BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Small gatherings account for 65% of new coronavirus cases, according to Governor Andrew Cuomo.
"Part of it is the holidays," Cuomo said Monday. "It's what happens during holidays. Part of it is reduced social options. I can't go to the bar and hang out and I can't go to a restaurant and hang out. I can't go to the movie theatre and hang out. Come over to my house and we'll hang out. It's just an adaptation of social behavior to the circumstance."
Western New York, particularly Erie County, remains the most problematic area for the state. Though there are not as many cases of COVID-19, the positive test rate for Western New York is the highest in the state at 7.4%. Erie County had a 7.9% positive test rate on Sunday.
The seven-day rolling average for Erie County is 7.3%. Among all counties in the state, only Allegany County has a higher rolling average. However, state officials point towards Erie County as the more problematic area due to its population.
Owners of high-risk businesses like gyms and barber shops have blasted the state for closing them under the orange zone initiative. A lawsuit was filed against the state Monday by the Orchard Park gym owner who was fined by Erie County after opening for a protest event.
The governor did not explicitly address gyms when asked about it on Monday but noted the "valve", the analogy the governor uses to describe micro-cluster zones, no longer controls the spread.
"When we started, the spread was indoor dining and large social gatherings," Cuomo said. "The spread now is small, at-home gatherings, living room gatherings. It's an interesting - It's frightening but interesting- people adapt. You can't go to a bar. You can't go to a restaurant. What do you do? You start to go to people's homes and watch the football game or come over to play cards."
Cuomo suggested enforcement of these restrictions is not practical but instead serves as public education.
There is a possibility of a full shutdown again except for essential businesses. Cuomo said the restrictions like the orange zone could prevent the full shutdown.
Last week, the Monroe County Health Commissioner told WHEC-TV that gyms and barber shops are not of concern to health officials.
Erie County leaders said there are high-risk businesses, like gyms, that have been a source of COVID-19 spread but they are not releasing data on how many businesses have been the site of spread.
"Contact tracing is not perfect," Cuomo said. "They don't get a great response rate and it depends on who (is a) contact tracer. Different systems are better and different systems are worse. We have more data than anyone else. At one point, it becomes redundant because you are only testing data on four sources."
Erie County Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein said medical experts have pinpointed businesses that are closed and restaurants offering takeout as a source of spread.
When asked whether or not New York State will reconsider its business closures on the data that shows the severity of spread at gyms and salons, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul said the advice from medical experts is dictating how the state determines which businesses close.
"Everything we have done has been guided by experts, doctors," Hochul said. "The information shows us that these are high-risk activities."
Hochul said she understands the concerns of business owners but said the current amount of community spread could lead to higher exposure due to the nature of the business.
