Daily COVID-19 deaths in NY remain in single digits, statistics show
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo speaks during a news conference on June 23. Credit: AP / Mary Altaffer
Daily COVID-19-related deaths in New York remained in the single digits as hospitalizations continued to trend downward, according to state figures Saturday.
The state suffered two coronavirus-related deaths Friday, both in Brooklyn, tying the number reached Wednesday for the lowest since Sept. 20, the statistics showed. There were four COVID-19-related deaths Thursday, the state reported.
New York's total for virus-related deaths was 42,976, according to the figures released Saturday.
Meanwhile, the number of people hospitalized decreased by nine from the prior day, to 340. The people in ICU decreased by four to 79, and those in the ICU with intubation dropped by four to 38, the statistics showed.
On Long Island, the seven-day positivity average increased from 0.38% Wednesday to 0.43% Thursday to 0.46% Friday, the state figures showed. The state's seven-day positivity rate also has crept higher, from 0.44% Wednesday to 0.48% Thursday to 0.51% Friday.
The state Department of Health said that as the rate of vaccination increases and the rate of testing decreases, individuals getting tested are more likely to be unvaccinated and positive.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo praised New Yorkers' vigilance in stamping out the virus, and he urged those unvaccinated to take the shot.
"New Yorkers have achieved remarkable progress and thanks to the hard work of our essential workers, our health professionals, and everyone else who made sacrifices to help slow the spread of the virus, we continue to be on a good trajectory," the governor said.
"Even so, we still cannot afford to get complacent with COVID," he added. "The best way to protect our hard-won progress is to build on it, which is why we need to get everyone vaccinated.
"If you still need to get your shot, I urge you to do so quickly at one of our sites where our health professionals are standing by to administer the vaccine to anyone free of charge."
Nassau County had 28 new cases Friday for a total of 184,084, and Suffolk had 41 new cases for a total of 201,530, the figures showed.
New York City had 259 new cases for a total of 940,843.
A total of 410 of the 79,184 tests reported in the state on Friday were positive, giving the state a daily positivity rate of 0.52%.
Throughout the state, a total of 43,330 vaccinations were administered Friday for a total of 21.29 million, the figures said.
A total of 72.4% of New Yorkers ages 18 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 65.6% of that age group have completed the vaccine series, the state said, citing figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A total of 60.2% of all New Yorkers have received at least one dose, and 54.3% have completed the series, those figures said.
On Long Island, 3,276 people received their first dose Friday for a total of 1.52 million. Also, 3,202 people completed their vaccinations Friday for a total of 1.38 million, the state figures showed.
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Craig Schneider is a Long Island native and Stony Brook University alumnus. He joined Newsday as a general assignment reporter in January 2018 after 20 years at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.