A Message from Our Chief Medical Officer: Communicable Disease Update

Dear New York Tech Students, Faculty, and Staff:

As of August 18, 2022, approximately 93.1 million cases of COVID-19 and 1,034,118 cumulative total deaths have been reported in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) since the start of the pandemic. Over the past seven-day period, the state reporting the highest number of cases per 100,000 people is Mississippi (285.7); Vermont reported the least (63.9). In comparison, New York State has 153.4 per 100,000, New York City has 184.1, and Arkansas has 208.

Locally, Long Island’s seven-day average COVID-19 testing positivity rate is now at 8.2 percent, compared to 5 percent for all boroughs of New York City. Within the state, new hospitalizations have decreased to 1.9 per 100,000 people.

The surveillance continuum for the coronavirus usually starts with increased transmission demonstrated by increased cases, followed by increased hospitalizations and finally increased mortality rate (rate of death). In the last seven-day period, Nebraska was the state with the highest mortality rate, at 3 deaths per 100,000 people. Alabama has the lowest mortality, at 0.6. By comparison, Arkansas has 1.6 deaths per 100,000 and New York is at 0.6.

Nationally, the CDC forecasts that “the number of newly reported COVID-19 deaths will remain stable or have an uncertain trend over the next four weeks, with 1,800 to 5,000 new deaths likely reported in the week ending September 10, 2022.”

The vaccine rollout continues, with more than 603 million doses administered in the U.S. Seventy-nine percent of the population has received at least one dose, 67.4 percent is now fully vaccinated, and 48.4 percent of the population has received one additional booster as of August 17, 2022. In comparison, in New York, as of August 12, 2022, the CDC reports that 91.7 percent of the total population has received at least one dose and 78.3 percent is fully vaccinated. There continues to be a decreasing trend in the number of people being vaccinated. As mentioned previously, the new protein-based (non-MRNA) vaccine, Novavax, is now available for those who remain concerned about the side effects of MRNA vaccines. Facilities that offer the new vaccine can be found at the CDC website by entering your Zip code.

New York Tech continues to obtain guidance from the CDC, which updated its guidelines on August 11, 2022 in an attempt “to move to a point where COVID-19 no longer severely disrupts our lives.” One major change is that quarantining is no longer required for anyone exposed to someone who is infected. Regardless of vaccination status, anyone exposed can go out in public, but must wear a mask for 10 days and get tested on day five. Additionally, screening of asymptomatic people is no longer routinely recommended.

Following “Community COVID Levels” recommendations is still emphasized by the CDC where a combination of metrics—1) case rate per 100,000 population; 2) new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 population; and 3) the percentage of staffed inpatient beds in use by patients with confirmed COVID-19—is used to assign a specific county level of high, medium, or low risk. Based on these metrics, all counties in the New York City region (the five boroughs, and Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties) have attained the “high” category in which masks are required indoors. There remain no state or local mandates in regards to mask-wearing.

The most rapidly growing variant, BA.5, has grown to represent 88.8 percent of COVID cases in the U.S. In federal Region 2 (New York/New Jersey/Puerto Rico/Virgin Islands), BA.5 also represents approximately 88 percent of the variants. The clinical implications of this new variant are still being assessed.

Monkeypox continues to spread mostly through close, intimate contact with someone who is infected. Patients who are infected may remain contagious until the rashes resolve, which is up to four weeks. This can create challenges for self-isolation. As of August 18, 2022, there are 14,115 confirmed cases in the U.S, with 2,744 cases coming from New York. In New York City, the health department has a website to learn more and obtain information on vaccine availability. Nassau County and Suffolk County also maintain websites.

Communicable diseases have always been present in society, and we should do all we can to mitigate the transmission. Therefore, activities such as vaccinations, isolation, quarantine, and mask-wearing (as necessary) will likely remain in our daily lives in the near future as we attempt to prevent the transmission of SARS Cov-2, as well as other communicable microbes.

As a reminder, please note that all members of the New York Tech community must continue to report to contacttracing@nyit.edu if they have tested positive for COVID-19. As always, those who may feel anxious or uneasy can reach out to Counseling and Wellness Services at our campuses in Long Island (516.686.7683) or New York City (212.261.1773) to talk or make a virtual appointment. Our medical students can reach out to NYITCOM’s Counseling and Wellness in Long Island (516.686.7636) or Arkansas (870.680.8839).

Sincerely,

Brian L. Harper M.D., M.P.H.
Chief Medical Officer, NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine