Cuomo pushes reopening, agrees to limit COVID-19 powers
Cuomo announced the reopening moves, even as he agreed to limit his emergency powers and apologized amid sexual harassment accusations and decisions concerning the placement of nursing home residents through the pandemic.
The adjustments to residential and public gathering limits, according to Cuomo:
- Starting March 22, the limit on outdoor residential gatherings will go from 10 to 25 people. The indoor limit will remain the same.
- The limit on gatherings at public spaces will go from 50 to 100 indoors, and from 50 to 200 outdoors.
- All these events will require virus mitigation measures such as mask wearing and social distancing.
The state had already started allowing limited attendance at arenas with a capacity of 10,000 people or more, but will now allow venues with a capacity lower than that to partially re-open. Starting April 2, smaller venues can re-open at 33% capacity for indoor events, up to a maximum of 100 people, and a 200-person maximum for outdoor events.
Meanwhile, the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine arrived on Long Island on Wednesday, with deliveries confirmed for two area hospitals and more expected.
Also: Long Island supermarket chain King Kullen said the Moderna version of the COVID-19 vaccine is now available at eight pharmacy locations. In a statement, King Kullen said supply is limited and that “you must be at least 65 years of age to be eligible.”
The number of new positives reported today: 600 in Nassau, 569 in Suffolk, 4,315 in New York City and 7,704 statewide.
The chart below shows the number of new daily cases confirmed in Nassau and Suffolk counties during the past month.
Search a map of new cases and view charts showing the latest local trends in vaccinations, testing, hospitalizations, deaths and more.
LI’s 1st patients with COVID-19 reflect, 1 year later
Miguel Chamaidan of Uniondale didn’t understand why his hospitalization was making the news.
Ricardo Ramirez was fighting nightmares in intensive care units at two Long Island hospitals.
Josh Wortman left Queens for Westhampton, was already infected and ended up in a Suffolk County hospital.
Those three were among the thousands who ended up in emergency rooms as COVID-19 spread across the region in 2020. Long Island on Friday will hit the one-year anniversary of when its first positive coronavirus case was announced.
Newsday tells the stories of patients, a doctor and a nurse, offering a glimpse of what life was like as the virus spread.
This district is proposing a return to full-time in-person learning
Kings Park School District Superintendent Timothy Eagen will present a plan on Tuesday for a phased return to five-day, in-person school for the district’s secondary students, he said at a Board of Education meeting this week.
But that promise came with warnings that the district lacks current written guidance from health authorities and that a return could require more quarantines and students sitting close on buses and in classes because of space constraints. It could also push some students into full remote schooling because of safety concerns they might not have otherwise had, Eagen said.
A chorus of complaints followed from parents who said the plan should have come sooner and that administrators had showed little appreciation for their concerns.
A socially distant tribute for a 100-year-old hero
A World War II veteran and sailor who survived a critical naval battle in the South Pacific celebrated turning 100 on Tuesday.
At his East Meadow assisted living facility, Navy veteran Frank Loglisci got a socially distant parade of Nassau police vehicles blaring sirens and flashing lights as they passed.
He smiled and waved at his new collection of admiring fans as big, decorative letters in black and gold spelled out “Happy 100th Birthday Frank” on the lawn. A parader stuck his head out of the passenger-side window of an SUV and shouted to Loglisci: “Happy birthday, pop!”
More to know
President Joe Biden said on Tuesday the U.S. will have enough COVID-19 vaccine supply to vaccinate all eligible Americans by the end of May — two months earlier than previously announced. He also announced a federal initiative aimed at providing vaccinations to all school teachers and staff by the end of March.
At Suffolk County public schools fall sports, two spectators per participant will be allowed starting March 8, officials said Tuesday.
Kennedy, LaGuardia and other Port Authority-run airports had 73% fewer passengers in January compared to the same month in 2019, the authority said, another example of the pandemic’s toll on the region.
New York education officials said they will administer four Regents exams statewide in June, should they fail to obtain waivers from Washington, D.C., which would mark the first resumption of state testing since last spring.
Gareth Rhodes, a top aide to Cuomo, announced he has left the governor’s coronavirus task force to return to his state job.
The pandemic-era Golden Globes sunk to 6.9 million viewers, down a whopping 64% from 2020.
Texas lifted its mask rule and will do away with its indoor dining limits, joining a movement by leaders across the U.S. to loosen COVID-19 restrictions despite pleas from health officials not to.
News for you
The plan for Adventureland. You’ll need a park entry ticket to visit Adventureland this spring. It’s part of an effort to control capacity and to be able to notify customers if they need to do contact tracing, according to a park manager. Tickets will be able to be purchased in advance online. Read more.
A virtual ‘King of Queens’ reunion. The cast and the co-creator of Long Island native Kevin James’ “The King of Queens” will reunite virtually for a table read benefiting a charitable organization and honoring the late series star Jerry Stiller. Look out for it on March 12.
Thinking about the weekend? Here are some things to do in NYC, if you’re looking to escape Long Island but not travel too far. Anyone interested should check the latest guidelines and COVID protocols for the activities.
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Commentary
In praise of vaccine selfies. Maya Kosoff writes for The Washington Post: When I’ve opened my Instagram feed in recent weeks, I’m not seeing the typical visual trademarks I’ve come to associate with the pandemic, like loaves of home-baked sourdough bread or small groups of socially distanced and masked people outside at a birthday party. Instead, my feed has lit up with pictures of people getting the coronavirus vaccine. In one post, a woman wearing a T-shirt with a bandage on her left arm appears to be smiling under her KN95 mask outside a pharmacy in California. In another, a man celebrates by posting a picture of himself sitting in his car, an “I got vaccinated!” sticker clearly visible on the lapel of his peacoat.
The pictures are so ordinary but they feel so extraordinary. For most of the last year, even the briefest glance at my social media feeds has been a study in either pessimism or denial: Here the despair at how bad things have gotten, there the desperate attempt to prove that we’re living our best lives despite everything. But vaccine selfies seems to represent something else, something more like hope. They’re an admission that our lives have been as messy as the home-cut hair styles we inevitably reveal in them. And yet they’re also a sign that we just might be able to get things together again. After a year of misery, suffering, and disaster mismanagement from every level of government, it makes sense that some people may be happy to see the end is in sight, and to celebrate by marking the moment with a picture. Keep reading.
Erin Serpico is an assistant web producer who joined Newsday in November 2018. Originally from New Jersey, she now covers community events and produces local content for newsday.com while also helping run the homepage.
