NYC COVID Cases, Hospitalizations 'Stabilizing' But Remain High

NEW YORK CITY — The end of a staggering surge of COVID-19 cases that once again reshaped daily life in New York City appears near — but still isn't quite in reach.

New daily infections in the city Sunday stood at 13,811 — well under the 47,591 from nearly a week before, according to state health data.

And hospitalizations, which typically trail infections, decreased to a 388 seven-day average, city data shows.

Mayor Eric Adams said Friday that hospitalization appear to be "stabilizing," he said, although he offered a third-person caveat.

“Now, Eric did not say we peaked and we declined — so I don’t need that to be the headline,” he said. “I say it’s stabilizing and based on our optimistic views, we appear to be moving in the right direction.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul echoed Adams’ cautious optimism.

“Turning the corner,” she said Friday. “You heard it here first, I've been waiting to say that. Turning the corner.”

For weeks, New York City saw an unprecedented near-vertical trajectory in daily COVID-19 cases.

Officials pinned the blame on the highly contagious omicron variant — a suspicion confirmed by a recent city health department study.

More people were infected more quickly than at any point in the pandemic, the study found.

"Omicron became the dominant variant in NYC within five weeks after it was first detected," the study states. "For comparison, the delta variant took 20 weeks to become the dominant variant."

Cases appear to be stabilizing, if not starting a significant decline, but still remain high. Hospitalizations statewide dropped 10.7 percent in the past week, but 152 New Yorkers died on Sunday alone from the virus, according to state data.

This article originally appeared on the New York City Patch