McCoy on Saturday announced 177 new cases and 89 people hospitalized, down slightly from the 185 cases and 96 hospitalizations on Friday. Of these new cases, 141 had no clear source of infection. McCoy also reported that the number of people in the intensive care unit fell from 16 to 14 on Saturday, Friday’s record.
Rensselaer County reflected the grim record on Saturday, announcing 77 new cases, its highest number since the start of the pandemic, 16 hospitalizations and one death, a 68-year-old man, who is the 62nd county resident to have died virus.
And in Schenectady County, 120 new cases were recorded on Friday.
“There’s a lot of going back and forth across the river,” McLaughlin said. “There is a lot of interaction between these counties.”
The trio begged residents to continue to adhere to social distancing and mask wearing.
“It’s all about the spread,” Fluman said. “The numbers are going up and we’re seeing them start to explode, frankly.”
Albany County and Schenectady County’s seven-day moving average postivity rate topped 4% for five days, which would have put counties on a path to an Orange Zone designation under the previous leadership of the state’s microclusters. . Schenectady County exceeded 3% for three days, which would have signified a potential yellow zone designation.
McCoy also discussed the bipartisan COVID-19 package that Congress appears to be heading towards, bringing the prospect of additional relief closer than it has been for at least six months.
“We have to get this package,” McCoy said. “We have to take care of local governments.”
Statewide, there were 69 deaths from the virus on Friday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.
His message on Saturday, in part:
“I understand New Yorkers may be feeling some fatigue from COVID, especially now that we have entered the holiday season and the first batch of vaccines is in a few weeks, but if there was a moment to double down and be vigilant, it’s now. continue to implement our data-driven winter plan and strive to ensure New York hospitals have sufficient capacity. What is disturbing is that we are seeing a new trend where the majority of cases are attributed to households and private gatherings.
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