ALBANY — There are now 136 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Albany County with 576 under mandatory quarantine and 652 under precautionary quarantine.
There are nine hospitalized, two more were announced during Tuesday’s daily press briefing by County Executive Dan McCoy. Those hospitalized are five men and four women who range in age from 44 to 90. Three of them are in the ICU.
On Monday, there were 122 confirmed cases in Albany County.
Meanwhile, statewide, there were 25,665 confirmed cases with 210 deaths. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state could need as many as 140,000 hospital beds, which is 30,000 more than he predicted last week. At least 15,000 of those cases are in New York City.
New York has by far more confirmed cases than other state with New Jersey having 2,844 confirmed, Washington State with 2,223 and California 1,709. There are 46,450 in the U.S., including 593 deaths and 392,331 cases worldwide with 17,155 deaths and 102,972 people who have recovered.
Cuomo has previously stated New York is testing more than other states in the nation and, per capita, more than any country in the world. The more tests will lead to more positive results, he said.
In Albany County, McCoy said he was shocked at the number of people still out and about despite the shutdown of all but essential activities.
“I was out driving around and I didn’t notice a difference. I couldn’t get onto Central Avenue from a side street because there was so much traffic,” he said. “This is not going to change if people continue to go out. I don’t know what the next step is going to be but we are going to find out.”
He said it is up to the governor to order a complete shelter in place directive which would essentially mandate everyone stay inside for up to two weeks.
“One good thing about the snowstorm is that it will keep kids off the playgrounds,” McCoy said.
Elizabeth Whalen, head of the county’s Health Department, said the county employees are checking on the 500-plus people under precautionary quarantine and, when necessary, calling law enforcement to make sure the conditions of isolation are being followed.
While hospitals have stopped community-based testing, there are still tests being conducted on health care workers who are more at risk of exposure and people who have been admitted to the hospital showing symptoms of COVID-19 which include a fever, cough and shortness of breath.
“It is becoming more prevalent tin the community. As we previously discussed due to limitations in widespread community testing, it is likely we are not getting a true picture of what we are seeing in the community,” she said. “That is why we are stressing the importance of hand washing, social distancing and staying home.”
Cuomo said he expects the number of cases to reach an apex within two to three weeks.
In other county news, the Red Cross was forced to cancel blood drives and is running short on supply. It is accepting donations by appointment and those who want to help can call 1-800-red-cross.
