Full Notification

Fall activities are in full swing in our community, with apple and pumpkin picking at local orchards and farms, and festivals and special events in local libraries and parks.  Several weather-dependent projects, like sidewalks and a roundabout, will soon wind down, and other projects, like building the new EMS station and renovating the Guilderland Performing Arts Center, are just starting and will be continuing through the fall. 
 
COVID-19 remains a threat as most activities move indoors with the arrival of cooler weather.  There are now efforts to expand eligibility for the updated boosters to include children as young as 5 years.  Starting on Saturday, Canada is lifting COVID-19 restrictions, including proof of vaccinations, for travelers to enter Canada, but visitors entering the United States must still, for now, provide proof of full vaccination.  More details are below. 
 
COVID-19 Weekly Update
 
Albany County DOH’s COVID-19 Dashboard reported no COVID-19 related deaths over the past week and that the County’s pandemic death total remained at 582.  The number of hospitalized persons decreased by six patients to now 30 patients.  The County’s seven-day average of positive cases over the past week increased from 9.3% to 10.6%.    
 
The CDC’s data finds that Albany County continued for another week with a medium level of community COVID-19 spread.  The community spread expanded in the State, with now five counties at a high level, including Fulton, Montgomery, Oswego, Putnam, and Suffolk Counties, and 38 of the State’s 62 counties are at a medium level.  The CDC will update its weekly mapping of community spread later this evening.   
 
The CDC reports that the percentage of the nation’s counties with a high community level decreased from 13.37% to 7.02% and that the percentage at the medium level decreased from 35.9% to 31.24%. The percentage of counties at the low community level increased from 50.73% to 61.74%.
 
State DOH’s method for assessing COVID-19 spread in a community uses a seven-day average of positive cases per 100,000 residents.  Albany County’s number increased over the past week from 18.3 to 19.4 cases.  The State’s seven-day average also increased from 18.6 to 22.2 positive cases.  The hospitalization rate increased in the State from 11.06 to 11.60 patients per 100,000.  State DOH reported that there were 153 COVID-19 related deaths last week in the State and that 74,237 residents have died since the start of the pandemic.

In the near future, younger children could soon be eligible to receive the updated COVID-19 booster.  Pfizer announced that it had submitted an application with the FDA for the emergency use authorization of its updated booster for children ages 5 through 11. Moderna also filed an application for FDA’s authorization for its updated booster for children ages 6 to 17. 

The CDC reports that 4.4 million Americans, about 1.5% of the eligible population, have received the updated booster.  A reminder that updated COVID-19 boosters are available at local pharmacies, clinics, and physician offices.  You can check on the availability of updated boosters by entering your zip code at vaccines.gov, texting your zip code to 438829, or calling 1-800-232-0233. 

Starting on Friday, October 1, Canada announced that it will drop its COVID-19 requirements for visitors entering the country including proof of vaccination, submitting public health information on the ArriveCAN app, or wearing facemasks on planes and trains.  However, non-US travelers must still provide proof of full vaccination to enter the United States. 

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