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Coronavirus Updates: U.S. Hospitalizations At Record Highs As NY Sets Up Emergency Facility in Staten Island

By

Elizabeth Kim

Published Nov 24, 2020

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People wearing face masks enjoy skating on the first day of opening of Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center.

 

John Nacion/SOPA Images/Shutterstock

By

Elizabeth Kim

Published Nov 24, 2020

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This is our daily update of breaking COVID-19 news for Tuesday, November 24th, 2020. Previous daily updates can be found here, and up-to-date statistics are here.

New York City is in Phase 4 of reopening now, which includes zoos, botanical gardens, museums, and gyms, as well as 25% indoor dining. Certain parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island under a zoned shutdown. Get answers to questions youmay have with our "Ask An Epidemiologist" series, or learn more about NYC COVID-19 testing options with our explainer. Here are some local and state hotlines for more information: NYC: 311; NY State Hotline: 888-364-3065; NJ State Hotline: 800-222-1222.

Here's the latest:

More than 85,000 people in the United States were hospitalized for coronavirus on Monday, marking the 14th consecutive day of record highs, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

Several states in the Midwest, which has been hardest hit by the fall surge, currently have the most hospitalizations per capita.

But the trend is also becoming more pronounced in New York state. Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday reported more than 2,700 total coronavirus hospitalizations, a 122% increase over the last three weeks.

The governor projected that the state could have more than 6,000 hospitalizations three weeks from now, based on the current rate of increase and not including a potential spike in infections from Thanksgiving.

Hospitalizations in Staten Island have tripled over the last three weeks, from 33 to 91, Cuomo said. Parts of the borough, along with upper Manhattan, were placed under new restrictions in response to climbing testing positivity rates that have soared to above 5%.

As a sign of growing concern, the state is now setting up an emergency field hospital at the South Beach Psychiatric Center, similar to those used during the peak of the crisis. Staten Island has two major hospital systems, which are both running low on beds.

Despite the latest surge, New York is still far off from its peak hospitalization level on April 12th, when nearly 19,000 people statewide were in the hospital with the virus.

Tagged

covid-19 updates

coronavirus

Elizabeth Kim

Elizabeth Kim is a reporter on the People and Power desk who covers mayoral power. She previously covered the pandemic, housing, redevelopment and public spaces. A native of Queens, she speaks fluent Mandarin. Got a tip? Email [email protected]

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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