New York COVID-19 cases plummet 39% on downward slope of omicron wave. What to know

David Robinson and Mike Stucka
·4 min read

New York reported far fewer coronavirus cases in the week ending Sunday, adding 360,560 new cases. That's down about 39% from the previous week's tally of new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

New York ranked 15th 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, coronavirus cases increased 5.8% from the week before, with 5,438,242 cases reported. With 5.84% of the country's population, New York had 6.63% of the country's cases in the last week.

The turnaround comes after COVID-19 cases — fueled by the highly contagious omicron variant — hit home for more than 1.8 million New Yorkers since Dec. 1.

The explosion of infections prompted authorities to debate when to end pandemic restrictions, though health officials warned it remains far too early while the virus continued to send scores of New Yorkers to pandemic-battered and short-staffed hospitals.

"While we are continuing to see promising trends, we are not through the winter surge yet and it is critical that we continue to use the tools that will help stop the spread," Gov. Kathy Hocul said Monday in a statement.

A COVID-19 testing location in Brooklyn, New York, on Jan.10, 2022.
A COVID-19 testing location in Brooklyn, New York, on Jan.10, 2022.

"Our best weapon is the vaccine, so if you haven't, get your shot today and make sure you get your second dose and booster as well," Hochul added.

Meanwhile, New York had nearly 11,800 hospitalizations related to COVID-19 on Sunday, which is down from recent peaks of about 12,600 earlier this month, the latest state data show.

New York ranked 8th among states in share of people receiving at least one shot, with 85.7% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 74.6%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.

In the week ending Wednesday, New York reported administering another 649,736 vaccine doses, including 181,734 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 607,433 vaccine doses, including 188,634 first doses.

In New York, 1,201 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 929 people were reported dead.

Many counties nationally did not report COVID-19 data during the Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, disrupting the latest week's statistics. That data is being compared to a week with backlogged cases and deaths from the New Year's holiday weekend, which could skew week-to-week comparisons.

More: COVID hit home for 1.8 million New Yorkers since Dec. 1. How omicron changed the pandemic

How COVID is spreading in New York

New York Governor Kathy Hochul talked about upcoming plans to assist keeping students in school and other COVID prevention measures during a press conference at Rochester Educational Opportunity Center at SUNY Brockport in Rochester on January 3, 2022.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul talked about upcoming plans to assist keeping students in school and other COVID prevention measures during a press conference at Rochester Educational Opportunity Center at SUNY Brockport in Rochester on January 3, 2022.

  • In the latest week, Westchester County had cases plummet about 49%, reporting 16,643 cases and 46 deaths.

  • Rockland County's cases dropped nearly 44%, reporting 6,694 cases and 22 deaths in the latest week.

  • Putnam County's cases fell 51%, reporting 1,597 cases and four deaths.

  • Upstate, Monroe County's cases dropped about 33%, reporting 9,288 cases and 27 deaths in the latest week.

  • Broome County's cases fell 35%, reporting 2,414 cases and seven deaths.

  • Herkimer County's cases dropped nearly 23%, reporting 801 cases and four deaths.

  • Tompkins County's cases declined 29%, reporting 1,308 cases and zero deaths.

Across New York, cases fell in 58 counties, with the best declines in:

  • Nassau County, with 24,350 cases from 55,615 a week earlier.

  • Suffolk County, with 24,590 cases from 53,224

  • Kings County, with 54,438 cases from 82,756.

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

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

  • Queens County with 2,678 cases per 100,000 per week.

  • Richmond County with 2,299.

  • Kings County with 2,127.

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:

  • Queens County, with 60,369 cases.

  • Kings County, with 54,438 cases.

  • New York County, with 32,284.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

New York's COVID-19 hospital admissions staying flat

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Jan. 16.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

  • Last week: 13,337

  • The week before that: 13,463

  • Four weeks ago: 4,565

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

  • Last week: 203,221

  • The week before that: 185,954

  • Four weeks ago: 90,739

Hospitals in 41 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 35 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 43 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.

A COVID-19 patient on a ventilator is checked by Megan Lee, a resident nurse at Stormont Vail Health, inside the COVID-19 intensive care unit at the hospital in Topeka, Kansas, on Jan. 7.
A COVID-19 patient on a ventilator is checked by Megan Lee, a resident nurse at Stormont Vail Health, inside the COVID-19 intensive care unit at the hospital in Topeka, Kansas, on Jan. 7.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: New York COVID cases plummet 39% on downward slope of omicron wave