In August, on Women’s Equality Day, at an event at the University at Albany, the governor announced that the state’s labor department would examine the impact of COVID-19 on women in the workforce and explore equitable solutions. This week, hearings were announced, on Jan. 26 in New York City and on Jan. 31 in Albany, for which  New Yorkers can register to attend or to provide testimony.

Able to spread more rapidly than other sublineages, XBB.1.5 has the highest rates in the New York City, Long Island, and the Mid-Hudson regions, the health department says, adding that these regions have also had the most elevated case rates in New York State since November 2022.

“Whether we’ll have an XBB.1.5 wave (and if yes, how big) will depend on many factors including immunity of the population, people’s actions, etc.,” said Ashish Kumar Jha, the doctor serving as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator.

In Region 2 — New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands — the spread of the new Omicron sublineage XBB.1.5 is even more pronounced than nationwide. For the week between Dec. 25 and 31, the once-dominant BA.5 is now in fifth place, causing just 1.6 percent of new cases, while XBB.1.5 makes up a whopping 72.2 percent of new cases.

On Feb. 23, Altamont was notified that a Feb. 17 sample from its Brandle Road wellsite contained 0.59 milligrams of manganese per liter; the maximum contaminant level allowed by the federal Environmental Protection Agency is 0.3 milligrams per liter. The village then resampled on March 8 and found levels were below the maximum level, at 0.28 milligrams per liter.

What is Thanksgiving about? It’s about pilgrims coming to a new land, a harsh wilderness where many died, and celebrating their survival at harvest time with the natives who made their survival possible. We are now in that wilderness. We need to help each other survive. 

Despite political barbs from both sides, Andrew Cuomo, New York’s Democratic governor who chairs the National Governors Association, has raised largely unanswered concerns about the Republican Trump administration’s distribution plan for COVID-19 vaccines.

It doesn’t matter if you are a Republican or a Democrat. It doesn’t matter if you are conservative or liberal. It doesn’t matter if you hate Donald Trump or love him. What matters is you could spread a disease that could kill someone if you don’t take the simple precaution of wearing a mask. 

Starting on Dec. 11, following a declaration by the New York State Commissioner of Health that the flu is now prevalent in certain communities, several regional hospitals have adopted guidelines for visitors.

No new residents can be admitted to Promenade until the adjourned hearing is resumed or until the state’s Department of Health reaches an agreement with Promenade, according to DOH spokesman Gary Holmes.