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COVID-19 Digest: September 30

COVID-19 Digest: September 30

September 30, 2020 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

COVID-19 Digest

Wednesday, September 30, 2020As NYC’s reopening and recovery efforts continue, the digest will focus on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.Below and in our resource guide, you’ll find the latest information on government resources for businesses, city and state reopening measures, and return-to-office preparedness plans. If this can be useful to your colleagues and network, encourage them to sign up here.

The Latest in New York

The latest: Pres. Trump downplays mask effectiveness in first presidential “debate,” despite CDC guidance; Mayor de Blasio says certain Brooklyn, Queens neighborhoods caused a quarter of recent COVID cases; indoor dining returns to NYC at limited capacity; save the date for our first installment of Functions.NYC, a new Tech:NYC virtual event series.Confirmed Cases:

New York State: 458,649 (+1,000)
New York City: 244,041 (+446)
Statewide Fatalities: 25,479 (+9)
Daily NYC Infection Rate: 1.3 percent (no change)

General Updates:

While overall numbers are comparatively better today, case counts continue to rise in some of the Brooklyn and Queens clusters. (Gothamist) Of the nine zip codes being closely monitored as hot spots, seven saw increases in positivity rates since Monday. Mayor de Blasio said those neighborhoods have accounted for 25 percent of the city’s positive cases over the last two weeks. (NBC New York)
Indoor dining returns to NYC today at 25 percent capacity. (New York Times) A reminder of what to expect below.
We’re still learning about the long-term health impacts of COVID-19, but research conducted so far shows the potential for severe damage on the lungs, heart, and brain. (Axios) Where we need more information: whether the virus itself causes the organ damage, or if it's the result of the body’s immune response, or both.
The first debate between Pres. Trump and Vice Pres. Biden took place last night, and the internet has thoughts. Related to pandemic response, Pres. Trump once again downplayed mask effectiveness, mocked Biden for always wearing a mask, and refused to acknowledge data from his own CDC officials that a national mask mandate could save upwards of 100,000 lives in the next few months. (The Hill) If you watched, you know it was … something. But take comfort that even the Commission on Presidential Debates thought it was a hot mess.

One new thing: we’re excited to launch Functions.NYC, a new virtual event series exploring all the systems that do just that — make NYC function. In each event, we’ll sit down with one expert to discuss how the city is reimagining itself in the wake of COVID-19 and embarking on the road to recovery. Join us for the first event on October 13 and get a sneak peek of future topics we'll discuss here.

Survey

The latest results: Do you plan to tune in to the debate tonight?

76.4%: Yes
23.6%: No

Today’s poll: Nearly 100,000 NYC voters have received erroneous absentee ballots with inaccurate names and addresses linked to them, with the city’s Board of Elections attributing the mishap to a printing error. Replacement ballots will automatically be mailed to all affected voters, but confusion remains for many of those who want to ensure their ballot is properly counted. Are you planning to vote via absentee ballot?

*|SURVEY: Yes, I’ve already received my absentee ballot, and the information was correct|*
*|SURVEY: Yes, I’ve already received my absentee ballot, but it had inaccurate information|*
*|SURVEY: Yes, I have requested or plan to request an absentee ballot|*
*|SURVEY: No, I plan to vote in person early or on Election Day|*

Find the poll results from all previous editions of this newsletter here.

What You Need to Know

What to Know: Reopening:

Restaurants are permitted to reopen for indoor dining today across the five boroughs. (Eater NY) The city is the last region of the state to allow indoor seating, beginning with a 25 percent occupancy limit. If you visit a restaurant and dine indoors, here’s some changes you can expect:
- Temperature checks are required at the door for all guests;
- One member of each party will be required to provide contact information in the event contact tracing measures are needed;
- Masks must be worn at all times when not seated at the table;
- All establishments must operate with enhanced filtration systems, plus outdoor air ventilation, if possible; and
- All establishments must close by midnight.
Here are the things to look for, and situations to avoid, if you’re seated inside a restaurant. (New York Times)
A study of transit systems around the world found that NYC’s subway and bus networks present a low risk of spreading coronavirus as long as proper safety protocols in place, like well-ventilated train cars and mandatory mask wearing. (Wall Street Journal)