In his ongoing effort to provide temporary property tax relief, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) spoke with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin last night.
Bellone said the conversation was “positive” and he hopes to hear back soon about whether Suffolk County, which is short of the required population size, can access the municipal liquidity fund.
Bellone thanked Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY-1) for facilitating the call and supporting the county’s bid to tap into short term borrowing created by the federal CARES Act.
Bellone also announced that former County Attorney Dennis Cohen would return to his former role.
“This is even more critical to us now because of he crisis and because of the long road ahead on recovery we know we will have,” Bellone said on his daily conference call with reporters.
As testing continues throughout Long Island, including at hotspots including Coram which began today, the number of people who have a positive diagnosis for COVID-19 has continued to climb. For the first time in several days, that number rose by over 1,000, bringing the total to 31,294.
“That is higher than what we’ve been seeing over the last week,” Bellone said.
Bellone also announced that the county was piloting a food assistance program at the Brentwood testing site.
On the state side, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said he would soon be making a decision whether schools will be closed for the rest of the school year. The question will depend on where they see the resiliency of the virus, and also ongoing fears for another peak somewhere later in the year. Doctors are concerned that peak could come at a time when the nation would be going through its regular flu season as well.
On the positive side, total hospitalizations continue to decline, driven down by another triple digit number of discharges.
The total hospitalizations fell by 22 to 1,318. The number of people in Intensive Care Unit beds also declined by 16 to 478.
The ICU decline “is very good news,” Bellone said.
The number of people who have left the hospital over the last day was 132.
The number of people who died rose by 34 to 993. That includes the first Long Island Railroad Employee who passed away from complications related to coronavirus.
“I want to acknowledge and thank the employees of the Long Island Railroad today,” Bellone said. They have “stood up and met the challenge” created by COVID-19 and have “done an amazing job.”
Cars line up at the Stony Brook coronavirus testing site. Photo by Kyle Barr
The closely watched number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 fell below 1,400 for the first time in weeks, as 10 percent of the people in the hospital were discharged in the last day.
The net decline in hospitalizations was 57 people, bringing the total to 1,377.
“That’s another positive milestone we are hitting,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said on his daily conference call with reporters.
The number of people in the Intensive Care Unit also declined by two people, falling below 500.
“This is a continuation of positive signs,” but the county has “a long way to go to beat this thing,” Bellone said.
The number of people who have left the hospital in the last day increased to 141.
“We want to see that number as high as possible,” Bellone said, as he wished those who had returned to their homes a continued recovery.
Meanwhile, the county is adding another hotspot testing site and is planning to open a facility in Coram at the Elsie Owens Health Center this Friday.
The number of people who have tested positive for the virus continues to rise, with 844 people testing positive in the last day, bringing the total positive tests to 29,588.
According to figures on Governor Andrew Cuomo’s (D) web site from the State Department of Health, the number of Suffolk County residents who died in the last 24 hours from complications related to COVID-19 rose by 38 to 926.
The deaths are “beyond anything we could have imagined at the starts of this across Long Island,” Bellone said.
With many groups questioning when the general landscape will open up again, Cuomo announced a new effort to test and trace people to determine who may have COVID-19 and who they may have had contact with. The effort will be headed up by former city mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The governor said it will take an “army” of tracers. Bloomberg is putting up over $10 million for the effort. Over 35,000 SUNY and CUNY medical students will be boots on the ground. The state has 500 tracers currently, but could need many thousands more.
As residents deal with the economic fallout from the pandemic and the shutdown, Bellone urged people to fill out a mortgage relief survey on the county’s web site, at suffolkcountyny.gov. He would like to highlight what financial institutions are doing to “make sure they are doing the right thing,” Bellone said.
He urged residents and businesses to share their situations. If residents are struggling with the site, he suggested they can receive assistance by calling 311.
Bellone cited two recent police actions that resulted in arrests. Police arrested Matthew Christianson, a 21-year old resident of North Babylon. They charged him with nine counts of grand larceny, four counts of criminal possession of stolen property and several other infractions for a crime spree that started on April 14 and ended with his arrest.
In the Deer Park Business District, First Precinct Sergeant Robert Desanto saw a car with inadequate headlights at 12:35 a.m. When he pulled the car over, he saw glass on the back bumper and numerous cartons of cigarettes and boxes of vape pens inside. The 1st Squad detectives arrested 52-year-old Stanley Emerson of Brentwood, 32-year-old Keith Pasha of Bay Shore and 36-year-old Jacqueline DiPalma of Hauppauge and charged them with burglary in the third degree.
Police allege they drove their car through the front window of a store to steal the merchandise.
“To anyone who thinks they will take advantage of this situation, and that somehow the police will be distracted, think again,” Bellone said.
For the first time in six days, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Suffolk County rose, defying a positive trend for the area.
The number of people hospitalized climbed by 23 to 1,434.
“I wouldn’t put too much stock in one day’s number,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said on his daily conference call with reporters. “The question will be, ‘are we plateauing at a lower level, or is this a one day blip?’”
The number of people in Intensive Care Unit beds declined by 5 to 501.
On the positive side, 68 people were discharged from hospitals in the county.
“We’re very happy to see that number,” Bellone said, although it is lower than it’s been in the last few days.
The number of people who have died from complications related to coronavirus continues to rise, although that number is lower than it’s been recently as well. An additional 29 people have died in the last 24 hours in the county, bringing the total residents who have died from the virus to 888.
Bellone said the county distributed another 100,000 pieces of personal protective equipment yesterday, bringing the total to 2.5 million since the crisis began.
Bellone thanked all those who have helped provide services through Suffolk 311. The number of calls since the pandemic hit the island on March 9th is now 20,000. On an average day before the crisis, the number was closer to 100 per day, while that has now climbed to closer to 650 per day.
“I want to thank the team that has done a terrific job,” Bellone said.
Bellone thanked Hint Water for donating water to first responders, which his office has helped distribute.
He also thanked the Suffolk County Police Department for continuing to do its job amid the pandemic. Indeed, the department arrested Jesus Vazquez for allegedly committing four burglaries in Bay Shore and Brentwood last week.
Looking for positive signs during the ongoing coronavirus crisis, Bellone found it today when he visited Joe Zito of West Babylon, who celebrated his 100th birthday.
For the county executive, the celebration was a “personal sign of hope.”
District Attorney Tim Sini (D). File photo by Victoria Espinoza
By Leah Chiappino
Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini (D) hosted a Town Hall Meeting via Zoom on Thursday, with over 300 constituents in attendance.
Sini first took a moment to acknowledge the difficulties the pandemic is having on people’s mental health and offered condolences to those who know someone who has lost their life to the virus.
“This is more than an inconvenience and will have a long-term impact on mental health, especially with those who have pre-existing conditions and substance abuse disorders,” he said.
The District Attorney, who himself tested positive for COVID-19 March 24, says he has made a full recovery after self-isolating for two weeks, while experiencing mild symptoms such as the loss of smell and taste. He added his diagnosis was not surprising, given the high contact nature of his position
“As of March 16, I was still in court, and doing community outreach and public engagement,” he said. “I am definitely one of the lucky ones.”
Sini is participating in an antibody testing program at Stony Brook Hospital to see if his blood plasma can be found with antibodies for the virus. He encouraged other survivors of the virus to do the same.
Sini reported that violent crime has seen a 24.3 percent reduction, and most other major crimes are down with the exception of commercial burglaries and motor vehicle theft. He says the rise commercial burglaries makes sense, as businesses are shut down and people are taking advantage. His office is coming up with a strategy to address the increase in the coming weeks. However, since March 23, 130 out of 188 handcuffed arrests have been the result of a domestic or child abuse crime.
“We recognize this challenge and we’ll come up with strategies to combat it,” Sini said. He added that prosecutors and victims advocates are mean to get in contact with those who have reported a domestic crime. They are also in coordination with safe shelters for domestic violence victims, most of whom are running and working with hotels if needed. The county has also granted an automatic extension on orders of protection until a victim’s next court date, or until a judge changes it. Victims can text 911 for help or call 631-853-4138 to obtain an order of protection.
The district attorney’s office is assisting enforcement of social distancing guidelines, as part of New York State on PAUSE executive order, made effective March 22. Sini said they would prosecute those who don’t heed warnings by Suffolk County Police, code enforcement officers or village Police, with charges of obstruction of governmental administration and/or disorderly conduct.
“If someone needs to be taught a lesson or made an example of, we’re willing to do that,” he said.
Throughout the call, Sini reassured the DA’s Office will continue operate at its fullest capacity
“We are getting things done,” he said. “You have enough to worry about, whether it be health, homeschooling your children, or finances. One thing you do not have to worry about is whether or not the DA’s office is keeping you safe.”
Sini said his office is continuing to invest in technology and update their protocol to ensure employees can work from home effectively. As of March 16, 80 percent of employees at the DA’s office was working from home, and the entire staff was working from home as of March 17. Suffolk County was the first County in New York state to allow essential hearings and arraignments to be done via Skype, with the necessary paperwork being shared via email.
Sini added the office is taking the time to invest in professional development and zoom-based training. 115 employees have taken Spanish language classes. The bureau is also reviewing strategy, policy development and long-term planning.
According to the district attorney, The Financial and Money-Laundering Bureau is aggressively vetting Personal Protective Equipment suppliers to the county to ensure there are no scams. The county has obtained and distributed 2.2 million pieces of PPE to healthcare workers. Justin Meyers, Sini’s Chief of Staff, is acting as a liaison to the county executive, as well as to hospitals working on expansion and coordinating the implementation of mobile testing sites and PPE Distribution.
Town of Brookhaven's Cedar Beach. Photo by Kyle Barr
As summer approaches, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) is forming a working group to balance between public health precautions and summer recreational activities.
Bellone named Deputy County Executive Peter Scully as the chairman of a working group that will include town supervisors, village mayors in the east and west end of Suffolk and representatives from Fire Island.
The group will “work to develop guidelines and recommendations on reopening of municipal facilities,” Bellone said on his daily conference call with reporters. “We know it’s going to get more difficult as the summer approaches [amid] a strong desire to get back to a sense of normalcy.”
The county executive cautioned that Suffolk would not return to life as it was, as residents will live in a “different environment with different rules,” which will likely include the further deployment of face coverings, which can and have reduce the cost in terms of the number of lives lost to the disease.
“When you ask about whether you should continue those guidelines, think about how many people have died,” Bellone said. Indeed, that number climbed another 34 in the last day to 859.
The county, however, continues to share positive news, as the number of people entering hospitals with COVID-19 is lower than the number who are discharged, which reduces the strain on the health care system.
Another 90 people left hospitals and returned home over the last day. The number of people in the hospital fell by 30 to 1,411 people.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced today a regional group that will explore ways to reopen downstate New York. He also said New York would be working with surrounding states to plan reopening, with an emphasis not only on going back to the same place but improving on what came before.
“Let’s use this crisis, this situation, this time to actually learn the lessons … lets reimagine what we want society to be,” Cuomo said.
That downstate group will include representatives from Cuomo’s offices, Bellone’s offices, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D), Nassau County Executive Laura Curran (D) and Westchester County Executive George Latimer (D).
On the economic front, Bellone sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to gain acess to the municipal liquidity facility, which could provide property tax relief to residents in Suffolk County.
“We are very hopeful we will gain access” to the ability of the county to do short term borrowing that would allow the county to provide tax relief for residents, Bellone said.
The county distributed 16,000 pieces of personal protective equipment yesterday, which included N95 masks, ear loops masks, goggles, and isolation gowns. Today, the county is distributing some equipment to east end migrant farm workers, who are a “key part of our economy and we want to make sure we are helping them to reduce the spread of the virus,” Bellone said.
The county executive also highlighted Nature’s Bounty, which donated 1,000 N95 masks last week, which the county has given to first responders and health care workers.
Finally, Bellone said the county continued to monitor a storm that might hit the island with heavy rains and high winds. He said the county would be watching the weather closely through the day and might need to close the hotspot testing sites that opened in the last few weeks if the storm posed a threat to those efforts.
In the last 24 hours, the number of hospitalizations declined by 97 to 1,441 people.
“That is by far the largest drop we’ve seen,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said on his daily conference call with reporters. “That is great news.”
Contributing to that net decline was the discharge of 124 patients from county hospitals.
The number of patients in the Intensive Care Unit also fell by 10 to 508, while the number of people on ventilators also declined.
At the same time, amid expanded testing in hotspot areas, the number of new positive tests increased by 783 to 27,485.
For the past two days, Suffolk County has not been able to report on the number of deaths associated with the pandemic. Today, Bellone said that an additional 132 people had died from coronavirus, bringing the total to 865.
The number of people who have died in connection with the virus is “staggering,” Bellone said.
Separately, over the past week, the county executive has been speaking with other officials in the county about trying to provide temporary property tax relief.
“We have to protect taxpayers in this county and we do that by providing relief and preventing long term damage,” Bellone said.
Bellone has been exploring whether Suffolk County might access some of the relief through the Cares Act that created a new entity called the Municipal Liquidity Facility.
This facility enables states and local governments to borrow money in the short term to address cash flow and the loss of revenue caused by the economic shutdown.
“This is exactly the kind of vehicle we need,” Bellone said.
The problem, however, is that the facility is only available to counties with a population of two million or more, which is above the 1.5 million people living in Suffolk County.
Bellone plans to send a letter to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, asking that guidance for that facility change so that counties the size of Suffolk can access municipal funding that would also provide relief to taxpayers.
Paul Bolliger, a 911 operator, talked a pregnant mom in Bellport through the process of delivery, as an infant girl couldn’t wait for paramedics for her birth.
Yesterday morning at 7:20 am, Bolliger received a call from a woman in labor.
“He quickly realized this delivery was going to happen very quickly,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D), said on his daily conference call with reporters. “He immediately went into action,” providing step by step instructions through the process.
Bellone offered words of thanks to Bolliger and to “all the dispatchers throughout our county who do an incredible ob each and every day, not just during this crisis.”
In a continuing signs of light amid the darkness of the pandemic, Suffolk County reported a gradual continuation of positive trends.
The number of hospitalizations declined for the third day in a row and the fifth day in the last week, falling by 24 to 1,538. The number of residents in the Intensive Care Unit also fell by three, to 518, while ventilator use also declined.
“This is three days in a row where we’ve seen those numbers all going down,” Bellone said. “We’ll see if that trend continues.”
The number of patients discharged from the hospital who can recover at home climbed by 123, also continuing a trend over several days in which over a hundred people can leave hospitals and return to their homes.
Meanwhile, Bellone expressed dismay about a report in Newsday that indicated that some financial institutions are allowing homeowners to miss mortgage payments, but that they are then requiring those payments in a lump sum.
“The notion that there are institutions that would be [requiring a lump sum payment] is deeply disturbing,” Bellone said. “We will be looking at financial institutions and the programs that they are putting in place.”
Bellone said the County Executive’s office would highlight the programs where the banks are “doing the right thing,” while also sharing the names of the those who are putting undue financial pressure on their customers.
The county executive also urged residents who aren’t receiving help during the crisis to reach out to his office by calling 311 and reporting the financial institutions.
“We are going to put together those stories,” Bellone said. He will share information about financial institutions with the public at some point.
Bellone also thanked U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D) for his support for local and state governments. Bellone added that the federal government is the only level of government that has the ability to prop up the economy in a time of crisis. When the federal government leaves that responsibility to cash-strapped states and local governments, the local taxpayers bear the burden which is “unacceptable,” Bellone said.
Nursing homes have become a hotbed of discussion over the large percentage of their residents who have died from COVID-19 while in New York facilities. Stock photo
Slowly, the numbers in the fight against the coronavirus are moving in a favorable direction.
For the fourth time in six days, the number of hospitalizations in Suffolk County dropped. Residents in hospitals in the county declined by 23 to 1,562. The number of people in the Intensive Care Unit also declined by 16 to 521, while the number of people who are on ventilators also fell by 14 to 445.
“We hope those numbers will continue to go down,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said on his daily conference call with reporters.
In another positive sign, the number of people discharged from hospitals increased by 122, bringing the total number of people discharged from the hospital due to coronavirus infections to 2,134.
The county continued to provide personal protective equipment to first responders and health care workers. Yesterday, the county handed out 81,000 piece of personal protective equipment to fire, EMS, hospital and nursing homes. The county will hand out another round today.
Suffolk is also delivering additional masks to grocery stores and supermarkets to give to essential employees in order to protect themselves and their customers.
The county purchased 27,000 gowns that are expected to arrive tomorrow. Those gowns came from a domestic provider. Next week, the county is expecting a much larger shipment of 500,000 gowns, which the county bought from an overseas provider.
The gowns should “provide more breathing space for us,” Bellone said.
Bellone said he appreciated the ongoing quick and effective action of emergency services personnel. Several fire departments put out a brush fire in Manorville near Brookhaven National Laboratory, which started yesterday around 12:30 pm.
“Our fire departments and emergency agencies responded to the scene and they did an outstanding job in putting that out,” Bellone said. “Even in a global pandemic, [these emergency crews] are responding every day.”
Responding to questions about whether Long Island beaches and summer facilities would be open this summer, Bellone deferred any such decision until a later date.
“The amount that we have seen change in our understanding of what’s happening and the response and what works and what doesn’t is “dramatic” since the start of social distancing and New York Pause, Bellone said. “We need to tay the course. It appears we are plateauing. We are hopeful we will see the trajectory of the numbers going down.”
Separately, the number of Suffolk County Police officers who have tested positive for coronavirus is 81, with 49 returning to work.
As of Wednesday, the number of times the police have checked on people who might not have been following social distancing guidelines was 618, with 55 who were not in compliance. The police have not issued any summonses during these checks.
Signs outside the Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook share thanks to the people working inside the vets home. Seven veterans have died as of April 8 due to complications caused by COVID-19. Photo by Kyle Barr
By Kyle Barr, Leah Chiappino and David Luces
For the elders along the North Shore, those living in communities and places built for people living out their late or twilight years, the coronavirus has sewn both devastation and concern. State data now shows that the virus has made a huge impact on nursing homes, more so in Suffolk than most other New York counties.
Signs outside the Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook share thanks to the people working inside the vets home. Seven veterans have died as of April 8 due to complications caused by COVID-19. Photo by Kyle Barr
Data from New York State as of April 12 showed close to 20 percent of all deaths from COVID-19 came from nursing homes or other adult care facilities — 1,979 of a total of just over 10,000. An additional 459 deaths have come from adult care facilities.
Suffolk County has seen 141 deaths from people in nursing homes and 95 from those living in assisted living places. That is out of the 568 who had perished from the disease as of Monday. The latest number of deaths, as of press time Wednesday, April 15, was 653.
It’s a staggering number that displays Suffolk has a higher percentage of elder deaths compared to surrounding counties, such as Nassau which has a total of 261 fatalities out of 910 as of Monday.
This is also considering in late March, New York officials mandated nursing homes must accept stable or recently discharged-COVID-19 cases into their facilities, partially as an effort to not overload the health system and give these elders places to live when many have nowhere else to go.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said they had no clear information on why nearly half of all COVID-19 deaths were related to nursing homes or adult care facilities. County officials have said, upon analysis, these homes have implemented all state and county rules correctly.
The county executive added that upon review, the virus was shown to have been inside Suffolk before testing became ubiquitous and before all the calls for social distancing were in place.
“If the virus was here, and people are going into nursing homes, workers coming in and out — you put those two things together and you’re going to have the kind of numbers that you see here,” he said. “It’s tragic and it’s devastating. This is one of those things why testing early on was important and could have helped to save lives.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) also said he was concerned with the numbers released about nursing homes.
The Long Island State Veterans Home released a letter April 8 saying that, at that time, seven veterans have died due to the coronavirus as a comorbidity. Forty vets had tested positive for coronavirus, where 35 were still living in the home and another five were being treated at Stony Brook hospital. Fourteen employees also tested positive for the virus and were recuperating at home.
“Each of these veterans answered the call to serve our great nation with honor and dignity to protect the freedoms we all enjoy today as Americans,” the letter read. “Our staff is grieving the loss of these beloved members of the LISVH community.”
Peconic Landing, a nursing home in Riverhead, has already reported nine deaths as well.
Leisure Glen in Ridge, a 55-and-older gated community, have stopped virtually all community activities during the ongoing pandemic. The housing market has also drastically slowed in the community. Photo from Google maps
After numbers related to elder deaths during the pandemic were released, the AARP put out a release detailing questions people should put to nursing homes during the pandemic, including if the home is at full staff, and how many people have tested positive for COVID-19.
“New Yorkers need to communicate with their loved ones in nursing homes on a regular basis and to be aware if the virus is present in the facility.” said AARP New York State Director Beth Finkel in the release.
With so many nursing homes locked down during the pandemic, many were not willing to share much about the numbers of people in their facility, either staff or residents, who had become sick. Still, both Bristal Assisted Living, with locations around Long Island, and the 55+ community Vistas at Port Jefferson are offering virtual tours during the pandemic.
A representative from the Smithtown Center For Rehabilitation and Nursing Care said they have barred visitors since March 9, in compliance with state guidelines. In order to keep families connected, the facility sends out email blasts and has social workers and nursing staff call family members for updates. According to itswebsite, they are also scheduling times for residents to video chat with loved ones.
It’s not only the nursing homes that are struggling. For communities who mainly house older residents, the virus has been just as disruptive, perhaps even more so than an average neighborhood.
The 646 homes in Leisure Glen, a 55-and-older gated community in Ridge, have also felt the pressure of the ongoing pandemic. Ed Marczak, the homeowner association president at Leisure Glen, said they have been complying with guidelines on social distancing and have cancelled all community events and activities, along with the clubhouse.
“My wife and I haven’t had much contact with neighbors or others,” Marczak said. “If it’s nice out we’ll see some people out, but everybody is trying to be 6 feet apart.”
The real estate sector of the community has also slowed down, with those in the middle of closing or selling homes now having to hold off until an unknown date arrives.
Laura Ruhnke, lead broker at Leisure Living Realty, said before the pandemic, they were experiencing a strong market, but not anymore. Virtual home tours are an option for the group,but it could be tricky as some clients may not be as tech savvy.
”Business has drastically slowed down since the outbreak,” she said.
County Executive Steve Bellone, center, SCPD Commissioner Geraldine Hart, left, and Chief of Department Stuart Cameron, right. File photo
Starting tonight, members of the Suffolk County Police Department will be wearing masks in public to reduce the spread of coronavirus.
Initially, officers will be wearing surgical masks. They will also have N95 masks when necessary when they are interacting more closely with the public.
Wearing masks in public will become more common for everyone, as Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced that everyone will be required to wear a masks in three days when they can’t be at least six feet away from other people.
“That is part of the new normal,” said County Executive Steve Bellone (D) on his daily conference call with reporters. “The intent is to stop the spread of the virus.”
Amid recent positive signs in the number of hospitalizations, Bellone said the county is having discussions about an eventual reopening of the economy, but the county is “not there yet. The guidance [about social distancing and keeping non-essential businesses closed] will remain.”
Bellone also announced the death of Detective Sergeant John Kempf, a 32-year veteran of the force who died after a battle with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. A member of the First Precinct, Kempf, didn’t receive the typical funeral and in-person celebration of his life.
With Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart and Chief of Police Stuart Cameron, Bellone watched hundreds of officers line up in front of their vehicles and offer a hand salute as the family and motorcade drove to the cemetery.
The experience was “very different than what the experience would normally be for his police family,” Bellone said. Bellone asked county residents to keep the families of Sergeant Kempf and all the other families who have lost loved ones during this time in their thoughts.
After a two day decline in the number of hospitalizations, the numbers climbed again for a second straight day, albeit at a slower pace than last week.
The number of hospitalizations increased by 22 to 1,630. At the same time, the number of people in Intensive Care Unit beds rose by 31 to 562.
The county currently has 622 beds available, with 94 ICU beds.
The county also reported 832 new positive tests, which brings the total to 23,523. The county has tested over 53,000 residents at this point.
New testing sites will be available, by appointment only, starting tomorrow at Wyandanch and North Amityvlille.
“The good news we like to report is that 174 people have been discharged” over the last 24 hours, Bellone said. That’s the highest number the county executive has reported since residents started needing hospital care to fight off COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency passed a sales tax exemption for manufacturers, supplies and distributors who are switching processes to make personal protective equipment.
“We want to encourage” businesses to provide the necessary protection for health care workers and first responders, the county executive said. “We are grateful to businesses that have already stepped forward to change their operations and adjust to their new environment.”
East/West Industries is making face coverings for law enforcement officers in the county, which will replace the surgical masks.
“Our goal is to give [officers] fabric masks they can launder and reuse,” Cameron said.
By the time of the daily call, Bellone didn’t have any update on fatalities connected to coronavirus.
Separately, the date for the collection of data for the census has moved from August 15th to October 31st.
Bellone welcomed the extension and urged everyone to fill out the correct information because “every person that is not counted means we’ll get short changed on revenue coming back to our state in the form of different programs that are available.”
Meanwhile, Catholic Health Services is enrolling patients for two clinical trials to develop treatments for COVID-19. The health services group is participating in a Mao Clinic trial to use convalescent plasma donated by recovered COVID-19 patients. Convalescent plasma treatments use antibodies from people who have fought off the virus to treat those who have been infected but haven’t yet mounted an immune defense.
Catholic Hospitals are offering convalescent plasma at six hospitals.
The second study will use remdesivir. Gilead Sciences created the drug to treat the Ebola virus. It has shown some efficacy in treating other coronaviruses including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center in Roslyn and Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip are all participating in the remdesivir trials.
Potential donors must be over 18 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds. Patients who are at a high risk of disease progression to severe or life-threatening will receive this treatment.
The remdesivir study will occur over 10 days. On the first day, patients receive 200 milligrams of the drug, and on the other days, they get 100 milligrams doses.
Interested donors, who must be symptom free and fully recovered, and anyone else seeking additional information can contact Catholic Health Services at (855) CHS-4500.
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