New Covid-19 Cases Rise in New York – NBC New York (47)

NEW YORK – Parts of New York City are now experiencing COVID-19 positivity rates above 25%, as new case counts and transmission rates rise sharply in the face of a sixth wave of the pandemic.

Driven by the BA.5 variant, the “worst version” of Ómicron yet, the citywide seven-day rolling average of new cases rose 25% in the last two weeks, according to data from the Department of Health; the citywide transmission rate increased by the same amount.

The latest city maps peg Long Island City at a seven-day positivity rate of 25.3%. Manhattan’s Central Harlem has a rate of 20.9% and Yorkville stands at 20.1%. Some neighborhoods in Queens and the Bronx, such as Richmond Hill and Throgs Neck, are also over 20%.

To be sure, things are still not as bad as the peak of the Omicron BA.1 variant in January, or even the BA.2.12.1 variant in mid-May.

But some experts believe the BA.5 wave is just beginning, and it’s unclear how serious it could be, especially with some anecdotal evidence that BA.5 may be snagging people who managed to avoid COVID-19 earlier.

COVID-19 INFECTIONS RESURGE

Of particular concern is reinfection. Australian authorities reported evidence that people who had COVID-19 caused by a BA.2 variant now seem to get sick again just weeks later with the BA.4 or BA.5 variants.

Last month, researchers who analyzed millions of Veterans Administration medical records concluded that people reinfected with COVID a second, third, or even fourth time had a higher risk of dying from any cause, whether or not they had been vaccinated. .

“(We show) that reinfection adds risk of all-cause mortality and adverse health outcomes in both the acute and post-acute phases of reinfection, suggesting that for people who have already been infected once , ongoing surveillance to reduce the risk of reinfection may be important in reducing overall health risk,” the authors wrote.

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