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April 22, 2022 • Schneps Media
LOCAL NEWS
Welcome to the hot zone
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
Although infection rates
and case levels continue to
climb across New York City
thanks to the BA.2 subvariant of
COVID-19, Manhattan continues
to bear the biggest brunt in the latest
virus wave.
The latest statistics from the
city’s Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene indicate that
the borough remains the hottest
zone of the latest cycle of
COVID-19 infections.
Manhattan’s transmission rate
of 329.46 cases per 100,000 residents
is nearly double the citywide
transmission rate of 178.21 cases
per 100,000. Only one other borough,
Staten Island, has a rate
(182.51 per 100,000) higher than
the citywide figure.
The increasing number of cases
related to the BA.2 subvariant of
COVID-19 — which accounts for
about 85% of all new infections
in the city — has caused a slow,
yet steady rise in the city’s 7-day
positivity rate, which as of April 15
stood at 4.46%. The daily average
of new total cases over a weekly
period was up to 2,122 — but hospitalizations
are holding “stable”
at 28, and deaths continue to decrease;
just two daily COVID-19
deaths were reported on average
over the week.
Even so, COVID-19 is hitting
Manhattan hard this month. Two
West Side areas had more than 500
new COVID-19 cases diagnosed
between April 6-12: Manhattan
Valley/Morningside Heights/Upper
West Side (ZIP 10025, 302
new cases, 7.92% 7-day positivity
rate) and Lincoln Square
(10023, 207 new cases, 10.6%
7-day positivity).
Eight other Manhattan neighborhoods
each had 150 or more
new cases during the period: Upper
West Side (10024, 189 new
cases, 9.39% positivity); East Village/
Gramercy/Greenwich Village
(10003, 185 cases, 9.36% positivity);
Central Harlem/Morningside
Heights/West Harlem (10027, 184
cases, 7.05% positivity); Upper
East Side/Yorkville (10128, 163
cases, 8.29% positivity); Chelsea
(10011, 160 cases, 10.25% positivity);
Hell’s Kitchen/Midtown Manhattan
(10019, 160 cases, 10.04%
positivity); Kips Bay/Murray Hill/
NoMad (10016, 159 cases, 10.56%
positivity); and Upper East Side/
Yorkville (10028, 151 cases,
9.82% positivity).
The 7-day positivity rates across
Manhattan have also skyrocketed;
10 communities logged rates of
10% or higher. An area of the Financial
District (10006) led the
entire city with a 16.38% 7-day
positivity rate, though it had only
19 new COVID-19 infections
during the period.
Only one community outside of
Manhattan — Greenpoint, Brooklyn
(10.87%) — had a 7-day positivity
rate exceeding 10% between
April 6-12.
As noted, while COVID-19 cases
are on the rise citywide, the number
of patients being hospitalized
or dying of the illness continues to
remain low. That’s largely due to
the high number of New Yorkers
who’ve received COVID-19 vaccines,
which have been proven to
significantly reduce the chances of
severe infection, and the availability
of antibody and new antiviral
treatments proven to be effective at
reducing symptoms.
BY BEN BRACHFELD
The MTA is sticking with
its mask mandate for now,
even after a federal judge in
Florida on Monday struck down
the Center for Disease Control
and Prevention’s face-covering requirement
on airplanes and public
transit nationwide.
The transit authority said that
it intends to keep its mandate in
place on its buses, subways, and
commuter railroads for now, citing
a March recommendation from
the state Health Department recommending
masks continue to be
required in certain settings, like
public transit, even as the state has
relaxed regulations elsewhere.
“The mask requirement on public
transit in NY remains in effect
for now pursuant to a March 2,
2022 determination by the New
York State Department of Health,”
said MTA spokesperson Tim
Minton in a statement.
But even with the local mandate
still in place, the ruling may serve
to catalyze the gradual mask-shedding
by Gotham straphangers that
has been seen in recent months,
even with the MTA plastering
masking ads all over its trains and
running consistent voice-over announcements
reminding riders to
wear a face-covering.
The Port Authority said Tuesday
that masks are still required
at its New York facilities, including
JFK and LaGuardia Airports,
the Port Authority Bus Terminal
and George Washington Bridge
Bus Station, and the Oculus.
Masks remain a requirement
on PATH trains.
“The Port Authority will continue
to follow the guidance of the
New York and New Jersey public
health authorities with respect
to mask mandates at its public
transportation facilities,” a Port
Authority spokesperson said.
The conflicting guidelines coming
from different levels and entities
of government have caused
something of a mess at Penn Station.
Amtrak, which owns the
subterranean train hub, and New
Jersey Transit have lifted their
mask mandates, but masks remain
a requirement on the Long Island
Rail Road and the subway. Signs
denoting a mask requirement
were still up during the morning
rush even as overhead announcements
by Amtrak declared masks
optional, Gothamist reported.
Cases have been on the rise in the
five boroughs over the past several
weeks owing to the BA.2 subvariant
of Omicron, though still at nowhere
near the levels seen during this winter’s
surge. Though cases are reaching
levels where the city Health Department
recommends reinstating
restrictions, Mayor Eric Adams —
once again doing in-person events
after coming out of COVID-19
isolation — would not commit to
restoring any mandates.
REUTERS/ANDREW KELLY
A person dressed in a costume symbolising COVID-19 walks on a makeshift runway during the annual
Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival on 5th Ave in Manhattan on April 17, 2022.
FILE PHOTO/DEAN MOSES
Manhattan continues steady surge of COVID-19 infections
MTA, Port Authority keep mask mandates