New York Works to Raise Hospital Capacity for COVID-19 Spike

New York state officials are working with the medical community to increase hospital capacity as the number of residents hospitalized with COVID-19 reaches the highest level since mid-May, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday.

Officials said 7,183 people were hospitalized with the virus as of Saturday, an increase of nearly 300 over the previous day.

The state on Sunday also reported 115 new deaths attributable to COVID-19, bringing the state’s official death tally to 29,511.

A single-day spike of 18 deaths was reported in Onondaga County, which includes Syracuse.

The Finger Lakes region reached a seven-day average positivity rate of 8.12%, surpassing the state seven-day average of 5.66, according to the new data.

“As we near the end of the holiday season, New York remains locked in a footrace between the vaccine’s quick distribution and COVID-19’s continued spread,” Cuomo said in a news release.

“It has been a tough year and we still have several tough months ahead, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel and we will make it there if we all do our part to slow the spread,” he said.