Almost exactly one month after Mayor Bill de Blasio triumphantly announced tens of thousands of fully vaccinated people could return to Times Square to celebrate New Year’s Eve in person this year, the state saw it’s highest single-day reporting of new COVID infections.
The previous record, set 11 months ago on Jan. 14, crumbled when Gov. Kathy Hochul announced 21,027 new positive cases statewide Friday. The old record for most cases in a single day was 19,942. New York reported close to the same number of tests taken last Friday, but of that batch (over 260,000), there were 10,000 less positive cases one week ago.
In an effort to combat rising cases of either variant, the state is rushing to acquire millions of at-home tests for New Yorkers living in communities with lower vaccine rates. On CNN Friday, the governor confirmed 1 million cases were already in hand with another 2 million on the way.
The unprecedented omicron-fueled COVID surge enveloping the former epicenter of the pandemic now has the mayor willing to reconsider the end of year festivities. However the mayor decides to handle the event, Hochul said it’s a decision best left up to the localities and that de Blasio will “make the right decision.”
Asked about the planned end-of-year bash Thursday night on CNN, de Blasio said the party is on for now but that could change at some point if the data warrants it.
“We made the decision a few weeks back when things were much better. But we said vaccinated people only,” the Democrat said. “Everyone’s been told for weeks and weeks, don’t even show up in Times Square unless you’re vaccinated.”
“Now we’re going to reassess constantly with the new information. We’re going to follow the data and the science,” he added. “Right now, it’s on. You know, we’ll make a decision as we go, get closer as to what should finally happen.”
While that full vaccination requirement is what fueled de Blasio’s confidence in a safe, jam-packed Crossroads of the World to close out 2021, a growing number of people who planned to go may be wondering if it is still enough.
The omicron COVID variant is a growing cause of concern during the holiday season as New Yorkers anticipate travel and group events, but should we cancel plans? Here’s what several experts suggest. News 4’s Linda Gaudino reports.
A day ago, the mayor’s top health adviser, Dr. Jay Varma, tweeted, “Um, we’ve never seen this before in #NYC” regarding COVID positivity rates. The share of people testing positive doubled in three days this week, and Varma said it was an indication of omicron evading immunity in a way no other variant had before.
The city’s rolling daily case average is up almost 57% over the rolling averages for the previous four weeks and COVID hospitalizations are up nearly 31%. Delta is the variant believed to be fueling the spike in more severe cases, while omicron is thought to be behind the surge in infections. Both are called “variants of concern.”
The latter accounts for only 1% of tested COVID samples in New York City currently, though its prevalence is likely far higher. Delta remains dominant (97%), but experts expect omicron to overtake it as the dominant U.S. strain in a matter of weeks.
The city does not report how many of the new cases are breakthrough infections. They are still believed to be a very small fraction of new COVID cases, and a minute fraction of new hospitalizations, but both of those fractions have been steadily rising since the emergence of omicron in November, state data shows.
New Daily Cases Over Time by Vaccination Status
New Daily Hospital Admissions Over Time by Vaccination Status
The anecdotal evidence is there, too. Breakthrough infections have rattled New York City’s entertainment industry resurgence to its core, with the Rockettes becoming the latest casualty Friday.
A range of Broadway shows, from “Hamilton,” to “Moulin Rouge” to “Mrs. Doubtfire” and others, are canceling performances for the same reason. In some cases, the breakthrough cases in the companies are discovered so late and unexpectedly that audiences are in their seats when they learn the show will not go on.
While the first U.S. omicron case was only confirmed 16 days ago, health officials believe it was in America — and New York, which is detecting it at four times the rate of the rest of the country, the CDC said this week — well before that.
About 75% of the first 40 U.S. confirmed omicron cases were breakthrough infections, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky has said.
Still, she and other leading health experts, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, say the vast majority of those cases are mild and the existing vaccines are still overwhelmingly effective at preventing severe COVID-related illness and death. De Blasio agrees.
“If someone’s vaccinated, particularly if they have gotten that booster, they’re a hell a lot safer,” de Blasio said on CNN. “They still might get COVID. I might get COVID. You might get COVID. But we’re going to live through it. We probably don’t end up in a hospital, which is not only good for you and me, it’s good for the whole society.”
“COVID has taught us a lesson. It changes all the time. So, the reason you want to be extra careful is because you don’t know what the next curve ball’s going to be,” he added — and of omicron said, “This is a whole new animal and we got to be honest about the fact that it’s moving very fast and we have to move faster.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday that new data show booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines offer protection against the omicron variant and there is no current need to reformulate shots for variant-specific boosters.