The New York State Health Department is urging central New Yorkers to take steps to curb what officials are calling a "widespread transmission" of COVID-19 in the area.
State Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett recommends residents get vaccinated and boosted, get tested following symptoms and exposure, and return to wearing masks in all public indoor spaces in a five-county area, including Onondaga, Oswego, Madison, Cayuga and Cortland counties.
Infection rates from those counties are two and a half times greater than the rest of the state, Bassett wants to alert residents to use all the tools to stop the spread, including masks as well as vaccinations, and testing.
“I don’t think the people in central New York have been particularly reckless, or something strange is going on, Bassett said Saturday in an interview with WRVO. “This is a particularly contagious virus. All you have to do to get it is breathe.”
Bassett said the latest figures from central New York also don’t include at-home tests, which Onondaga County had been reporting. This gave the region a slightly higher rate than other counties that weren’t reporting the tests. But that hasn’t improved an infection rate that is substantially higher than the rest of the state.
"Even when we took the tests out, we see a sustained increase in high rates in Onondaga," she said. "So that is not accounting for our observation.
Bassett also said that immunization rates in Onondaga, Oswego, Madison, Cayuga and Cortland counties are about 66%, which is lower than the statewide average. She urges all residents to get vaccinated, including the latest booster option which became available over the weekend.
“The reason that I’m determined to get this information out is that we may be on the way up. In fact, it looks as if we are,” Bassett said. “And it’s important we not let this happen without using the many tools we have now.”
Along with the state recommendation, the CDC is including Onondaga, Oswego and Cayuga counties in the “high risk” category, also recommend wearing a mask indoors in public regardless of vaccination status.
