New York Reports Highest-Ever Daily Number of COVID-19 Cases Since Pandemic Began

New York reported the highest-ever number of daily positive cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic Friday, with a positivity rate not seen in nearly a year, according to state data.

There were 21,027 new cases of the virus Thursday, the numbers showed, with a positivity rate of 7.98% — the highest since January 5.

From a different metric, the trend doesn’t look any better. There were 107.6 positive COVID-19 cases per every 100,000 residents in New York Thursday — also the highest-ever from that perspective.

Those numbers aren’t expected to get better in the coming days. Gov. Kathy Hochul told reporters Thursday that, with the Omicron variant now well-embedded in the U.S., New Yorkers should expect a new surge of the virus.

“That winter surge is in full force,” Hochul said. “And I believe it's going to get even stronger and more virulent, and we are in for a rough ride this winter season.”

The numbers come with a caveat. At the start of the pandemic, when the state’s hospitalizations were at their peak last April, testing wasn’t as widely available as it is now. There were more than 277,000 COVID-19 tests performed Thursday.

As of now, New York is encouraging individuals who haven’t received a booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine to get one. Preliminary findings have shown that boosters can greatly help the immune system defend against the Omicron variant.

The Hochul administration implemented the state’s first mask mandate since June on Monday to help combat the surge. The new rule requires masks to be worn, regardless of vaccination status, in facilities that don’t require proof of vaccination. 

There could be hope on the horizon. While the Omicron variant was first reported in South Africa less than a month ago, hospitalizations from the virus have already started to go down in that country. 

As of Thursday, there were 3,839 COVID-19 hospitalizations in New York. That’s the most the state’s seen since April.