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NY Lifting Most COVID Restrictions Now That 70% Of Adults Are Partially Vaccinated
By
Ben Yakas
and
Nsikan Akpan
Published Jun 14, 2021
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Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
By
Ben Yakas
and
Nsikan Akpan
Published Jun 14, 2021
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Governor Andrew Cuomo is due to lift the vast majority of New York's coronavirus restrictions and safety measures now that 70% of adults have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The state reached the milestone on Monday, according to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—just over a week after Cuomo announced the goal. More than 11.2 million New York residents were partially vaccinated as of Monday, including 10.8 million adults. But public health experts fear this benchmark is masking broad gaps and disparities in vaccine coverage—ones that could lead to outbreaks this summer or fall in vulnerable neighborhoods.
“These overall averages camouflage huge geographic and demographic disparities,” Dr. Céline Gounder, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Bellevue Hospital and the host and producer of Epidemic, said via email. “Within New York City, for example, we know that the proportion of adults fully vaccinated ranges from 32% of Black adults to 71% of Asian/Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander adults—from 37% in Far Rockaway to 100% in the Financial District.”
Under the new policy, all capacity restrictions, social distancing, cleaning and disinfection requirements, health screenings, and contact tracing requirements will now be lifted throughout the state for commercial settings. These include retail, food services, offices, gyms and fitness centers, amusement and family entertainment, hair salons, barbershops and personal care services.
The relaxation feels justified, given how COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths nose-dived this spring as the vaccine rollout prospered. New York City is now averaging about 225 cases per day and fewer than 30 hospitalizations.
But this progress is leveling off in the city, the state and nationwide just before hitting zero. The localities haven’t hit herd immunity yet, which presents a risk as communities begin to mix again fully.
“The difference between this early vaccine effect and herd immunity is that when you reach herd immunity, it also prevents outbreaks from happening,” said Dr. Denis Nash, a professor of epidemiology at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health. “If there are lots of vulnerable people, older people or nursing homes in these areas with low vaccination rates, we could begin to see increases in severe COVID again.”
The new milestone also only refers to adults. When looking at the total population, 58% of New Yorkers have received at least one dose so far, and only 50% are fully vaccinated.
“The concern, in general, is you really want to use fully vaccinated as the measure, as opposed to getting a single dose,” said Bruce Y. Lee, a public health policy professor at CUNY and executive director of Public Health Informatics, Computational, and Operations Research. That’s because the latest evidence shows the delta variant of the coronavirus can thwart just one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while two shots continue to provide protection. Gounder agreed that health officials should not use single-dose vaccination coverage as “a barometer of success.”
On Monday, Governor Cuomo acknowledged that the 70% marker does not mean the outbreak is over, while still celebrating New York’s achievement. He once again highlighted the zip codes with the lower vaccination rates and urged local governments to do what they can to improve rates there.
“Our progress is much more advanced than anyone predicted,” Governor Cuomo said Monday in anticipation of the vaccination milestone. “We beat all those predictions, but it doesn't mean when we hit 70%, it's over. It means it's working.
The state plans to keep "institutional guidelines"—the state's existing COVID-19 health protocols—in place for large venues (including ones which still have unvaccinated sections), K-12 schools, public transit, homeless shelters, hospitals, correctional facilities, and nursing homes. But even those could be in flux in the coming months: there's still debate happening over whether schools will require kids to wear masks indoors come September, for example.
In addition, individual businesses can still choose to continue using the state's guidance or implement additional health precautions, such as mask use or social distancing, for their employees and patrons. The governor relaxed most capacity restrictions for businesses, restaurants and cultural venues on May 19th.
Mayor Bill De Blasio was asked about Cuomo's expected announcement on Monday at his own press conference: "I said many weeks ago that July 1st was the goal, I thought we would be absolutely ready, I'm really pleased with the progress we've made," de Blasio said. "It's damn close to July 1st. I'm very comfortable we're on the right track...remembering there will be some individual restrictions in certain places, and individual companies and institutions will also make their own choices about how to keep people safe. But overall, New Yorkers have done a great job fighting back COVID, it's a good moment for reopening. That's why I keep talking about the summer of NYC. We're ready for it."
Cuomo also announced on Monday that the NY State Fair would open at 100% occupancy this summer; the festival, which takes place at the end of August in Syracuse, was previously set to open at 50% capacity.
Tagged
Governor Andrew Cuomo
pandemic
COVID-19
coronavirus
new york
reopening
vaccine
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Nsikan Akpan
Nsikan is the former editor of the health and science desk at WNYC/Gothamist. Nsikan was previously at National Geographic where he worked as a science editor, overseeing its COVID-19 coverage in addition to other topics in science, health and technology. Before National Geographic, he worked for more than four years at PBS NewsHour, where he co-created an award-winning video series named ScienceScope. He shared a 2020 Emmy for the PBS NewsHour series “Stopping a Killer Pandemic” and in 2019 received a George Foster Peabody Award for the PBS NewsHour series “The Plastic Problem.” Nsikan has also worked for NPR, Science News Magazine, Science Magazine, KUSP Central Coast Public Radio, the Santa Cruz Sentinel and as a writer at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University. He holds a doctorate in pathobiology from Columbia University and is an alum of the science communication program at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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