NEW YORK (WBEN) – New York state's seven-day positivity rate fell Saturday to its lowest level "since the COVID-19 crisis began," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.
The seven-day rate, which is the average positivity over a week, was 0.73%, according to the governor. The previous low was 0.75% on Aug. 24 and 25 of last year.
Cuomo said the seven-day rate has declined for 54 consecutive days after a spike in cases around the holidays.
"Our numbers have been trending in the right direction -- reaching a record low since the start of this pandemic -- and they continue to do so because of what the people of this state have done," Cuomo said in a statement.
The state's single-day positivity rate was 0.62%, up slightly from Friday's 0.59%.
The number is down significantly from early January, when the positivity rate surpassed 7%.
The state reported another 870 COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths Saturday. Of those, 338 cases and six deaths were in New York City, state data shows.
Statewide hospitalizations fell by 26 patients to 1,143. It's the lowest number of hospitalizations since Oct. 31.
On the vaccine front, about 46% of 20 million residents in the state are fully vaccinated, according to data as of Friday from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The national average is at 40%.
The rates of full vaccination vary widely across New York, with some rates higher in less-populated parts of central New York, including 68% in Hamilton County. That's in contrast to 36% in Brooklyn and 34% in the Bronx.
Rates are lower in several western, rural New York counties: 28% in Allegany and 35% in Wyoming and Orleans.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
