Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy said that the eight counties in the Capital Region — Albany, Columbia, Greene, Saratoga, Schenectady, Rensselaer, Warren, and Washington — now meet five out of the seven metrics outlined by Governor Andrew Cuomo for reopening.

More than half of Albany County’s jobs fall in the second phase, outlined by the governor for reopening businesses, which would mean June at the earliest.

As the new cases of COVID-19 have dropped statewide, Albany County is still waiting to hit its apex.

“If you can open your heart and open your home, we would love to have you foster a child,” said Moira Manning, Albany County’s commissioner for the Department for Children, Youth and Families, giving this phone number to start the process: 518-447-7515.

“We received word overnight,” said Albany County Health Commissioner Elizabeth Whalen at Friday’s press briefing of expanded testing at the University at Albany. “They’re looking to cast a much broader net of people that need to be screened or tested for COVID-19.”

Prosecutors and defense attorneys along with judges no longer gather in a courtroom for an arraignment but rather each works from his or her own home or office, connecting through Skype.

The United States Post Office was critical to the American colonies in winning their independence from England and it grew with the nation as mail traveled by horseback, by stagecoach, by steamship, by train, and by plane. We need to ensure that it continues to connect us in this digital age when the current pandemic has underlined our need for a method of physical delivery and connection.

For the 10th time, Enterprise editor Melissa Hale-Spencer was recognized among the best opinion writers in the weekly press.

Unlike Governor Andrew Cuomo’s announcement earlier in the week that schools would not reopen this year, which was hailed by educators, his plan to have the state work with the Gates Foundation “to reimagine education” met with resistance from some groups of educators.

Working with other staff, Kathleen Dethomasis said, nurses call each person who tests positive for COVID-19, collects their contact information, and provides them with education and strategies to prevent further spread of the disease, including adherence to isolation and quarantine orders.