ALBANY COUNTY — The COVID-19 death toll for Albany County now stands at 130 as another person died of the disease overnight.

The patient was a man in his eighties, with underlying health conditions, who lived in a private nursing home, according to a release from Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy.

Also on Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that New York State had a rate of positive COVID-19 tests of less than 1 percent for the 10th straight day yesterday. The rate of positive tests, 0.71 percent, is the state’s lowest since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis. The average infection rate has been 1 percent or lower since June.

The Capital Region, of which Albany County is a part, had a rate of 0.3 percent, the third lowest among the state’s 10 regions. The North Country, at 0.1 percent, remains the very lowest and Central New York was second lowest at 0.2 percent.

“Going forward,” said Cuomo, “we need to protect the progress, which New Yorkers can do by wearing masks, socially distancing, and washing their hands, and local governments can do by enforcing state guidance.”

On Sunday, the State Liquor Authority and State Police Task Force visited 861 establishments in New York City and Long Island and observed 11 that were not in compliance with state requirements, Cuomo reported.

“The State Liquor Authority and the New York State Police are attempting to supplement what the local police departments are supposed to be doing,” Cuomo said at his Monday press briefing. “That is their job. Local police departments are supposed to be enforcing these laws. Frankly, they're not doing it in some places to the extent they should be doing it.”

National spotlight

At Monday’s press briefing, Cuomo also previewed the speech he’s giving Monday night, the opening of the Democratic convention, featuring New Yorkers as a model of working together to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

“The COVID virus showed us how weak we were and how unprepared we were and how divided we were. I say in the speech, it takes a strong body to resist the virus because it really is a great metaphor, right?” Cuomo said. “When does the virus wreak havoc? When the body is weak. And America’s body politic is weak. We’re divided. Our government was not ready to respond so I speak about that. 

He also said, “Ask yourself when was the last time government was as essential as it is today? When? When did government matter the way it matters to you today to everybody today ….

 “Government is making life-and-death decisions …. Government matters today. Democratic, Republican, upstate, downstate. Government matters. Leadership matters. Leadership matters. Performance matters. Strip away all the rhetoric: Did you get the job done or not? Performance matters. It was the great crystallizer of truth and fact — what we've been going through. Social unity matters.”

Police reform

Cuomo also spoke at Monday’s press briefing of millions of protesters taking to the streets in the midst of the pandemic, spurred on by George Floyd’s death.

“You want to talk about civil rights? You want to talk about social equity? How do you explain that?” asked Cuomo of increased violence. “It’s not just New York City; it’s all across the nation. It’s also upstate New York. Upstate cities: Shooting injuries up 70 percent year-to-date; Albany shootings up 240; Buffalo 66 percent; Rochester 54 percent; Syracuse 130 percent.”

Cuomo called his June 12 executive order — the New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative — ambitious.

“What it said is, we have an issue and we have to address the issue. Very little has been done. Today I’m sending a letter to 500 jurisdictions in New York State that have a police department and the letter is explaining that it is imperative that we address this urgent crisis,” said Cuomo.

He went on, “I understand it’s complicated. I understand it’s difficult. I also understand people are dying, right? It’s like the COVID crisis. ‘Oh this is complicated, this is hard.’ Yeah, I know. It’s also a matter of life and death and so is this situation. Denial is not a successful life strategy — not in government, not in your personal life ….

Acknowledge the tensions — they are real … Form a collaborative, put people at the table — we understand the issues, we understand the tensions, we understand the differences of opinion.

“Let’s design a public safety function, a police department, where the police say they can operate with these policies and the community says their reforms that they require necessary for social justice. That’s the only way out of this. There is no other option. Denial doesn't work.”

Cuomo set an April deadline on which state funding depends. “I’m saying in the letter today, if you don’t have a plan that is a reimagined police department by next April, there will be no state funding for that jurisdiction,” he said.

Gyms to reopen

Although all regions of the state are now in the fourth and final phase of reopening, gyms, bowling alleys, amusement parks, and movie theaters had not been allowed to open.

On Friday, Cuomo announced that bowling alleys, with restrictions, could reopen on Monday, Aug. 17.

On Monday, he said that gyms can reopen, starting Aug. 24, and all gyms and fitness centers will be able to open by Sept. 2. McCoy has long pushed for gyms to be allowed to reopen.

“As New York maintains daily positive test rates below 1 percent, the state has determined that local elected officials can allow gyms and fitness centers to reopen at 33 percent capacity while following rigorous safety protocols, including wearing masks at all times,” Cuomo said.

Local elected officials may choose to delay the reopening of gyms and fitness centers until Sept. 2 to, in part, provide time for required local health department inspections, and may also choose to delay the reopening of indoor fitness classes until a date beyond Sept. 2.

Outside of New York City, the county's chief executive will determine whether gym reopening needs to be postponed.

In addition to one-third occupancy and mask-wearing, other requirements for reopening include: sign-in with contact information and health screening; six feet separation; equipment being cleaned after every use; classes by appointment only; no shared water fountains or showers; and heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems that meet protocols set by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Local health departments are to inspect gyms and fitness centers within two weeks of opening to ensure compliance.

New numbers

As of Monday morning, Albany County has 2,422 confirmed cases of COVID-19, an increase of seven since Sunday. Three of the new cases are of healthcare workers or residents of private congregate settings, two had close contacts with other positive cases, and two who do not have a clear source of transmission at this time,

The number of county residents under quarantine has gone up to 560 from 536 on Sunday.

The five-day average for new daily positives has dropped to 7.8 from 10.6 on Sunday.

Albany County currently has 41 active cases, up from 38.

So far, 8,541 county residents have completed quarantine. Of those who completed quarantine, 2,381 of them had tested positive and recovered, an increase of four.

Seven county residents are hospitalized due to the virus, with two in intensive-care units. The county’s hospitalization rate remains at 0.28 percent.