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COURIER L 20 IFE, OCTOBER 15-21, 2021
COVID SPIKES IN
BOROUGH PARK
Nabe struggles as vax rates remain low
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
More than 90,000 people live in Borough
Park, but only 43 percent of them
are vaccinated against COVID-19, according
to the latest city Health Department
fi gures.
Having the dubious distinction of
being the neighborhood with the lowest
fully vaccinated rate in New York
City is now taking a toll on Borough
Park in a different, yet predictable
way — as the community saw the most
COVID-19 infections in the Five Boroughs
this past week.
Between Sept. 29 and Oct. 5, according
to the Health Department, Borough
Park (11219) had both the highest
7-day positivity rate (6.62 percent) and
most new infections (187) in the entire
city. The community was a full two
percentage points ahead of the community
with the second-highest 7-day
positivity rate, Crown Heights (11213),
also in Brooklyn. Crown Heights saw
a 4.54 percent 7-day positivity rate and
177 new cases in the period.
The two communities continue to
buck the overall downward trend of
COVID-19 across the city. The citywide
7-day positivity rate on Oct. 5 was
1.92 percent, which was less than half
of Crown Heights’ positivity rate and
nearly two-thirds lower than the Borough
Park rate.
Both Borough Park and Crown
Heights also saw an increase in the
7-day positivity rates week over week.
While Borough Park’s rate only grew
by 0.05 percent from the number registered
between Sept. 22-28 (6.57 percent),
Crown Heights’ 7-day positivity
leaped by 1.5 percent from the previous
week (3.04 percent).
Two additional Brooklyn neighborhoods
— East Williamsburg/Williamsburg
(11211, 11249) and Midwood
(11230) — also saw increased spread
of COVID-19 over the past week, with
hundreds of new cases detected in the
communities.
All fi ve neighborhoods with 100 or
more new COVID-19 cases diagnosed
between Sept. 29-Oct. 5 were in Brooklyn.
A portion of Cypress Hills/East
New York (11207, 2.56 percent 7-day
positivity rate, 103 new cases) joined
Borough Park, East Williamsburg/
Williamsburg, Crown Heights and
Midwood at the top of the list.
Each of the 15 communities with the
most new COVID-19 infections over the
past week have subpar fully vaccinated
rates of 60 percent or less. In Borough
Park, just 43 percent of residents (38,608
of 90,083) are fully vaccinated, and 47
percent of the area’s population (42,495)
had at least one dose of the vaccine.
Midwood follows with a 47 percent
Though unvaccinated individuals continue to
protest vaccine mandates, the city’s Health
Department data shows that the virus is
raging on, predominantly in areas where the
fewest residents have received the shots.
REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
fully vaccinated rate, with 53 percent
of its 88,889 residents having received
at least the fi rst dose. Crown Heights,
home to 64,601 residents, follows suit
with a 47 percent fully vaccinated rate
and 54 percent of all residents getting
at least the fi rst shot.
The rates are far below the citywide
totals of 65 percent of all residents
fully vaccinated, and 72 percent of the
entire population having received at
least the fi rst dose. Brooklyn has the
lowest rates in the entire city, with
58 percent of all residents fully vaccinated
and just 64 percent of the population
with a minimum fi rst dose.
Despite the upward trend in lowvaxxed
areas of Brooklyn, the city’s
Health Department reports that the virus’
spread continues to decrease citywide.
Even with the highly-contagious
Delta variant making up 98 percent
of all new COVID-19 cases in the Five
Boroughs, the citywide transmission
rate fell over the past week to 106.43 per
100,000 residents. Staten Island continues
to have the highest transmission
rate, at 142.81 per 100,000 residents, followed
closely behind by Brooklyn at
133.01 per 100,000 residents.
By comparison, Borough Park’s
transmission rate, as of Oct. 8, stood at
206 per 100,000 residents.
COVID-19 continues to overwhelmingly
sicken and kill unvaccinated
New Yorkers. So far, since Jan. 17, 2021,
507,911 unvaccinated New Yorkers were
diagnosed with COVID-19. Of them,
41,976 were hospitalized and 7,351 of
patients died. Of vaccinated New Yorkers,
just 40,191 individuals contracted
breakthrough cases. Approximately
2,070 of them required hospitalization,
and 290 patients died.
ENRICO ASCHER, MD
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