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Tech:NYC Digest: April 7

Tech:NYC Digest: April 7

April 07, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Wednesday, April 7, 2021As the vaccination rollout progresses and NYC continues to respond to the pandemic, this digest focuses on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.Was this digest forwarded to you? Subscribe here.

The latest: One year since New York’s deadliest day of COVID; Mayor de Blasio aims to reach five million vaccinated by June, announced first mobile vaccination bus in new initiative; all NYC public beaches and pools to reopen on time this summer; Google I/O developer conference returns virtually May 18-20.

By the Numbers:

New York State: 1,909,964 (+7,213)
New York City: 857,266 (+3,467)
Statewide Fatalities: 40,922 (+59)
NYC Positivity Rates:
- NYS reports: 4.1 percent (-0.1 percent)
- NYC reports: 6.5 percent (-0.1 percent)
Vaccine Progress:
- NYS first doses administered: 6,871,863 (+123,968)
- NYC first doses administered: 2,477,142 (+43,139)

General Updates:

Nearly half of all new COVID-19 cases in the US are in just five states — including New York and New Jersey. (AP) The higher levels in those states is putting pressure on the federal government to change how it distributes vaccines to give hotspots a larger percentage of supply.
But we’ve certainly come a long away — a year ago today, NYC saw its deadliest day of the pandemic, during which 815 NYC residents died due to COVID-19. (Wall Street Journal)
With all adults now eligible to receive the vaccine, almost one in five New Yorkers has been fully vaccinated, and Mayor de Blasio plans to reach five million vaccinations in NYC by June. (New York Magazine)
But nationwide, one in four people say they don’t plan to get a vaccine, and another five percent say they are “undecided” about getting one, which would keep the country from reaching herd immunity, a critical tipping point in stopping transmission of the virus. (NPR)
The next big phase in getting to a post-pandemic stage will be around the use of “vaccine passports”: New York was the first state to roll one out with its Excelsior Pass app. More businesses and schools will rely on them to provide fast, easy ways to verify a person’s vaccination status, but some are raising questions on whether requiring proof, digital or otherwise, is legal or ethical. (New York Times) Legal experts say that the answer to all of those questions is generally yes.

The latest results: This is the first year that ranked choice voting (RCV) will be used in New York City elections, which allows voters to rank five candidates. Already, some local races have tested the new voting method, but the mayor’s race will be the first citywide employment of RCV. Have you decided on your mayoral rankings for the ballot box?

Today's poll

: New York City is in a battle between vaccines and variants. On the one hand, new strains have caused the positivity rate to remain high, but on the other all adults are eligible for the vaccine and dose shipments continue to increase. How do you feel about the city’s chances of returning to “normal” life by

President Biden’s July 4th timeline

*|SURVEY: I am optimistic the city will feel “normal” by then|*
*|SURVEY: I am somewhat optimistic, but feel it could take until end of summer|*
*|SURVEY: I am not optimistic things will feel “normal” this summer, but will be year’s end|*
*|SURVEY: Life in the city will not feel “normal” until sometime next year|*
*|SURVEY: Life in the city will never feel “normal” again|*

The New York State Senate has voted to approve the state’s $212 billion budget for the next year, but the Assembly has a few more bills to vote on before it all heads to the governor’s desk to be signed into law. (ABC New York)
- Gov. Cuomo held a briefing today to outline key items in anticipation of the Assembly vote, but we’ll provide a fuller roundup once voting is finished and everything is finalized.
Mayor de Blasio today announced the launch of the city's first mobile vaccination bus, which carries workers who can administer up to 200 doses per day. The fleet of buses make trips to neighborhoods that were disproportionately hit by the pandemic and have lower vaccination rates. (Gothamist)
All eight NYC public beaches and 48 public pools will open on time this year. In 2020, both timelines were delayed due to the pandemic, but beaches will reopen on Memorial Day Weekend beginning May 29th and pools will reopen on June 26th. (NY1)