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Tech:NYC Digest: December 8

Tech:NYC Digest: December 8

December 08, 2020 • Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

Tuesday, December 8, 2020As NYC’s reopening and recovery efforts continue, the 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: 90-year-old Brit is first person to receive clinically authorized Pfizer vaccine; FDA review of Pfizer vaccine shows first dose provides greater protection than previously thought, experts say both rounds are still necessary; NJ Gov. Murphy says indoor dining will stay at 25 percent capacity despite rising cases; Citi rolls back return to office plans during the holiday season.

Confirmed Case

New York State: 722,646 (+9,335)
New York City: 337,232 (+3,461)
Statewide Fatalities: 27,307 (+74)
NYC Positivity Rates:
- NYS reports: 4.1 percent (+0.1 percent)
- NYC reports: 4.9 percent (-0.1 percent)

General Updates:

The US is now averaging about as many deaths per day from COVID-19 as it was in April when New York faced the brunt of the pandemic. (Bloomberg)
Dr. Fauci warned that the Christmas holidays could pose greater risk for virus spread than Thanksgiving. (Bloomberg) He said while Thanksgiving holidays plans typically occur over a shorter period of time, the “vulnerable period” for Christmas will be two to three times greater as events will last through Hanukkah and New Year’s celebrations.
ICYMI: President-elect Biden announced his health care and COVID-19 teams. (Axios) Among them: California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as Health and Human Services Secretary and infectious disease expert Rochelle Walensky as CDC director. Dr. Fauci will stay in his role as NIAID director, and Vivek Murthy will return to his role as Surgeon General.
As the FDA continues to review Pfizer’s application for its vaccine emergency use authorization, the agency released more detailed analysis today on its effectiveness, showing encouraging signs it is coming closer to approval. (AP) More on that and other vaccine updates below.
Meanwhile, across the pond, a 90-year-old woman in Britain, Margaret Keenan, today became the first person in the world to get a fully tested and clinically authorized COVID-19 vaccine. (BBC News) The second person: William Shakespeare.

One opportunity to get involved: The Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria is looking for tech professionals in serving as a judge for their 3rd Annual Hackathon. The time commitment is one hour on Zoom this Friday, Dec. 11. If you’re interested, reach out here.One good read: from Tech:NYC board member Reshma Saujani: COVID has decimated women’s careers — we need a Marshall Plan for Moms, now (The Hill)

Yesterday's results: With an ongoing surge in cases and hospitalizations, Gov. Cuomo said it is likely that additional lockdown measures will be put into effect, including the shutdown of indoor dining. Other states are raising similar alarms. At a minimum, tighter measures seem inevitable — how do you think the city and state will proceed?

Today's poll

: Tech companies like Mastercard are hopeful the promising vaccine timeline might allow employees to return to the office

sooner than projected

. Office occupancy in the top 10 metro areas is

up since July

, although it’s still less than a quarter full on average. But there’s no question

some are eager to return

, if even on a hybrid basis. Do the latest estimates for when a vaccine will be widely available change when you expect to return to the office?

*|SURVEY: I think we’ll return sooner than I had expected last month|*
*|SURVEY: I think we’ll return the same time as I had expected last month|*
*|SURVEY: I think we’ll return later than I had expected last month|*

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

Reopening:

Here’s the latest in vaccine news:
- Updated analysis shows that the Pfizer vaccine, which reported a 95 percent efficacy rate for a two-dose regimen, shows that protection starts kicking in much earlier upon the first dose. (New York Times) That trend held regardless of the volunteer’s race, weight, or age.
- But to be clear, skipping a second dose would be, as the Pfizer CEO has said, “a big mistake.” Data released today shows a much lower efficacy rate of about 52 percent with only one dose. (Business Insider)
- Still, having a strong first dose before people get a second shot is encouraging, especially since there aren’t exact timelines for when most Americans will have access to both doses— Pfizer has told US officials that it can’t ramp up production beyond the 100 million doses the US has already purchased until July. (Washington Post)
- But where we need more data: the vaccine will probably prevent you from getting COVID-19, but we don’t know whether it will keep you from spreading the virus to others. (New York Times) So just because you’ve been vaccinated doesn’t mean you can stop wearing a mask or taking other social precautions.
- President-elect Biden today pledged his administration would distribute 100 million vaccine doses within his first 100 days and would prioritize reopening schools across the country. (NBC News)
The CDC is also instructing states to sign agreements that force them to submit personal information about those who get vaccinated. Several states, including New York, are either flat-out refusing to sign or are signing but refusing to turn over the information. (New York Times)
While Gov. Cuomo warned indoor dining could be put on pause as a result of climbing hospitalizations, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said indoor dining in his state won’t be shut down but will remain capped at 25 percent. (NJ Advance) Indoor dining in Connecticut was recently rolled back from 75 percent to 50 percent capacity. (Patch CT)