A decision on whether schools will reopen in September has not been made, Governor Andrew Cuomo said at his press briefing in New York City today.

“The state has directed all 700 school districts to come up with a plan on how they would reopen,” Cuomo said. “There's two levels of discussion: Should they reopen and then, if they reopen, what does a reopened school look like in the ‘new normal?’”

Cuomo also announced that the State Fair in Syracuse is cancelled and that, even for regions like the Capital Region in the fourth and final phase of reopening, casinos and movie theaters will  remain closed, as are large indoor malls and movie theaters, as the state government continues to review the science and facts on their safe reopening.

New York State will make industry recommendations on the use of air filtration technology to potentially eliminate the spread of COVID-19 through air conditioning systems, Cuomo said.

As evidence emerges that COVID-19 spread is linked more to airborne transmission than to surface-area transmission, the state is studying filters, their compatibility with existing air systems, and the expense of modifications to air-conditioning systems among other factors.

Meanwhile, while many states are seeing spikes in COVID-19, the numbers in New York continue on a downward trend.

Cuomo announced the number of hospitalizations at 817 and said, “That is the lowest number since March 18, he said.”

He said all 10 regions had good five-day rates and added, “Best news are number of lives lost and we're down to 9.”

Albany County announced on Monday morning that the county now has 1,948 confirmed cases of COVID-19, an increase of 4 since yesterday, with 223 residents under mandatory quarantine. The five-day average for new daily positive cases is now 9.4, down from 9.8 yesterday. The increase from lower averages earlier was caused by a cluster of infections among workers at two restaurants, the county announced earlier.

Currently, Albany County has 47 active cases of COVID-19. So far, 5,869 residents have completed quarantine, with 1,901 of them having tested positive and recovered.

Two county residents are hospitalized and the hospitalization rate is 0.10 percent.

The county’s health department announced on Monday that someone with COVID-19 was at Albany’s Lincoln Pool on the Fourth of July but the department “determined the risk to others at the pool at that time was extremely low,” according to a release from the county executive’s office.