A Message from Our Chief Medical Officer: Novel Coronavirus Update

Dear New York Tech Students, Faculty, and Staff:

As of February 24, 2022, more than 78.5 million cases of COVID-19 and 939,654 cumulative total deaths have been reported in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) since the start of the pandemic. Over the past seven-day period, the state reporting the highest number of cases per 100,000 people is Maine (1,342.6); the state of Washington reported the least (47.6). In comparison, the number of cases per 100,000 people in New York State has decreased to 113.4 from 163.4 one week ago; New York City cases have decreased to 84.2 from 96, and Arkansas cases decreased to 222.3 from 336.2.

Locally, Long Island’s seven-day average COVID-19 testing positivity rate is now at 2 percent (vs. 2.8 percent one week ago), compared with 1.3 percent for all boroughs of New York City (vs. 1.4 percent one week ago). That these percentages continue to decrease is a very good sign that transmission is waning in our region. In New York State, new hospitalizations have also decreased over the past week from 1.85 per 100,000 on February 16 to 1.37 on February 23.

The surveillance continuum for the coronavirus usually starts with increased transmission—demonstrated by increased cases, followed by increased hospitalizations, and finally, increased mortality rate (rate of death). In the most recent seven-day period, Maine is the state with the highest mortality rate, at 10.5 deaths per 100,000 people, while Alabama still has the lowest mortality rate at 0.2. In comparison, Arkansas is at 5, and New York State is at 1.6. Nationally, mortality rates are again forecasted to decrease over the next four weeks, which is likely the result of earlier decreasing transmission rates.

Given these decreasing positivity rates and new cases, as of this afternoon, the CDC has changed its mask-wearing guidelines by emphasizing hospitalizations. While the new guidelines will still consider caseloads, they will also now take into account hospitalizations and local hospital capacity, which have been consistently improving. Under the older guidelines, over 95 percent of U.S. counties would be required to continue wearing masks. However, under the new guidelines, the vast majority of Americans will no longer live in areas where indoor masking in public is recommended. Locally, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has also indicated that he is interested and willing to relax community mitigation efforts, such as vaccine requirements in restaurants and mandatory mask-wearing in public settings.

Meanwhile, the vaccine rollout continues, with more than 551 million doses administered in the United States. As of February 24, 76.3 percent of the nation’s population has received at least one dose, 64.8 percent are fully vaccinated, and 43.5 percent have received an additional booster. In New York State, 88.8 percent of the population has received at least one dose, and 75.4 percent is fully vaccinated.

As a reminder, proof of vaccination is still required for all members of the New York Tech community. Please find more information about our vaccination and testing policies and how to upload proof of vaccination here. If you have not done so, please upload your proof of vaccination so that we have a record for our database and health screen! As always, those who may feel anxious or uneasy can reach out to Counseling and Wellness Services at our campuses in Long Island (516.686.7683) or New York City (212.261.1773) to talk or make a virtual appointment.

Sincerely,

Brian L. Harper, M.D., M.P.H.
Chief Medical Officer, NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine