State sets new pandemic high with 74K new cases in one day

The number of active Covid cases in Orleans and Genesee counties is back on the rise after a brief reprieve.

The active cases in Orleans are up from 130 on Monday to 215 today, and from 218 on Monday in Genesee County to 272 today. (A week ago there were 211 cases in Orleans and 231 in Genesee.)

The state hit a record high for new cases in one day with 74,207 on Wednesday. Those results were reported today by Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office.

That passes the 67,090 on Tuesday. Before that the record was 49,708 positive tests on Dec. 24.

New York City, with 43,985 new cases on Wednesday, has the majority of the record 74,207 cases in the state. Long Island also is seeing a surge in cases with 5,772 new cases in Suffolk and 6,861 in Nassau.

Closer to Orleans, there were 1,290 new cases on Wednesday in Monroe County, 2,252 in Erie County and 376 in Niagara. There were 66 in Genesee and 34 in Orleans.

In the past three days there have been 159 new positive cases (20 home tests) in Orleans County. There have been 66 more recoveries or people who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

In Genesee, there are 219 new positive cases (34 from home tests) since Monday. There have been 155 more recoveries since Monday.

The Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments also is reporting four people are hospitalized in Orleans due to Covid and Genesee has 28 residents in the hospital from Covid.

Three residents from Genesee County also have passed away from Covid, bringing the total deaths in the county from Co vid to 158 since the pandemic started in March 2020.

Testing will be offered at campus center through next week

Photo by Tom Rivers: The sign at the entryway of the GCC campus center in Albion directs people down the hall for Covid test. The service started today and will continue through the end of next week.

ALBION – A free Covid testing site started today at the GCC campus center in Albion. It will continue Thursday and Friday this week, and Monday through Saturday next week. The testing site at 456 West Ave. is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

It’s one of 13 new testing sites being paid for by the state to help identify people who are positive for Covid so they can isolate and not spread the virus.

The site offers tests by appointment, as well as walk-ins. It will offer RT-PCR testing. Rapid antigen and rapid PCR tests will also be available within a few days of opening, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office said. Click here for more information about making an appointment.

The state set a new pandemic record for positive Covid tests on Tuesday who 67,090. That passes 49,708 positive tests on Dec. 24.

The positive tests on Tuesday included 41 in Orleans County and 84 in Genesee.

On Tuesday, the percentage of tests that were positive was 18.50 state-wide. The 7-day average state-wide for positive tests is now 14.61 percent.

Orleans about three weeks ago had the highest positvity rate in the state, but now is much lower. The percent of positive tests over 7 days in Orleans County is at 8.2 percent and in Genesee it’s 9.5 percent.

The number of active Covid cases and hospitalizations is down significantly after hitting a pandemic high for cases earlier this month.

Orleans County today has 130 active cases, which is down from 211 on Thursday and 334 on Dec. 9. The 130 active cases today is 61 percent of the record high of 334 only 18 days ago.

Genesee County also is seeing a decline, at 218 today which is down from 231 on Dec. 23 and 275 on Dec. 20.

The number of people hospitalized due to Covid also is on the decline. Orleans has four hospitalized today due to Covid, which is down from nine on Dec. 23, 12 on Dec. 20 and 17 on Dec. 2.

Genesee County has 27 people hospitalized from Covid, which is down from 29 on Dec. 23, 35 on Dec. 20 and 39 on Dec. 2.

State-wide hospitalizations due to Covid was at 5,526 on Sunday, up by 635 in two days, and up from the 3,909 on Dec. 17.

The active cases are going down because new positive cases are less than people recovering or completing their 10-day isolation and being removed from mandatory isolation.

Orleans County has 50 new cases since Thursday, and 126 more recoveries.

Genesee County has 92 new cases since Thursday and 105 more people who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

New York State is seeing a surge in new cases with 26,737 more positive tests on Sunday and a positivity rate of 16.04 percent. The seven-day average for positive tests is at 12.41 percent in the state. That is higher than the 7.8 percent in Orleans and 9.1 percent in Genesee.

Positivity rate dropping in Orleans, Genesee

New York State set a new pandemic record for most new Covid cases in one day with 49,708 positive tests on Dec. 24. That passed the record set the day before with 44,431 new positive Covid cases.

The state also had 36,454 new cases reported on Saturday, which was Christmas. Those new cases included 7 in Orleans and 14 in Genesee.

Although the total number of new cases was down, the percent of positive tests increased from 12.4 percent on Friday to 14.2 percent on Saturday.

The percentage of positive tests in the past 7 days is 11.70 percent state-wide. Orleans and Genesee, which were near the top for highest positivity rates only two weeks ago, now are below the state rate. In Orleans, the 7-day positivity rate ending Dec. 24, is 8.9 percent and Genesee is at 9.7 percent.

“As we come home from holiday gatherings, it is as important as ever to take precautions to limit the spread of Covid-19 this season,” Governor Hochul said in a statement today. “Wear your mask, wash your hands, and if you haven’t yet, get vaccinated and boosted. The vaccine is the best tool we have to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe as we head into the new year. Take advantage of having it readily available and get yours today.”

The state will be running a Covid testing clinic this week from Monday through Saturday at the GCC campus center on Route 31 in Albion. The GCC site will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday through Saturday.

The site will offer tests by appointment, as well as walk-ins. Upon launch, all sites will offer RT-PCR testing. Rapid antigen and rapid PCR tests will also be available within a few days of opening, Hochul’s office said.

Starting on Monday, New Yorkers can make an appointment for a Covid-19 test by clicking here.

New York State set a new record high for Covid cases in one day with 38,835 on Wednesday. That obliterated the previous high, 28,924 on Tuesday. Just two days earlier on Sunday the record high was 23,391.

The surge is driven by New York City (22,808 cases on Wednesday) and Long Island (6,950 cases on Wednesday).

In New York City the percentage of Covid tests that were positive was 12.2 percent on Wednesday and Long Island was at 12.2 percent.

Orleans and Genesee were near the highest in the state two weeks ago but now are near the state average. The 7-day positivity rate in Orleans is 9.6 percent while Genesee is 9.8 percent. The state’s 7-day percent positive is 9.5 percent.

Orleans and Genesee both have a decline in the number of active Covid cases since the last update from the local health department on Monday.

Genesee is down from 275 to 231 and Orleans declined from 216 to 211.

Orleans County is reporting 72 new positive cases (1 from a home test) since Monday, and 74 more recoveries or people who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

Genesee is reporting 109 new positive cases (0 from home tests) since Monday, and 144 more recoveries.

Genesee has 29 residents hospitalized due to Covid and Orleans has nine in the hospital.

Orleans also has had three more residents die from Covid in the past week. Orleans has now had 103 residents die from Covid during the nearly two years of the pandemic.

Genesee is reporting one more death in the past week and has now had 152 residents die from Covid during the pandemic.

‘Our staff has weathered extreme heat, freezing rain and snow to provide these tests’

MEDINA – Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Orleans Community Health has been actively working alongside the Orleans County Health Department to assist with community testing.

To date, Orleans Community Health has conducted nearly 30,000 tests, 90 percent of which were free to the public, according to Scott Robinson, director of marketing, education and outreach.

Marc Shurtz

For convenience, these tests have been conducted at the Albion clinic drive-thru, a feature that was developed and constructed for this primary purpose by Orleans Community Health.

These tests have been part of a federal program that was provided through New York state and the Orleans County Health Department. Due to supply shortages and back orders, there may not be enough of these free tests to get through the remainder of the calendar year, OCH reports.

“Our staff has weathered extreme heat, freezing rain and snow to provide these tests,” said Marc Shurtz, CEO of Orleans Community Health. “We have been in constant communication with the Orleans County Health Department to help fill this void.”

“On behalf of the Orleans County Health Department, we are grateful for the great partnerships we have with Orleans Community Health, Oak Orchard Health, pharmacies and providers,” said Paul Pettit, director of Genesee and Orleans Health departments. “With the limited supply of testing supplies sent to rural areas, it again burdens our residents and makes it challenging for them to get tested before attending family gatherings during the holiday. We are doing our best to get access to rapid tests to meet the needs of our residents.”

In lieu of these tests becoming available, Orleans Community Health Department and Orleans Community Health are working diligently on getting a low-cost option to the community. Residents are being asked to continue calling the Orleans Community Health Albion clinic for updates. Additionally, updates will be provided on the Orleans Community Health social medical accounts. The Albion clinic still has the PCR Covid-19 test available, which is run through the laboratory and requires a script written by a provider. Unfortunately, these tests are more time consuming and will reduce the amount of testing that can be conducted.

Orleans Community Health and Orleans County Health Department will continue to work together to make sure the larger community is getting the resources they need to stay healthy., Conversations with state and federal elected officials are ongoing, as they are aware of the shortage and the need for more affordable and free tests.

Both Orleans Community Health and Orleans County Health Department continue to recommend all eligible members of the community to get vaccinated and receive their boosters.

For Orleans County, clinics are held once a week at the Orleans County Health Department, located at 14016 Rt. 31 West, Albion. Registration is required for all vaccinations. Children aged 5 to 17 are to be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Click here for more information about making an appointment.

Those who are 60 and older without internet access can contact the Office for the Aging at (585) 589-3191 between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and leave a message. If you get a voicemail, someone will return the call. The OFA can only assist with the clinic links, as they are available.

Governor Hochul announced on Dec. 20 that each county would receive free at-home Covid-19 test kits. The exact date these kits will be received is not known, but they will be distributed to the County Emergency Management Office.

Once the EMO receives them, they will be distributed to schools, libraries, fire halls and community-based organizations, etc. This information will be announced to the public when the county receives the test kits.

Press Release, Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments

The Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health) are pleased to announce that we will now be able to accept at-home Covid-19 tests.

“We have developed an online form for residents to report a positive test result after taking an at-home Covid-19 test,” said Paul Pettit, Public Health Director for GO Health.

Positive test results are to be reported to the Health Department within 24 hours of completing the at-home test. Individuals can visit the GO Health website Covid-19 Testing page under Emerging Issues (GOHealthNY.org) and choose the appropriate Home Test button for their respective county.

Individuals should complete the at-home tests according to the directions provided. When the test is completed, individuals should take a picture with the individual’s name, the date and the time they took the test legibly written on the test within 15 minutes of reading the results. Towards the end of the online form, the individual will be required to upload the picture on the website and attest to the authenticity and truth of the form.  If there are any missing sections that are required, the form is invalid.  At this time, individuals do not need to report negative at-home test results.

Anyone who tests positive for Covid-19 is to self-isolate for at least 10 days. A case investigator will contact the individual to determine any potential contacts, check on the individual’s health and provide guidance on their isolation. Please answer the phone and be able to provide information regarding potential contacts when called. Also note, depending on our case load, it may be a day or two before you are called.

It is important to continue with self-isolation from household members as much as you are able. If you must share space, make sure all in contact with you are wearing masks covering their nose and mouth and frequently shared items/surfaces are sanitized often.

Please note home testing may not be accepted for travel or events. Check with your travel/event planner for what is acceptable.

For information on Covid-19 testing, click here or click here.

ALBION – Orleans County is spending $10,482 in a $150,000 regional campaign to boost vaccination rates to slow the increase in Covid cases.

The County Legislature on Monday agreed to spending, which will come from a portion of the federal American Rescue Plan money sent to the county.

One Legislator, Don Allport, opposed the move because he didn’t want “government to go after individuals” who have decided not to get vaccinated.

Allport said everyone knows about Covid which has dominated the news for nearly two years.

“It’s hard to believe anyone doesn’t know what’s going on with Covid,” he said. “Whether it’s federal, state or local money, it’s taxpayer money.”

Legislator Ken DeRoller said there is much misinformation and “a political twist” about vaccines and fighting Covid.

“We’re not getting good information,” he said.

There are also hard to reach populations, including the Mennonites and Amish communities.

DeRoller said the campaign will highlight the effectiveness of vaccines and their local availability.

Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson and County Chief Administrative Officer Jack Welch join other county leaders from the nine-county Finger Lakes Region in frequent calls about fighting Covid.

The $150,000 campaign will be focused on the rural communities, and will target zip codes with low vaccination rates.

“This resolution coordinates advertising strategy to promote people to get their vaccines,” Johnson said.

Welch said the state has put lots of resources into outreach campaigns in urban areas, but not too much in rural communities.

“We’re trying to get a fair communication message out so they can make an informed decision,” Welch said.

In the resolution, legislators said new cases, hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19 infections continue to rise within Orleans County and throughout the region. The county last week reached 100 deaths from Covid since March 2020.

The marketing and outreach strategy will be conducted by Common Ground Health and Causewave Community Partners. The campaign will include advertising in a number of local and regional outlets, earned media, and targeted direct mailings to particular populations within the region.

Orleans County recently had the highest percentage of positive Covid tests in the state. That has started to decline but the county still had over 200 active Covid cases on Monday.

Orleans has made some gains in its vaccination rate. It had the lowest vaccination rate last spring, but now is ahead of 12 other counties.

In Orleans, 57.1 percent of population has had at least one vaccination dose, and 66.1 percent of population 18 and older with at least one dose.

That compares to 76.7 percent of total population in state with at least one dose, and 88.0 percent who are 18 and older in state with at least one dose.

The 57.1 percent in Orleans with at least one dose is ahead of Allegany at 47.9%; Tioga, 50.2%; Lewis, 52.2%; Fulton, 53.1%; Cattaraugus, 54.1%; Seneca, 54.2%; Chemung, 55.4%; Steuben, 55.5%; Wyoming at 55.5%; Yates, 56.4%; Delaware, 56.7%; and Herkimer, 56.8%.

The number of active Covid cases in Orleans County is going down, from 241 on Thursday to 216 today, while the state set a new pandemic high for new cases.

The state has set a new record high for new Covid cases each of the past three days, capped by Sunday’s 23,391. That surge is driven by a big increase in New York City which had 15,245 new cases on Sunday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said.

“The winter surge in Covid-19 cases is a reminder that we must stay vigilant in our fight against the pandemic,” Hochul said today. “Make sure you are using all the tools that we know work in reducing the risk of transmission and serious illness: get vaccinated if you haven’t yet and get the booster if you have, mask up indoors and exercise caution when in large gatherings. Let’s make sure our loved ones and the most vulnerable among us this holiday season are there with us for the next and many more to come.”

Orleans County is reporting 81 new positive cases of Covid since Thursday, and 103 more recoveries or previous positive individuals who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

Genesee County’s active cases are on the rise, up from 217 on Thursday to 275 today. The county is reporting 209 new cases and 150 more recoveries.

Orleans County currently has 12 residents hospitalized due to Covid and Genesee has 35 in the hospital from Covid.

Positivity rate for Covid tests also dips below 10 percent in Orleans

The number of active Covid cases is down below 500 in Genesee and Orleans counties to 458 today, the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments reported this afternoon.

That is down from 534 on Monday and 620 a week ago on Dec. 9.

Orleans County also reached a milestone today with its percent of positive Covid tests falling below 10 percent to 9.8 percent. Genesee is at 11.2 percent, which remains near the top in the state, exceeded only by Allegany at 11.4 percent, Oswego at 11.6 percent, and Lewis at 12.8 percent. The state-wide rate is 5.1 percent in the past seven days.

Since Monday Orleans has 95 new positive cases, and 116 more recoveries or people who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

Orleans currently has 12 people hospitalized due to Covid. The Health Department said there is another death of a community member from Covid, a person over 65. That is the 100^thCovid death from Covid in the county since the pandemic started in March 2020. Last year there were 62 deaths and this year there are 38 so far.

Genesee is reporting 159 new positive cases and 197 more recoveries. The county also has 33 people hospitalized due to Covid and has had two more residents die from Covid, one under 65 and one older than 65. Genesee has now had 151 die during the pandemic.

State DOH puts Covid deaths at 100 in Orleans, 150 in Genesee

The number of active Covid cases declined in both Orleans and Genesee counties in the latest update from the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments.

In Orleans, the active cases are down from a pandemic high of 334 on Thursday to 273 on Monday. In Genesee, the cases declined from 286 to 261 in the four days.

The counties each have three more Covid deaths since Thursday and Orleans has now had 100 residents pass away from Covid during the pandemic and Genesee is at 150 deaths from Covid, according to the state Department of Health.

In Orleans County the active cases declined since Thursday with 99 new Covid cases and 158 recoveries or previous positive individuals who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

The new cases since Thursday put Orleans past 6,000 cases since March 2020. The county is now at 6,061 total cases.

The new cases include individuals in the age groups of 0-19, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s.

Genesee is reporting 210 new positive cases since Thursday and 229 recoveries. The county has passed 9,000 cases during the pandemic – now at 9,199 total cases.

The new cases are individuals in the age groups of 0-19, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.

Genesee’s hospitalizations due to Covid is up from 35 to 37 since Thursday while Orleans remains at 13.

The seven-day positivity rate for Covid tests in the two counties also is down slightly. Genesee is currently at 11.0 percent and Orleans at 10.5 over the previous seven days compared to 12.5 percent for Genesee and 12.2 percent for Orleans for the seven-day average on Thursday. The current state-wide positivity rate for seven days is 4.6 percent.

Genesee, Orleans officials say public health resources focused on vaccinations, testing

Joint statement from Rochelle M. Stein, Chair, Genesee County Legislature; Lynne M. Johnson, Chair, Orleans County Legislature; John C. Welch Jr., Orleans County Chief Administrative Officer, L. Matthew Landers, Genesee County Manager and Paul A. Pettit, Genesee and Orleans Counties Public Health Director

Due to the current Covid-19 surge, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Friday that starting Monday, December 13, through January 15, 2022, that masks will be required in all public places unless businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement.

However, Governor Hochul did not clearly state how enforcement of the mask mandate will occur.

“The Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health) will continue to focus our efforts on offering free vaccination and testing clinics as well as conducting case investigations,” said Paul Pettit, Genesee and Orleans Public Health Director. “We do not have the capacity to enforce mask mandates and enforcing mandates is not the best use of our limited resources at this point of the pandemic response. As we have throughout the pandemic in line with CDC guidance, we continue to advise residents to properly wear masks indoors when social/physical distancing is not possible.”

“As we did during the last surge, Genesee County will take the approach with our community to Educate to Cooperate in regards to the benefits of masking and social distancing,” stated Rochelle Stein, Genesee County Legislature Chair.

“In Orleans County, we will continue to focus our county resources on vaccinations, contact tracing, testing and working to keep children in school,” said Lynne Johnson, Orleans County Legislature Chair.  “We held two clinics this week, one for testing and one for booster shots. We continue to seek more testing resources from the state, because we believe identifying and isolating those who test positive is the greatest need right now to reduce the spread.”

To reduce the spread in our communities, we need to increase vaccination rates and increase testing in order to identify and isolate those who are positive with Covid-19.  However, rural county health departments continue to have issues securing additional testing resources. GO Health and local officials continue to advocate for additional resources and assistance from the state in order to have free testing in our communities.

Genesee and Orleans County Public and Health officials encourage those who have not been vaccinated or have not received their booster shot, to do so as soon as possible. Booster shots have just been approved for 16 and 17-year-olds, six months after their last shot. Visit gohealthny.org/covid-19-vaccine-information or www.vaccine.gov to make an appointment.

If you are experiencing symptoms, please stay home and seek testing. For information on Covid-19 testing, visit gohealthny.org/covid-19-testing-information or coronavirus.health.ny.gov/find-test-site-near-you.

Covid-19 is not the gift to give this season, please plan to protect your loved ones by getting your vaccine and/or booster.

Businesses need to require masks or have vaccine requirement through Jan. 15

Press Release, Gov. Kathy Hochul

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced masks will be required to be worn in all indoor public places unless businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement.

Gov. Kathy Hochul

This a major action to address the winter surge comes as Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations rise statewide to be in alignment with the CDC’s recommendations for communities with substantial and high transmission. The State Health Commissioner issued a determination solidifying the requirement.

This determination is based on the State’s weekly seven-day case rate as well as increasing hospitalizations. The new business and venue requirements extend to both patrons and staff. This measure is effective Dec. 13 until Jan. 15, 2022, after which the State will re-evaluate based on current conditions. The new measure brings added layers of mitigation during the holidays when more time is spent indoors shopping, gathering, and visiting holiday-themed destinations.

“As Governor, my two top priorities are to protect the health of New Yorkers and to protect the health of our economy,” Hochul said. “The temporary measures I am taking today will help accomplish this through the holiday season. We shouldn’t have reached the point where we are confronted with a winter surge, especially with the vaccine at our disposal, and I share many New Yorkers’ frustration that we are not past this pandemic yet.”

Since Thanksgiving, the statewide seven-day average case rate has increased by 43% and hospitalizations have increased by 29%. While the percentage of New Yorkers fully vaccinated continues to increase—gaining 2% from Thanksgiving weekend to now—the uptick is not fast enough to completely curb the spread of the virus, particularly among communities with low vaccination coverage.

“I have warned for weeks that additional steps could be necessary, and now we are at that point based upon three metrics: Increasing cases, reduced hospital capacity, and insufficient vaccination rates in certain areas,” Hochul said.

A violation of any provision of this measure is subject to all civil and criminal penalties, including a maximum fine of $1,000 for each violation. Local health departments are being asked to enforce these requirements.

Business/Venue Proof of Full-Course Vaccination Requirement   

Businesses and venues who implement a proof of vaccination requirement can accept Excelsior Pass, Excelsior Pass Plus, SMART Health Cards issued outside of New York State, or a CDC Vaccination Card.

In accordance with CDC’s definition of fully vaccinated, full-course vaccination is defined as 14 days past an individual’s last vaccination dose in their initial vaccine series (14 days past the second shot of a two-dose Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine; 14 days past the one-shot Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine).

The State also accepts WHO-approved vaccines for these purposes. Parents and guardians can retrieve and store an Excelsior Pass and/or Excelsior Pass Plus for children or minors under legal guardianship.

Business/Venue Mask-Wearing Requirement  

Businesses and venues that implement a mask requirement must ensure all patrons two years and older wear a mask at all times while indoors.

Continued Masking Requirements 

Unvaccinated individuals continue to be responsible for wearing masks, in accordance with federal CDC guidance. Further, the State’s masking requirements continue to be in effect for pre-K to grade 12 schools, public transit, homeless shelters, correctional facilities, nursing homes, and health care settings per CDC guidelines.

New York State and the State’s Department of Health continue to strongly recommend mask-wearing in all public indoor settings as an added layer of protection, even when not required. Children 2 to 5 who remain ineligible for vaccination must wear a proper-fitting mask.

Covid-19 vaccines and booster doses are free and widely available statewide. New Yorkers can visit vaccines.gov, text their ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find nearby locations.

Orleans has most cases in state per 100,000 people

The number of active Covid cases in Orleans County set a new pandemic high today with 334. That is up from the previous mark of 329 on Monday.

Orleans County is reporting 128 more cases in the past three days, and 123 recoveries or people who completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

Orleans leads the state with the most daily cases per 100,000 people on a 7-day average at 106.2. That is more than twice the state average of 49.0.

Steuben is second at 105.6 with Genesee at third highest with 105.3. There are 62 counties statewide. Others with more than 100 cases daily per 100,000 people on a seven-day average include Herkimer at 102.6, Delaware at 102.0, and Washington at 101.5.

The positivity rate in the state over 7 days is 4.8 percent. Allegany County currently has the highest positivity rate at 13.4 percent over 7 days, with Genesee second highest at 12.5 percent. Two counties are at 12.4 percent — Lewis and Chautauqua – and Orleans is fifth highest at 12.2 percent.

The active cases also are up in Genesee with 286 today compared to 226 on Monday. Genesee has 197 more cases in three days, compared to 131 more recoveries.The combined caseload of 620 in Orleans and Genesee trails the pandemic high of 633 on Nov. 22.

Genesee also suffered the loss of two more residents, both over 65, bringing the total deaths during the pandemic due to Covid to 147.

Genesee currently has 35 residents hospitalized from Covid and Orleans has 13 in the hospital.