MV’s COVID Rate Tops 4-Percent, But We’re Still Not Yellow

The Mohawk Valley Region's COVID-19 positivity rate is at an all-time high of 4.4-percent over the last 7-day period. Does that mean our region has now entered the Governor's "Yellow Zone" which would add more restrictions?

Currently, Governor Cuomo is using color coded stages to combat the COVID-19 virus with red being the most severe and warranting the most restrictions.

On Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo introduced a "winter plan" to deal with the COVID-19 surge which changes the way a region like the Mohawk Valley is assessed. Previously, if the positivity rate exceeded 3-percent, that region would automatically move into the "Yellow Zone" adding new limits on businesses and schools; however, those restrictions have now changed.

The Mohawk Valley is not in the more restrictive "Yellow Zone" because the state is now using hospitalization data, including available ICU beds and hospital capacity. Currently, despite seeing an all-time high in hospitalizations, the region is still in a manageable zone for available COVID-19 rooms and treatment.

There are now 80 county residents that are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19. Dr. Kent Hall of MVHS told WIBX's Keeler Show on Monday, that despite the high rate of COVID admissions, the hospital system is still able to handle the current cases as well as its normal caseload. The Governor announced on Monday that hospital capacity data would be used to determine if a region needed to enter into the "Yellow" or "Orange" zone, which would further restrictions on schools and businesses. The Governor did not rule out another shutdown similar to what we experienced in the spring, if the hospitals begin to become overwhelmed.

Current Hospitalization Rates

73 patients are hospitalized in Oneida County. (56 at MVHS. 17 at Rome Memorial.)

• 17 are nursing home residents.
• 7 patients are hospitalized out of county.

Governor Cuomo also announced a new push to keep students K-12 in school going forward, as their risk is significantly less at a younger age.

The Mohawk Valley's hospitalization rate continues to grow at an accelerated rate. At one point back in September, MVHS had only one COVID-19 patient admitted. As of Friday, there were more than 60 cases inside MVHS, including county and out of county residents.