Red alert: All 62 counties in NY now seeing ‘high’ spread of Covid-19

Covid in New York: Aug. vs Sept. 2021

These map from the CDC shows Covid-19 community transmission in New York state on Aug. 7, 2021 (left) and Sept. 7, 2021. Fully vaccinated people are urged to wear masks indoors in areas with "substantial" (orange) and "high" (red) transmission, which is now all 62 counties in New York.

All 62 counties in New York state are now seeing “high” transmission of Covid-19 — up from 15 counties a month ago, and zero counties eight weeks ago.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says people should wear masks indoors, even if they’re vaccinated, in areas with “substantial” (orange areas on map above) and “high” (red) transmission of Covid-19. More than 95% of U.S. counties are now in the red zone.

Areas seeing a case rate of at least 50 new cases per 100,000 people (or an 8-9.9% positivity rate among Covid tests) in the past 7 days are considered “substantial” spread, and areas with at least 100 cases per 100,000 people (or at least a 10% positivity rate among Covid tests) in the past 7 days are considered “high” spread.

Three counties in Upstate New York currently have the highest case rates in the state, with at least 300 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days. St. Lawrence County is reporting 399.11 cases per 100,000 residents over the past week, as of Tuesday, followed by Franklin County (357.84) and Tompkins County (308.28).

Most new infections in the U.S. continue to be among unvaccinated people, who are more likely to see severe symptoms, hospitalization or death than fully vaccinated people.

The CDC previously said fully vaccinated people could stop wearing masks in most situations in May, when the Delta variant accounted for less than 1% of Covid cases in the U.S. But the variant, also known as B.1.617.2, is more than twice as contagious as previous variants and now accounts for the vast majority of Covid cases in New York state and nationwide.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said masks will be required in all New York schools this fall, regardless of vaccination status. Children under 12 are still ineligible to get vaccinated, and a large number of kids under 18 remain unvaccinated.

On Wednesday, Hochul said a vaccine mandate for kids ages 12 to 17 is possible in New York, although the state isn’t there yet. “That is certainly an option,” she said during a press conference in New York City.

The CDC’s recommendation for unvaccinated people remains the same nationwide: Continue wearing a mask in public until you get the vaccine. And masks are still recommended for all people in crowded indoor settings, such as buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters.

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