ALBANY COUNTY — While the guidelines for Governor Andrew Cuomo’s winter plan for dealing with COVID-19 haven’t been released, Cuomo told reporters in a conference call on Friday afternoon, “The infection rate is not that relevant anymore. We’re really focusing on the hospitalization rate and hospitalization capacity.”

Earlier in the day, Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy had announced another death from COVID-19 and a record-breaking number of new COVID-19 cases — 185 — as well as the seventh consecutive day of breaking the county’s record for hospitalization: 96 county residents are now hospitalized with the virus.

Cuomo told reporters that New York State has about 53,000 hospital beds but that number can be increased by ending elective surgery.

“We ended elective surgery in Buffalo as of today,” he said.

Western New York continues to have the highest percentage of positive test results of any of the state’s 10 regions. The current seven-day average for Western New York is 7.42 percent.

Second, Cuomo said, the state has in the past — with the springtime surge of the virus — mandated a 50-percent increase in hospital beds and is prepared to do so again.

“We have flexibility in our capacity; hence the flex-and-surge plan,” said Cuomo.

New York State has about 6,000 beds in intensive-care units, Cuomo said, adding, “Right now, we have about close to 40 percent of those beds available.”

He also went over numbers that showed improvements in how hospitalizations have been handled. 

In March and April, 25 percent of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 went to an ICU and 85 percent of those in an ICU were intubated. “That drove the ventilator crisis,” said Cuomo.

Currently, he said, 18 rather than 25 percent of hospitalized patients go to an ICU and only 45 percent are intubated.

Also, the length of a hospital stay for COVID-19 patients now is less than half of what it was in the spring — five days rather than 11 days, Cuomo said.

“And then the most encouraging number: March, April of those hospitalized, 23 percent died,” said Cuomo. “That number is down to 8 percent, so God bless the medical professionals who have learned more about how to treat COVID, have more therapeutics, have better medicines and better practices, but the death rate has gone from 23 to 8 percent.”

McCoy reported on Friday morning that Albany County this month is averaging 12 new hospitalizations per day. There are currently 16 COVID-19 patients in intensive-care units, which ties the highest number, on April 13.

McCoy also noted again that it is not just the elderly who are hospitalized. Currently, he said, two Albany County residents under the age of 25 are hospitalized with COVID-19; 14 are between the ages of 25 and 49 while 38 are between the ages of 50 and 74 and 42 are over the age of 75.

“It’s not improbable next week our numbers will be in the 200s ...,” Health Commissioner Elizabeth Whalen said. “Coming into the Christmas season, it is important that people curb what they normally do.” She recommended avoiding crowded shopping venues — using online platforms instead — as well as not holding social gatherings.

Whalen said this could lead to a surge in hospital beds, which could be prevented with a change in behaviors.

Although, in the majority of new cases in Albany County, a clear source of infection cannot be identified, Whalen said, contact tracers get an idea of where an infected person may have been exposed.

The state, then, uses that data from across New York, she said, adding that the data is replicated nationally.

Of avoiding in-home gatherings, Whalen said, “I know that’s not what people want to hear.”

She concluded, “We continue to implore you to do the right thing.”

Testing expanded

The county is continuing its initiatives to expand testing, McCoy said.

Friday was the first day of COVID-19 testing at the Times Union Center, which he said was packed. It will continue on Mondays and Fridays and parking is free.

The center is large enough for people to stay socially distanced while also protecting them from the weather, said McCoy.

He challenged any group or not-for-profit organization to partner with the county on setting up testing and on educating people on why they need to be tested.

“We’re moving to get more tests in the Hilltowns,” he said, naming the towns of Berne, Knox, Westerlo, and Coeymans.

Vaccinations

“The federal government is now offering an initiative where they will do the vaccinations for nursing homes and nursing home staff,” Cuomo told reporters on Friday. “They contract with medical companies, drug companies to actually do the vaccinations of nursing home residents and nursing home staff. A state can opt in or opt out.”

New York State is opting in, he said.

Cuomo said that about a third of the state state’s 700,000 health-care workers are considered high-risk health-care workers, treating COVID patients.

“Within the next two weeks we should have enough vaccines to vaccinate about one third of that one third, if the federal government delivers as they say they will,” he said, “and nursing homes and high risk health care workers, they are up at the top of the list of prioritizing people to get the vaccine.”

Of vaccinations being given first to nursing-home residents, Whalen said, “It’s not going to be piloted on elderly people.”

Rather, she said, the first vaccinations will be given to those with “the highest risk of illness and death and the highest risk of exposure,” which are the health-care workers dealing with COVID-19 patients.

Whalen stressed, “the vaccine has been vetted.” She also said that seeing first responders and hospital workers vaccinated will build public confidence in the vaccine.

Newest numbers

Statewide, the rate of positive tests, based on Thursday’s results, was 5.41 percent, the governor announced; this includes all the micro-cluster zones at 7.35 percent.

The Capital Region, of which Albany County is a part, had a seven-day average of 4.14 percent. The lowest of the state’s 10 regions remains the Southern Tier, at 2.75 percent.

The percent-positive rate for Albany county on Dec. 2 was 4.2 percent; this follows rates of 6.4 percent on Dec. 1, of 5.3 percent on Nov. 30, and of 4.7 percent on Nov. 29.

As of Friday morning, Albany County has 6.333 confirmed cases of COVID-19, McCoy announced.

Among the 185 new cases, 19 had close contact with someone infected with the disease, 137 did not have a clear source of infection identified at this time, and 29 are health-care workers or residents of congregate settings.

The five-day average for new daily positives increased to 150.6 from 131.6. There are now 992 active cases in the county, a huge increase from 910 yesterday.

Currently, 2,218 county residents are under quarantine, down from 2,239. So far, 24,955 county residents have completed quarantine. Of those, 5,341 had tested positive and recovered. 

The county’s hospitalization rate has now reached 1.51 percent.

The COVID-19 patient who died overnight was a woman in her seventies who did not live in a nursing home.

Albany County’s COVID-19 death toll now stands at 167.