NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – COVID positivity rates are over 10% in nearly a third of New York City's ZIP codes—a marked rise from just a couple of months ago.
In total, 54 of the city's 177 ZIP codes have rates over 10%. In the week before Thanksgiving, there were 40 ZIP codes with rates over 4%, according to the New York Post.
In October, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he would have grounds to lockdown neighborhoods with rates over 4%, but the "red zone" policy was changed to reflect hospital capacity as case spiked during the holidays.
City data shows the Brooklyn ZIP code that includes Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay and Manhattan Beach has among the highest rates in the city at 17.57%.
NYC.gov
Across the boroughs, the neighborhoods with the highest rates include Hunt's Point in the Bronx; Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park in Queens; Inwood in Manhattan; and New Dorp and Tottenville on Staten Island.
This past week alone saw an average of 67 city residents dying daily, ten times more than the average of six in October, according to the report.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said Saturday that there were 4,588 new cases and 293 new hospitalizations in the city. He said the city's seven-day positivity rate was 9%.
Data shows hospitalizations and confirmed deaths are increasing in the city, while total cases are stable. The weekly average of hospitalizations was 2,222, while the weekly average of confirmed deaths was 355. The weekly average for total cases (confirmed and probable) was 36,546.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned of COVID fatigue while touring a NYCHA pop-up vaccination site at the William Reid Apartments in Brooklyn on Saturday.
"It's been a long 329 days, but this is a war. Think of it like a war. And we've had generations who went to war. And 329 days is not long when you are at war," the governor said.
