NY COVID cases up 15%, but list of counties at 'high risk' drops as omicron wave recedes

New York's weekly tally of COVID-19 cases increased 15% last week, but the list of counties deemed at "high risk" due to local outbreaks and strains on hospitals dropped to 15 from 32 as the latest omicron wave receded.

New York reported 52,439 new COVID-19 cases in the week ending Sunday, up from 45,469 cases the prior week. But delays in reporting cases connected to the Memorial Day holiday potentially impacted the weekly case counts.

New York ranked seventh among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.

Nationally, COVID-19 cases increased about 11% from the week before, with 770,895 cases reported.

Meanwhile, 15 of 62 counties in New York fell into the "high-risk" category based on local COVID-19 case rates and hospital capacity issues, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. That's down from 32 counties deemed high risk a week ago and 54 counties two weeks ago.

State and federal health officials urged people to wear masks indoors in public spaces in all counties within the high-risk category, regardless of vaccination status, to help curb the virus' spread.

The biggest turnaround has unfolded in parts of Central New York and the Finger Lakes regions, which are now considered low risk after being the epicenter of the omicron wave that began in early April. An omicron subvariant currently spreading across the country was first identified in those upstate New York communities.

Another sign of New York's improvements included declining COVID-19 hospitalizations, as the tally of likely COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals statewide dropped nearly 24% over the last month. About 3,700 COVID-19 patients were admitted last week in New York.

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday noted New York's statewide seven-day average COVID-19 case rate dropped about 58% since recent highs.

"While we continue to see numbers head in the right direction, we aren't letting our guard down when it comes to boosting our preparedness for any potential surges later this year," Hochul said in a statement, calling on New Yorkers to keep up to date with vaccinations and booster doses.

Federal officials last week also announced parents eager to vaccinate their youngest children against COVID-19 may be able to do so as early as June 21. Regulators are currently reviewing clinical trial data as they consider approving COVID-19 vaccines for kids under age 5.

Further, CDC recently strengthened its recommendation that adults ages 50 and older get a second booster dose at least four months after their first, citing the ongoing wave of infections.

In New York, 179 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday, up from 150 deaths the prior week.

Health Care: Long COVID survivors seek support, treatment from NY and federal programs

How COVID is spreading in New York

• In the latest week, Westchester County saw its COVID cases increase 25%, reporting 2,857 cases and four deaths.

• Rockland County's cases spiked 32%, reporting 765 cases and one death in the latest week.

• Putnam County's cases increased 22%, reporting 252 cases and zero deaths.

• Dutchess County's cases were up 13%, reporting 607 cases and one death.

• Upstate, Monroe County's COVID-19 cases increased 7%, reporting 923 cases and 15 deaths.

• Broome County's cases declined 5%, reporting 268 cases and one death.

• Oneida County's cases spiked 43%, reporting 392 cases and two deaths.

Within New York, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in:

• Richmond County with 351 per 100,000 per week.

• Nassau County with 341.

The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were:

• Kings County, with 7,117 cases.

• Queens County, with 6,397 cases.

Orange County also reported 5,631 cases last week, but that number included an apparent backlog of cases from several prior weeks when Orange reported zero cases.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Across New York, cases fell in 15 counties, with the best declines in:

• Kings County, with 7,117 cases from 9,082 a week earlier.

• Bronx County, with 3,023 cases from 4,033.

• Richmond County, with 1,669 cases from 2,330.

A total of 5,466,873 people in New York have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 69,134 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 84,762,022 people have tested positive and 1,008,585 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

New York's COVID-19 hospital admissions falling

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, June 5.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

• Last week: 3,716

• The week before that: 3,849

• Four weeks ago: 4,886

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

• Last week: 58,022

• The week before that: 55,117

• Four weeks ago: 44,923

Hospitals in 35 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 32 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 29 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY COVID cases up 15%, but list of counties at 'high risk' drops