New York's COVID Positivity Rate Drops Below 1.5%: the Lowest Since October

     As the number of New Yorkers who get their shots continues to surge, the more the state’s COVID positivity rate plummets.

     While 46.5% of residents of New York state have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, on Shabbos, New York state’s COVID-19 positivity rate dropped below 1.5% for the first time since Oct. 28, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today.

    State officials recorded 2,849 positive cases out of 191,257 COVID tests, Cuomo’s office said, which bringsthe seven-day average positivity to 1.84%: the state’s lowest rate since Nov. 6.

    On Shabbos, 33 people died from the virus, and hospitalizations dropped to 2,535, which is the lowest that number has been number Nov. 20.

     Increased vaccinations are the reason for New York’s falling COVID positivity rate, Gov. Cuomo said.

     “Every single day, New York State is moving forward in the footrace between the infection rate and the vaccination rate,” Gov. Cuomo said in a statement. “More New Yorkers are getting vaccinated, and hospitalizations are declining, which is good news, but we need New Yorkers to stay vigilant to make sure we don’t lose any of the progress we’ve made.”

     Last week, the US Centers for Disease Control said that masks are no longer necessary outside, and Mayor Bill de Blasio has said that New York City will be “fully open” on July 1.

 (Darren McGee- Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)