BUFFALO (WBEN) - Just one day after local officials held a press briefing to sound the alarm on rising COVID numbers in Western New York, Governor Kathy Hochul made a stop in Buffalo Tuesday to convey much of the same message.
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"I am here because I am personally, deeply concerned about the rate of infection, not just here in Western New York, but what we're seeing in the Finger Lakes and some other regions," said Hochul. "We are seeing the spikes go up; we are seeing the numbers continue."
The seven-day positivity rate across the state is 3.4% but 8.5% in Western New York.
"There is a direct correlation between people being vaccinated and the infection rate," said Hochul. "Infection rates are high, and vaccination rates should be higher - I mean, there's no reason why we we're not at 100%."
Both Hochul and Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz are also stressing those who have been vaccinated to get their booster shots.
"When you look at the breakdown, there's room for improvement...we definitely have the capacity, we have the infrastructure in place, and we have to make sure that more people are getting the boosters," said Hochul. "Our seniors are vulnerable because the vaccine that they had, some of them, was a (about) year ago - many of them were vaccinated in December, in January. The effectiveness of it is starting to wane. We know that 47% of people 65 and over have had a booster...that's the population that's going to get sick and end up in the hospital."
Hochul said she wants to get those booster numbers up, and to do that, the state is committing to working with local healthcare facilities and health departments to make sure they have the necessary resources to have boosters available in any place that seniors gather.
"We have created a dynamic where anyone who wants to get a vaccine, it is available," Hochul continued. "Yes, these numbers are better than they had been, and we've made some great progress...and we'll eventually hit 90% (vaccination rate), but it's that 10% that's holding everybody back. That's what's so frustrating about this - it doesn't have to be that way."