COVID-19 Statistics Update, May 4, 2020

May 4, 2020 Kassadee Bradshaw
Dr. Christina Liepke explains antibody testing during a county briefing. Image from Oswego County's YouTube channel.

OSWEGO COUNTY – According to the Oswego County Health Department, as of 3 p.m. today, there has been one additional case of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) since yesterday. The cumulative reported number is 66 cases across the county and of those, 56 have recovered and three have died.

Oswego County Legislature Chairman James Weatherup briefed the public today in a video on the county government’s YouTube channel, where he discussed COVID-19 antibody testing in the county. Dr. Christina Liepke, medical director of the Oswego County Health Department, explained this different type of testing.

Liepke said there are two types of testing in regards to COVID-19: the PCR test is used when the patient is still sick and the antibody testing looks for the body’s reaction to the virus.

“There are literally over 150 antibody tests on the market and none are truly FDA approved or reviewed,” Liepke said. “A handful have what they call emergency use authorization by the FDA. This is referred to as EUA, meaning that the FDA has reviewed the manufacturer’s validation studies and granted emergency use authorization. Those handful of antibody tests that have that designation are extremely hard to get.”

Antibody tests are done using a blood sample and should not be done while a person is sick. They do not tell if someone is contagious or not, so if a positive antibody test comes back, the person will not be quarantined. Liepke said there is also a risk of a false positive. She also said if someone has had a positive antibody test come back, that does not mean they are immune from the virus, and so the same precautions should still be taken, such as hand washing and social distancing.

“Despite all this, there are reasons for us to look at antibody testing from a public health perspective, doing antibody testing on large groups of people, like the state health department did last week,” Liepke said. “It can give us an idea of what is going on in our county and state.”

She said there are ongoing studies looking at plasma donation from people who have recovered from COVID-19. If you do have antibodies for the virus, you can apply to become a plasma donor.

For more information on antibody testing, Liepke recommended speaking to your healthcare provider. The county will begin including antibody results in their daily statistics update.

Weatherup said it is still very important to continue social distancing practices, noting that the health department began investigating a confirmed case in an employee of Dollar Tree located at 900 S. First St., Fulton. More details as to which dates/times exposure was possible is available here.

“It is a reminder for all of us that COVID-19 is still active in Oswego County and we all need to do our part to help reduce the spread and limit our chance for exposure,” Weatherup said.

Today’s statistics are below.

Oswego County: (as of 3 p.m.) Note, the total number of positive cases is cumulative and the number of recoveries and deaths are of those numbers.

  • Total # of active cases: 7 (yesterday: 6)
  • Total # of positive cases: 66 (yesterday: 65)
  • Total recoveries: 56 (no change since yesterday)
  • Total # of deaths: 3 (no change since yesterday)
  • Total # people tested: 1,823 (yesterday: 1,772)
  • Total # of negative results: 1,682 (yesterday: 1,651)
  • Pending results: 69 (yesterday: 50)
  • Total # of people in precautionary quarantine: 64 (yesterday: 46)
  • Total # of people in mandatory isolation/quarantine: 68 (yesterday: 60)
  • Total completed/released from monitoring: 1,878 (yesterday: 1,849)
  • Unacast social distancing score (as of today): D+

All known contacts of COVID-19 positive patients are being notified. In the event that a known case had public exposure when they were contagious, such as someone who worked in a restaurant, the county health department would alert citizens through the news media and social media.

Areas With Cases (alphabetical order): Note, no new additions were added today. The county does not release the town/city of individual cases. If there has been a new case and a new area has not been added, that means it is in an area that has already been affected before. Once an area is added it is not removed from the list because the county does not say when a town/city no longer has a case.

  • Boylston
  • Constantia
  • Fulton
  • Granby
  • Hastings
  • Mexico
  • Minetto
  • New Haven
  • Orwell
  • Oswego City
  • Oswego Town
  • Palermo
  • Richland
  • Sandy Creek
  • Schroeppel
  • Scriba
  • Volney
  • West Monroe
  • Williamstown

New York: (as of yesterday)

  • Total # of positive cases: 318,953 (the day before: 316,415)
  • Total # of deaths: 19,415 (the day before: 19,189)
  • Unacast social distancing score (as of today): C-

Watch today’s briefing given by Governor Andrew Cuomo here.

Other updates from the state include:

  • Nonessential businesses will stay closed through May 15.
  • All K-12 schools and college facilities statewide will remain closed and continue to provide distance learning, meal delivery and childcare services for the remainder of the school year.
  • Governor Cuomo issued executive orders 202.17 and 202.18 requiring all people in New York to wear masks or face coverings in public, including when taking public or private transportation or riding in for-hire vehicles.
  • New Yorkers without health insurance can apply through NY State of Health through June 15, 2020; must apply within 60 days of losing coverage.
  • Governor Cuomo outlined the four core factors to determine if a region can re-open: new infections, healthcare capacity, diagnostic testing capacity, and contact tracing capacity as well as outlining new safety precautions each business must implement.
  • More than 1,000,000 New Yorkers have been tested for COVID-19.
  • 300,000 testing kits have been made by the National Guard to collect samples, with 60,000 going to labs and hospitals in New York State.
  • 35 counties that do not have significant risk of a COVID-19 surge in the near term can now resume elective outpatient treatments.
  • The results of the state’s completed antibody testing study show 12.3 percent of the population have COVID-19 antibodies.
  • The state is partnering with the Kate Spade New York Foundation and Crisis Text Line to provide a 24/7 emotional support service for frontline health care workers: workers can text NYFRONTLINE to 741-741 to access these emotional support services.
  • New York State-regulated health insurers will be required to waive cost-sharing, including deductibles, copayments and coinsurance, for in-network mental health services for frontline essential workers during COVID-19.
  • New Yorkers can call the COVID-19 Emotional Support Hotline at 1-844-863-9314 for mental health counseling.
  • Testing is free for all eligible New Yorkers as ordered by a health care provider.

U.S.: (as of 12:32 p.m)

  • Total # of positive cases: 1,170,719 (yesterday: 1,149,197)
  • Total # of deaths: 68,046 (yesterday: 67,200)
  • Total # of recoveries: 180,303 (yesterday: 175,382)
  • Unacast social distancing score (as of today): D

Worldwide: (as of 12:32 p.m.)

  • Total # of positive cases: 3,544,281 (yesterday: 3,485,948)
  • Total # of deaths: 249,079 (yesterday: 246,125)
  • Total # of recoveries: 1,137,265 (yesterday: 1,113,777)

What It Means:

Status Required for Precautionary Quarantine – Person meets one or more of the following criteria:
  • has traveled to China, Iran, Japan, South Korea, or Italy, but is not displaying symptoms;
  • or is known to have had a proximate exposure (being in the same enclosed environment such as a classroom, office, or gatherings but greater than 6 ft from a person displaying symptoms of COVID-19 or someone who has tested positive for COVID-19) to a positive person but has not had direct contact with a positive person and is not displaying symptoms.

Status for Required Mandatory Quarantine – Person has been in close contact (within 6 feet) with someone who is positive, but is not displaying symptoms for COVID-19; or person has traveled to China, Iran, Japan, South Korea, or Italy, and is displaying symptoms.

Status for Required Mandatory Isolation – Person has tested positive for COVID-19, whether or not displaying symptoms for COVID-19.

Status for Total Positive Cases Recovered – Person no longer has fever for 72 hours, symptoms have improved, and they meet the requirements to be released from mandatory isolation set by the New York State Department of Health.

Testing Criteria For COVID-19:

  • If you have been quarantined and develop signs and symptoms
  • If you have had a negative flu test and respiratory panel and have signs and symptoms
  • If you have traveled to China, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Italy, or other areas of sustained transmission of COVID-19 in the last 14 days and have signs and symptoms
  • If you have had close contact with a confirmed case and have signs and symptoms
  • If a physician has ruled out other causes and feels testing is warranted

Testing is done at the Oswego Hospital or the Pulaski Urgent Care. Testing is free for all eligible New Yorkers as ordered by a health care provider.

Guidelines from the Oswego County Health Department:

  • Stay home as much as possible. 
  • Wear a face mask or covering over your nose and mouth.
  • Avoid non-essential gatherings of all types and sizes. (All non-essential gatherings of any size are banned.)
  • Keep six feet from other people.
  • Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially before eating.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth 
  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Stay home if you are sick, unless you are seeking health care.
  • Call your healthcare provider from home if you are experiencing symptoms such as a fever, cough or shortness of breath.
  • Do not go to an emergency department unless you are experiencing life-threatening conditions. 
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

These are everyday habits that can help prevent the spread of several viruses.

Resources:

  • Oswego County COVID-19 Hotline: 315-349-3330
  • New York Mental Health Hotline: 1-844-863-9314
  • Oswego COVID-19 Mental Health and Crisis Hotline: 315-343-5507

Links For Statistics:

Print this entry

Discover more from Oswego County Today

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.