Tech:NYC Newsletter
Posts
Tech:NYC Digest: February 2

Tech:NYC Digest: February 2

February 02, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

Tuesday, February 2, 2021As NYC works through another surge of the coronavirus, 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: Snowfall subsides: subway service and outdoor dining resume, kids back in school tomorrow; statewide positivity rates back to pre-holiday levels, but NYC remains high; federal vaccine supply to New York ramping up, Cuomo expands eligibility to cab drivers and restaurant staff; executives split on requiring the vaccine to return to the office.

Confirmed Cases:

New York State: 1,427,379 (+8,215)
New York City: 607,763 (+4,192)
Statewide Fatalities: 35,466 (+146)
NYC Positivity Rates:
- NYS reports: 5.1 percent (-0.1 percent)
- NYC reports: 8.2 percent (-0.1 percent)

General Updates:

Some history-making 18 inches of snow later, it looks like we’ve made it through the last bit of this storm. (New York Times) Outdoor subway service and outdoor dining have resumed, vaccine appointments resume tomorrow, as well as in-person instruction for elementary school students.
Some good news: the US hit a milestone of sorts yesterday afternoon, with reports showing that more Americans have received at least one dose of the vaccine than have tested positive for the virus. (Bloomberg)
And more good news: Gov. Cuomo said today that the latest statewide positivity rate fell below five percent — to 4.95 percent — for the first time since early December, when the state began seeing spikes related to holiday travel. (NBC New York) New cases fell by almost 10 percent over the past week. (Journal News)
On the other hand, as NYC prepares to reopen indoor dining in just under two weeks, state data shows that hospitalizations and per-capita case numbers are worse than when it was shut down in December. (New York Times)
The supply of vaccines coming to New York each week is set to increase. (Times Union) More on that below.
And they can’t come soon enough: we need to accelerate vaccinations to not only fight off the original COVID-19, but the growing presence of other variants. (Axios) The CDC has said it’s stepping up efforts to detect the variants more quickly. (New York Times) Experts say the UK variant will likely become the dominant strain in the US pretty soon, threatening to send case counts and hospitalizations back up and effectively keeping the pandemic active “for years.”

One fun read: Trapped in the monotony of pandemic life, it’s easy to feel like Bill Murray in ‘Groundhog Day.’ But watch the movie again; its message might help. (Los Angeles Times)

The latest results: Once again New York City is being hit by a monumental snowstorm and once again the city decided to move all kids to remote learning for the day. Last time this happened, Mayor de Blasio said snow days are a “thing of the past.” Should students have gotten a snow day today or is remote learning the right approach?

Today's poll

: Today is Groundhog Day and more than any other year, we needed that little critter to see its shadow. And for NYC, we had luck:

Staten Island Chuck predicts an early spring

. However, his Philadelphia rival

Punxsutawney Phil drew a different expert conclusion

and declared we’re in store for six more weeks of winter. With predictions that the more transmissible UK strain will take hold come late March, how do you feel about the upcoming spring?

*|SURVEY: I’m anxious about it because I think cases will be higher then|*
*|SURVEY: I look forward to it because I think we’ll be more in control then|*
*|SURVEY: I’m not sure about cases, I just want it to be warmer|*

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

Gov. Cuomo announced some good news about the state’s lagging vaccine supply:
- The federal supply of vaccines going to states will increase. The Biden Administration had already promised a 16 percent increase in supply for three weeks for New York, but that will be bumped again to 20 percent, adding about 60,000 more doses each week to the 300,000 the state already receives. (Reuters)
- The federal government will also begin sending the equivalent of 10 percent of each state’s vaccine allotment — for New York, that’s about 30,000 doses — directly to pharmacies through a new program to boost accessibility. (POLITICO)
- The higher supply means the state will give the sign off for local governments to decide if they want to expand eligibility through the 1B priority group, including taxi and rideshare drivers, restaurant workers, and developmentally disabled populations. (New York Post)
Gov. Cuomo also announced that, with the increased supply, the state will begin specifically targeting the administration of vaccines to zip codes with the highest positivity rates. (NBC New York) A mass vaccination site will be set up at Yankee Stadium for Bronx residents only in an effort to not only get more shots in arms, but in the hopes it starts to turn the positivity rates around. (NY State of Politics) The Bronx has the highest positivity rate among the five boroughs at 6.7 percent.
The latest Axios-Ipsos poll shows Americans are increasingly worried about variant strains, prompting many to begin double-masking and to temper expectations about when daily life might be able to return to “normal.” (Axios)
- Just 26 percent expect life to return to pre-COVID normal in the next six months; 30 percent predict it will be more than a year; and 8 percent say "never."
The Biden Administration is investing $230 million for at-home testing. The maker, Ellume, will manufacture 8.5 million tests for the US this year, which will be sold over-the-counter with no prescription needed. (New York Magazine)