COVID-19 Daily Update, May 15, 2020

SITUATIONAL UPDATE:

May 15, 2020

STAY HOME; WASH HANDS; SOCIAL DISTANCING; WEAR A FACE COVERING

New Cases

New Cases

·         As of 2:00 p.m.

o   Genesee County received 4 new positive case of COVID-19 for a total of 169 positive cases

§  One of the positive cases resides in LeRoy and three of the positive cases reside in Batavia.

§  One of the individuals is in their 20’s and three are in their 30’s.

§  Two of the newly positive individuals were not on quarantine prior to becoming symptomatic.

§  3 of the previous positive cases have recovered and have been released from mandatory isolation.

§  1 of the total active positive cases is hospitalized.

§  The Genesee County Health Department received notification that one of the patients from the Batavia VA Medical Center has been identified as an Erie County resident. Therefore, the total positive case number will be one less and has been adjusted in our data.

o   Orleans County received 8 new positive cases of COVID-19 for a total of 154 positive cases

§  One of the positive cases resides in Yates and two of the new positive cases reside in Ridgeway, one of the new positive cases resides in Shelby, two of the new positive cases reside in Albion, and one of the new positive cases resides in Murray.

§  One of the positive cases reside at The Villages of Orleans Health & Rehabilitation Center.

§  Three of the individuals are in their 20’s, two of the individuals are in their 30’s, two of the individuals are in their 50’s and one of the individuals is in their 80’s.

§  None of the newly positive community cases were on quarantine prior to becoming symptomatic.

§  One of the previous positive community cases have recovered and have been released from mandatory isolation.

§  13 of the total active positive cases are hospitalized.  Please note those in the hospital may be from the community or a state-regulated facility.  We do not separate them out to protect their privacy.

             Click here to view the Genesee and Orleans County online map of confirmed cases
  

The health department was made aware that the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) did swab all residents and employees of The Villages of Orleans Health and Rehabiliation Center.  Any questions regarding specific issues should be addressed to The Villages or NYSDOH.

The facility breakdown is only showing those facilities from where we received a postive     swab for COVID-19.  Facilities will be added when and if there is a positive case of COVID-19.  Because the local health departments don’t follow the positive cases for facilities, we cannot report any recoveries from the facilities with positive cases of COVID-19.  If a regulated facility from either of our counties is not listed, there are no positive cases of COVID-19 as of the release of this briefing.  The local health departments do not have oversight with many regulated facilities, which may include nursing homes, correctional facilities, hospitals, etc.

Social gatherings:  We have plenty of guidance and criteria for businesses to safely open and encourage everyone to visit the ESD website, NY Forward and the Regional Control Room for guidance and to answer your questions.  Un-PAUSING does NOT mean we can start having social events, even outside.  The Executive Order bans gatherings of any kind, in any location, to no more than 10 people.  The more socialization that occurs the higher risk of transmitting the virus, especially to those who are most vulnerable.  It is imperitive we still restrict social/family gatherings until we are certain to have this under control and/or there is a vaccine.  It is expected we will see an uptick of positive cases and mandatory quarantines as social interaction increases.  If cases increase, it shows us people may be ignoring the orders to not have gatherings of 10 or more people, not social distancing, not hand washing/sanitizing, disinfecting shared surfaces often, and/or not wearing face coverings properly.  This can also impact our ability to continue the re-opening phases.  We ask that you respect the guidance and continue to social distance. 

New York State on PAUSE: To assist local authorities with enforcement of these orders, the Governor established the New York State PAUSE Enforcement Assistance Task Force where individuals can file complaints regarding the operation of non-essential businesses or gatherings 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Click here to file a complaint online. You may also call 1-833-789-0470. Businesses that are not in compliance with the Governor’s executive order may be penalized.

·         Upcoming Graduations:  Because of the current Executive Order that bans gatherings of more than 10 people, no ceremonies are allowed in stadiums or fields.  Drive-by parades are okay as long as they are maintaining social distancing orders and not parking.  The Governor’s office is not going to review requests on a case by case basis. 

·         Re-Opening Guidance:  The State has provided a template for all businesses to help develop their written Safety Plan to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.  This plan does not need to be submitted to a state-agency for approval, however it must be retained on the premises of the business and must be made available to the New York State Department of Health (DOH) or local health or safety authorities in the event of an inspection.  Be advised the local health departments are NOT the gatekeepers in these next steps.  We are NOT reviewing/approving plans and we don’t have the ability to make decisions on who is / who isn’t a part of the first phase nor have we been provided with guidance on interpreting who is and who isn’t included.

o   For guidance on Phase 1 re-opening, go to the NY Forward website:  https://forward.ny.gov/industries-reopening-phase#overview  For the Safety Plan Template, click here.

o   Both Genesee and Orleans Counties operations are to stay reduced until June 7^th according to the Governor’s Executive Order and Phase 1 guidelines.

o   Each Industry has a set of Phase One Guidelines, a summary of the guidelines, detailed guidelines, an affirmation the guidelines were read and followed and access to the Business Safety Plan Template (see link above).

o   For questions regarding your specific business/organization contact the Regional Control Room at flnyf@esd.ny.gov  

o   Metrics to Guide Reopening New York:  https://forward.ny.gov/metrics-guide-reopening-new-york#individual-region-plans

o   Re-opening New York:  Phase 1:  https://forward.ny.gov/

·         Masks / Face Coverings Both counties are still low in supplies of masks.  They are being distributed to high-risk agencies / businesses as prioritized and if there is a supply left over they will be distributed in an appropriate manner.  County plans for releasing supplies to the public will be forthcoming as supplies become available.  Additional information will be released by the respective County Emergency Management offices as appropriate.

·         ROC COVID-19 Health Screener:  This symptom tracker for the Greater Rochester region is a scientific study collected aggregate data by zip code to track hot spots of COVID-19.  The data will potentially show how the virus may be spreading, identify areas that may be at risk and determine how our efforts are working to slow the spread.  You can participate by taking the daily survey whether you are having symptoms or are feeling healthy.  It just takes a few seconds.  To learn more go to:  https://www.roccovid.org/index.html

·         New York State is seeking contact tracers.  If you are interested in this position, click here to apply to be a part of the NYS Contact Tracing team.  This is a moment of crisis and New York needs our help as soon as possible.

·         The Nursing Home hotline number is 833-249-8499 or click the link for the online form:  https://ag.ny.gov/nursinghomes