New York City’s health commissioner, Dave A. Chokshi M.D., said on Monday, Nov. 15, that hospitalizations for patients with COVID-19 across the City remain low. However, there has been an uptick in COVID-19 cases in recent days. “We had anticipated this might occur as the weather gets cooler and people spend more time indoors,” he said.

 

Below are some visuals from New York City Department of Health & Mental Hygiene of the current state of play in terms of case rates in local Bronx neighborhoods, in the borough as a whole, and how they compare with other parts of the City.

 

The following chart compares the daily COVID-19 average indicators for the last seven days to the daily averages for the last 28 days.

 

 

Below is a map of the 7-day, COVID-19 percentage positive case rate across New York City by ZIP code, as of Nov. 15.

 

 

The following chart shows the trend in terms of COVID-19 case rates in the Bronx as of Nov. 15.

 

 

Below is the trajectory in terms of COVID-19 hospitalization rates in the Bronx as of Nov. 15.

 

 

The following chart shows the trend in terms of COVID-19 death rates in the Bronx as of Nov. 15.

 

 

The following graph shows the trajectory in terms of COVID-19 case rates in the Fordham to Bronx Park neighborhoods as of Nov. 15.

 

 

Below is the trend in terms of COVID-19 case rates in the Northeast Bronx as of Nov. 15.

 

 

The following chart shows the trajectory in terms of COVID-19 case rates from Kingsbridge to Riverdale as of Nov. 15.

 

 

Below is the trend in terms of COVID-19 case rates from Crotona to Tremont as of Nov. 15.

 

 

The following chart shows the trend in terms of COVID-19 case rates from Pelham to Throgs Neck as of Nov. 15.

 

 

Speaking on The View, last week, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy encouraged people not to rely on the mistaken belief that if they contracted COVID-19 and recovered, they have natural immunity from antibodies. He said researchers, to date, cannot say with certainty that people who have recovered from COVID-19 have sufficient antibodies in their system to fight a future infection, and that this is why he still recommends that everyone who can gets vaccinated.

 

He also gave some recommendations on how to talk to loved ones about health misinformation. He recommended listening, empathizing, pointing to credible sources, not publicly shaming people and using inclusive language.

 

Have you had to navigate conversations with loved ones about questionable information they found online? One of the resources in our new Community Toolkit includes tips on how to talk to the people in our lives about #HealthMisinformation pic.twitter.com/G2FBe99SRY

— Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General (@Surgeon_General) November 12, 2021

 

Meanwhile, in terms of vaccination rates, according to Chokshi, 5,681,722 New Yorkers or 68.2 percent of the City’s residents are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

 

Billions of dollars were spent and hundreds of scientists from around the world worked nonstop to develop the vaccines as quickly as possible. This allowed testing and production of the vaccines to happen at the same time instead of in separate phases: https://t.co/4zgWbbigan pic.twitter.com/0KpRH3lKTW

— nychealthy (@nycHealthy) November 15, 2021

 

The percentage of Bronxites who are fully vaccinated for COVID-19 now equals that of fully vaccinated Brooklynites at 62 percent, and the percentage of Bronxites with one dose (69 percent) exceeds that of Brooklynites at 67 percent. 

 

As reported, New York City officials are now encouraging all those who are eligible to sign up for a COVID-19 booster shot. In continued efforts to allay fears of some people concerning the vaccine’s safety, City health department officials are also sharing public service announcements which explain how the COVID-19 vaccines were developed at a faster rate than other types of vaccines.

 

Billions of dollars were spent and hundreds of scientists from around the world worked nonstop to develop the vaccines as quickly as possible. This allowed testing and production of the vaccines to happen at the same time instead of in separate phases: https://t.co/4zgWbbigan pic.twitter.com/0KpRH3lKTW

— nychealthy (@nycHealthy) November 15, 2021

 

In the context of the booster vaccine, Chokshi tweeted on Monday, “In my own conversations with patients and family members, I know that booster doses can provide one more layer of reassurance, allowing us to breathe a bit easier, either for ourselves or our loved ones, particularly as we gather and travel around the holidays.”