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Tech:NYC Digest: March 4

Tech:NYC Digest: March 4

March 04, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Thursday, March 4, 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: NYC to start vaccinating homebound seniors with the J&J single-dose shot; health tech company Ro partners with Dept. of Health to accelerate shots to seniors, disabled, homebound for free; NJ confirms 34 cases of the novel NYC variant strain; Manhattan landlords are getting creative to lure people back to the office with perks like on-site drycleaning, childcare, and free WiFi hubs.

By the Numbers:

New York State: 1,657,777, (+7,593)
New York City: 726,459 (+4,025)
Statewide Fatalities: 38,796 (+60)
NYC Positivity Rates:
- NYS reports: 4.0 percent (no change)
- NYC reports: 6.4 percent (+0.1 percent)
Vaccine Progress:
- NYS first doses administered: 3,231,841 (+106,816)
- NYC first doses administered: 1,143,536 (+21,378)

General Updates:

Progress on declining case counts seems to have plateaued in many places. The US averaged just under 65,000 new cases per day over the last week, unchanged from last week and ending a six-week run of double-digit improvements. (Axios)
- The move comes at a time when some states are ditching standard safety protocols — Texas and Mississippi rescinded their mask mandates and are now letting businesses operate at 100 percent capacity. That, combined with the ongoing spread of new variant stains, is threatening a resurgence of what some experts are calling a “fourth wave” of the virus.
- New York’s numbers are holding steady for now, largely unchanged from last week.
NYC is using its new supply of Johnson & Johnson doses to kick off an effort to vaccinate homebound seniors beginning today, starting with Co-op City in the Bronx and Brighton Beach in Brooklyn. (ABC New York)
This afternoon, Vice Pres. Kamala Harris cast the tiebreaker vote for the Senate to advance Pres. Biden’s $1.9 trillion relief package. (Newsweek) Next, it’s expected that Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) will force a full reading of the 628-page bill, which could take about ten hours.
- New York is expected to get about $23.5 billion in total funding from the bill. (USA Today) The MTA is hoping for about $8 billion of that to cover revenue losses and provide capital funding for its public transit infrastructure. (Wall Street Journal)
- Pres. Biden said recently he wants the $3,000 per child tax credit provision to become permanent going forward. (Insider)

One opportunity tomorrow: Tech:NYC is hosting a briefing with the NYC Dept. of Health and its Vaccine Command Center on the latest city plans for vaccine distribution and how they might inform your return to office strategy plans. If you’d like to join us tomorrow at 10am, send us a note and we’ll get you the Zoom details.

The latest results: The FDA authorization of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will add to Pfizer and Moderna stocks to significantly increase the incoming supply, and Pres. Biden announced it means there will be enough doses for every American adult by the end of May, two months earlier than previously projected. Does that updated timeline change when you expect to be able to get your first dose?

Today's poll

: A new real estate report found that homebuying in Manhattan and Brooklyn is

up significantly year-over-year

. In February, co-op and condo purchases in Manhattan were up 87.2 percent and 55.1 percent respectively, and in Brooklyn it was 131.5 percent and 141.3 percent. Similar numbers

are also being recorded

in the surrounding metro area. Have you or someone you know purchased real estate in the tri-state area in the past year?

*|SURVEY: Yes, in the city|*
*|SURVEY: Yes, in the tri-state area|*
*|SURVEY: Yes, but outside the tri-state area|*
*|SURVEY: No|*

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

Overnight appointment slots are now open at the Javits Center to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Eligible New Yorkers can now schedule an appointment between 9pm and 6am here.
Ro, a healthcare technology company (and Tech:NYC member!) announced a partnership with the New York Department of Health to help accelerate government efforts to bring vaccines directly to elderly, disabled, and homebound seniors for free. (Fast Company)
- Ro nurses deliver doses to a roster of patients based on proximity (who can also schedule appointments to receive it together) and monitor them each for 20 minutes after administration to check for any rare adverse reactions.
- The program is currently serving eligible New Yorkers in Yonkers, but scaling to other areas quickly. Learn more here.
The NYC variant strain has now spread across state lines, with 34 cases of the strain confirmed in New Jersey. (New Jersey Advance)
Movie theaters across the state will be permitted to reopen beginning tomorrow at 25 percent capacity, but many are planning to forego concessions and snack services for now. Here’s a good roundup of where major movie theaters and chains in NYC stand on reopening policies. (Gothamist)