New cases of UK variant found on Long Island
State: More cases of COVID-19 variant identified on Long Island
Nurse practitioner Deborah Beauplan administering a COVID-19 swab test last month at a drive-thru testing site in Shirley for Suffolk County employees and their families. Credit: Newsday/John Paraskevas
State officials reported the virus variant known as B.1.1.7 has now spread to Suffolk County, with two cases confirmed there.
Nassau County — where a case of the variant had been confirmed in Massapequa — now has two confirmed cases, as the statewide total rose to 15, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said in a news release.
Meanwhile, vaccine appointments at two county sites in Nassau are booking so quickly that officials are only releasing time slots "one day out," while dosages at a major county hospital are almost gone, officials said.
On Tuesday, the county sites in Westbury and Garden City distributed 973 doses, while more than 700 vaccinations were scheduled for Wednesday.
"It’s a rolling process," Nassau County Health Commissioner Larry Eisenstein said.
"When we know that we have vaccines, we schedule out [the appointments] as far as we can," he added. "The appointments go very quickly."
The dearth of vaccines in Nassau came as Long Island residents reported problems finding open spots through the state system for signing up for vaccinations at locations including a large site at Jones Beach. State officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A new mass vaccination site opened Wednesday at the Javits Center in Manhattan, while the site at Jones Beach will start administering vaccines on Thursday, the state said.
New vaccine FAQ: Do you still need to wear a mask and practice social distancing after being vaccinated? Yes, as it remains unclear whether someone who has had the vaccine could still be a carrier of the virus, according to an expert. Get answers to this question and more here.
The number of new positives reported today: 1,457 in Nassau, 1,673 in Suffolk, 5,822 in New York City and 14,577 statewide.
The chart below shows the positivity rates on Long Island during the past month.
This chart shows what percentage of coronavirus tests were positive for the virus each day.
Search a map of new cases and view more charts showing the latest local trends in testing, hospitalizations, deaths and more.
Pharmacists confident they can deliver vaccine despite confusion
Nidhin Mohan, owner of New Island Pharmacy in Deer Park, said he was waiting to hear when he would get vaccine doses from the state. Credit: Debbie Egan-Chin
Owners of independent pharmacies said Tuesday they are confident they can inoculate thousands of Long Island residents in the coming weeks — despite the confusing rollout this week.
Tom D’Angelo, who runs home infusion pharmacy Americare in Garden City and Franklin Square Pharmacy in Franklin Square, said he is slated to receive 600 doses later this week and is busy hiring per diem workers who are certified to administer vaccinations. Staffers will receive their vaccinations first, and he plans to start the shots at the Garden City site by early next week.
"The pharmacies are happy they are able to contribute," said D’Angelo, president of the Pharmacists Society of the State of New York. "They will adapt and figure it out."
Independent pharmacies will play a key role in the state’s efforts to boost vaccination rates.
NY to set up rapid testing sites to encourage reopening
New York State will open hundreds of pop-up rapid testing sites to encourage the reopening of restaurants, theaters and office buildings while allowing businesses to potentially reduce capacity restrictions, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Tuesday.
Cuomo outlined plans to set up a network of rapid testing sites in major city centers, starting with New York City, to provide residents with added protection as they resume activities or patronize businesses.
"We need to begin to act now," Cuomo said. "If we don't, dining will remain at levels too low for restaurants to survive. Offices will remain empty, hurting the service businesses that depend on those office workers. Theaters and sports venues will sit empty. People will remain out of work, with all the psychological as well as financial trauma that entails."
Health experts warn that rapid antigen tests, which provide results in 15 minutes, are often wrong, particularly for those not showing symptoms.
Weight gain can be another pandemic side effect
Long Island doctors said since the pandemic began, more patients than usual have gained weight, which can lead to a variety of health problems. Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto/Oleg Shvetsov
Long Island doctors said since the pandemic began, more patients than usual have gained weight, and some physicians said they have, too.
Experts said enough extra pounds can mean a variety of health problems, including a heightened risk for contracting a more severe case of COVID-19.
Reasons behind the weight gain include easier access to food, higher alcohol use, less exercise and stress, doctors said.
"Forty percent of the adult population is considered obese, and if you throw on top of that the inactivity of being isolated at home, not going to the gym, not socializing with friends, it leads to increased anxiety and depression, and of ways of trying to comfort that, and what do people do? They eat," said Dr. Anthony Ardito, an internist with practices in Lake Success and Commack and vice president of the primary care service line for Catholic Health Services of Long Island.
More to know
Coronavirus deaths in the U.S. hit another one-day high at over 4,300, while the nation's overall death toll from the virus has eclipsed 380,000.
Anyone flying to the U.S. will soon need to show proof of a negative test for COVID-19, health officials said Tuesday.
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association disclosed additional safety measures to be implemented immediately to try to keep the season moving forward during the pandemic.
Cuomo announced plans on Wednesday for an expansion of renewable energy development and manufacturing that will depend heavily on Long Island, as part of a post-COVID economy.
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Commentary
The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at Stony Brook University on Dec. 29. Credit: Howard Schnapp
New York's chaotic vaccine rollout. A Newsday editorial writes: Error messages and frozen computer screens. Hour-long waits on hold by phone only to be disconnected. Appointments made, only to be oddly canceled moments later. Pharmacies listed as ready-to-go, only to not even be scheduling vaccinations at all.
Have you tried to get an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine yet?
It’s been a very rocky start. New York’s efforts in scheduling people for their first vaccines have been a chaotic maze of frustrating, time-consuming and sometimes futile steps showing, yet again, the limits of the state’s aging information technology infrastructure. Also at issue: the limited supply of doses that makes appointments difficult to get.
State officials say they were prepared for the start of statewide vaccine appointments, and that tens of thousands of people successfully booked appointments in the last two days. But it’s clear the state’s system couldn’t meet the demand, and the situation worsened Tuesday, though officials correctly point out that the federal decision to broaden guidelines to include anyone 65 and older further taxed the system.
Nonetheless, the state has known a vaccine was coming — and that demand would be extensive — for months. Keep reading.
Erin Serpico is an assistant web producer who joined Newsday in November 2018. Originally from New Jersey, she now covers community events and produces local content for newsday.com while also helping run the homepage.
