Rising Covid-19 rates lead to new concerns

From: POLITICO New York Playbook PM - Tuesday Mar 29,2022 08:18 pm

Mar 29, 2022

Presented by The Black Car Fund

Health officials in New York are noting a rise in Covid-19 positivity rates. They went from 1.3 percent for a seven-day average in mid-March to 2.4 percent on Monday.

The increase comes after the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said BA.2 is now the dominant strain of Covid-19 in the nation. It accounts for more than 70 percent of Covid-19 cases in New York.

Rates have spiked in some parts of New York. On Monday, the state Department of Health flagged rising cases in Central New York in particular, saying it is monitoring the latest surge.

Central New York’s seven-day average of cases per 100,000 people was 46.46, compared to the statewide seven-day average of 14.66, the state said. That translated into a Covid positivity rate in the region to 9.1 percent. The next highest region was 3.8 percent in the Mohawk Valley.

“The recent increase in cases in Central New York highlights the need for everyone to remain vigilant, do their part and get a COVID-19 vaccine and booster dose when eligible, tested following exposure or when developing symptoms, and to stay home and isolate when sick,” Dr. Mary Bassett, the state health commissioner, said in a statement.

The health department said it was investigating the rise in cases in Central New York, saying that “local vaccination rates, mask wearing, and adherence to other mitigation efforts may play a role” in the jump.

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IT’S TUESDAY: And it’s just two days before the state Legislature and Gov. Kathy Hochul need an on-time budget deal. We’ll get you caught up on today’s action in the state Capitol and in New York City Hall as the budget countdown continues.

From the Capitol

$564,842,625.20: The money is finally on the way. After years of legal fights that it ultimately lost to the state, the Seneca Nation Council approved a resolution late Monday to send $566 million to the state to end a five-year dispute over revenue sharing for its three Western New York casinos.

The tribe contended its gambling compact with the state had ended and that it didn’t need to continue to make annual payments to the state and local governments. But after exhausting all its legal options, the Senecas finally agreed to pay the money it had withheld for years.

The amount covers 2017 through 2021. The state will keep 75 percent of the money, and the rest goes to the host communities of the casinos, which are located in Salamanca, Buffalo and Niagara Falls.

PAROLEES TO BE DISCHARGED: The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said Monday that 8,000 parolees will be discharged from state supervision by the end of the month due to a new law signed by Hochullast September.

The law, called Less is More (LIM), aims to “improve justice and safety in city jails” and avoid having parolees return to state custody or supervision, Hochul said. The law created a “30 for 30” provision in which somebody who is released can earn 30 days of credit off their sentence for every 30 days they are not in violation status.

“When the Governor signed Less Is More into law she transformed the parole system in New York State. In the spirit of the law, DOCCS staff immediately went to work implementing some provisions long before the law took effect,” Anthony Annucci, the acting commissioner of the state agency, said in a statement.

FROM CITY HALL

TEACH THEM HOW TO FISH: Another day, another river metaphor from Mayor Eric Adams. This morning the mayor launched a new vocational training and apprenticeship program that will offer professional opportunities for 16 to 24 year olds in foster care or aging out of the system.

The city’s Administration for Children’s Services’ V-CRED program will provide at-risk youth with support for their education, career and personal development. “We’re creating upstream solutions, I say this all the time. We should not wait ‘til our young ones fall in the river and pull them out,” said Adams at a Kingsborough Community College press event. “Let’s go upstream and prevent them from falling in the first place.”

W.K. Kellogg Foundation, CUNY, and private sector partners created the new program. ACS Commissioner Jess Dannhauser said, “CUNY is absolutely vital to the social ability of our young people.” There are 45 participants in the pilot program, which Dannhauser says will grow.

V-CRED will provide training certification programs at Kingsborough Community College, paid internship and apprenticeships, and opportunities for employment in the fields of information technology, health, and building trades.

“A job is not just a paycheck, it’s a foundation for a good life and, in fact, it’s a foundation for a great life,” Adams said. — Deanna Garcia

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ON THE BEATS

HEALTH CARE: Attorney General Tish James is looking to compel a Syracuse nursing home to comply with various investigatory subpoenas that seek records on the facility’s operations and efforts to protect residents.

The AG’s office filed a late-Monday order in Onondaga County Supreme Court to force Van Duyn Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing to respond to subpoenas issued in August 2021, as well as on March 7, March 14 and March 21. Irene Bardot, a special assistant attorney general assigned to the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit who filed in support of the show cause motion, argued that the information sought by the subpoenas “is necessary for the Attorney General’s ongoing investigation.”

The filing marks the latest major public action the attorney general’s office has taken as part of its efforts to investigate New York nursing homes in wake of a damning 2021 report on the Cuomo administration’s handling of Covid-19 at long-term care facilities.

— Hochul announced $21 million to support 15 Youth Assertive Community Treatment teams , which will provide services and support to New Yorkers aged 10 to 21 who are at-risk of entering residential or inpatient psychiatric treatment. Hochul said the new program will help New York’s children “have the opportunity to remain with their families and receive the services they need." — Shannon Young.

TRANSIT: The first time the Metropolitan Transportation Authority tried to change bus routes in Queens, it did not go over well. The agency was flooded with 11,000 public comments, an unprecedented amount for the authority. Most of them were negative. Donovan Richards, a Queens Council Member at the time, said that the MTA had managed to do the impossible of uniting the diverse borough: “Every pocket of Queens is against this plan,” he said in 2020.

Two years later, the MTA is starting from scratch. MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber announced today a new bus redesign that he said emphasizes “faster travel, more reliable travel, better connections [and] ease of use.” It involves consolidating some routes and eliminating bus stops. But transit officials said those changes are balanced with efforts to improve speeds and provide better connections. There are new routes to connect to the Bronx and Brooklyn and bus lines are designed for easy transfers with subways and commuter rail, Lieber said.

The move comes as the MTA sees a troubling rise in congestion that has slowed down buses across the city. Bus speeds in Queens have dropped to an average of 8.7 miles per hour and on-time performance has decreased by 12 percent, according to the MTA. With congestion pricing still years away, MTA officials hope new bus lanes and corridors will make mass transit more bearable — particularly as it looks to win back riders lost during the pandemic.

For now, the new plan appears to be getting a warmer reception. Richards, now Queens borough president, joined transit leaders in Jamaica to voice support for the new initiative. “You can tell they definitely listened to communities,” he said. — Danielle Muoio Dunn

EDUCATION: Regent Beverly Ouderkirk, who represented New York’s fourth judicial district, has died. “Regent Beverly Ouderkirk opened doors that were once closed to students countless times over in her more than 50 years in public education,” read a statement from the Board of Regents and State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa on Tuesday.

The state Legislature first named Ouderkirk to the board in 2015, and subsequently re-elected her to her present term, which is slated to expire in 2025. She represented 11 counties in New York’s North Country. “Her willingness to always listen to the needs of educators and her tireless support of our work on behalf of students and families will be sorely missed,” said Jolene DiBrango, executive vice president of New York State United Teachers, in a statement. — Michelle Bocanegra

FORDHAM GRAD WORKERS SEEK UNION: Fordham Graduate Student Workers (FGSW) announced that that they will proceed with an official National Labor Relations Board election on April 5 and April 7. In February, a majority of workers with FGSW — graduate student employees of Fordham University — signed cards expressing their desire to join the Communication Workers of America (CWA). But they said that the Fordham administration has not committed to a neutrality agreement. If the workers win a union, they said their goal is to negotiate a contract that establishes official grievance structures, boosts protections for international students and guarantees better pay, comprehensive health care and child care accommodations.

“Fordham graduate students are essential employees of the university, and we want to be treated that way and compensated fairly,” Mara Foley, a graduate assistant and first-year doctoral student studying theology, said in a statement. “I am fully confident that the outcome of next week’s NLRB election will reflect the diligent hard work of our organizers and, most importantly, the desire of Fordham graduate students to have a union that will give us a voice and allow us to improve our working conditions.” — Madina Touré

AROUND NEW YORK

— The Met Council on Jewish Poverty is urging New York officials to allocate roughly 20 percent of the food to be kosher and halal food in the Nourish New York program.

— The Department of Transportation announced its plan to install 52 Citi Bike stations in Ridgewood, Queens before the summer.

— New York lawmakers are seeking to expand a race-horse anti-slaughter bill.

— A Webster home along Lake Ontario froze overnight due to extreme wind chill. Don’t believe us? Check it out.

— Get ready New Yorkers. Coney Island’s Luna Park is set to reopen this weekend.

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