COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations rising on Long Island
A COVID-19 vaccine shot is administered at the Mount Sinai South Nassau Vaxmobile at Freeport High School in 2021. Credit: Newsday / Steve Pfost
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have increased on Long Island and around the United States in recent weeks, sparking concerns about a possible wave during the summer season.
The seven-day average of cases on Long Island is the highest since February, and hospitalizations have jumped 50% in the past two weeks, state figures show. There also is a high percentage of the virus in wastewater, an early indicator of future spread.
There has been a “steady rise” of COVID-positive cases at local Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care centers that started in early June and has continued over the last two weeks, said Dr. Neal Shipley, medical director of the urgent care system.
“The good news is that the majority of our patients are vaccinated, so their symptoms tend to be mild and similar to other upper respiratory viral infections — including a sore throat, dry cough, body aches and fatigue and sometimes a fever,” he said.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen to 156 as of Monday, from 104 two weeks ago and a low of 46 on April 26. The numbers are higher than last year, when there were 61 hospitalizations on Long Island on July 3, 2023. Cases last summer increased more sharply through the end of the month and into August.
Positive cases are also trending higher than this time last year. There were 225 positive cases on Saturday, compared with 112 on June 29, 2023. Experts point out that positive tests only represent a portion of cases, since people who test at home don’t generally report their results and some never test at all.
Still, last week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed out that in April and May, COVID-19 activity was the lowest since the start of the pandemic.
“While there are indicators for the potential start of a summer surge, nationally COVID-19 activity remains low,” the agency said.
Dr. Stanley H. Weiss, professor of medicine at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said part of the reason for the increase in cases can be traced to human behavior.
“Every day I'm hearing about new cases,” he said. “I think everyone wishes that the COVID pandemic was over and people are acting as if it is over and therefore people are no longer taking any precautions. Some of that is reasonable, by the way … so they will be exposed and they will get infected.”
Interest in the updated COVID-19 vaccine continues to be low. The CDC estimates that between September 2023 and June 2024, only 22.5% of adults across the country received the updated vaccine and about 15% for children between the ages of 6 months and 17.
However, immunity through the vaccine or infections has most likely waned for many people in recent months.
“The virus continues to evolve and mutate to evade the immunity that people have built up,” said Dr. Andrew Karaba, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “We’re just in this window right now where we as a population don't have our best immunity and the virus has adapted.”
A new and updated COVID-19 vaccine is expected to be available this fall, with a formulation that could better match circulating variants. Experts said even though that might be a moving target, the vaccine still prevents people from becoming seriously ill or needing hospitalization.
Estimates from the CDC said the variants KP.2, KP.3 and LB.1 have knocked out JN.1 as the dominant strain fueling cases in the nation.
“I remain concerned about how these variants play into the changing epidemiology and occurrence in the pandemic,” said Weiss, who is also a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the Rutgers School of Public Health. “It’s very hard to predict the impact of variants in the virus.”
Both Weiss and Karaba said it’s vital for the elderly, immunocompromised and people with chronic health conditions to get vaccinated. But it’s also important for young, healthy people because of their ability to spread the virus to others.
“We know that they can place others at risk,” said Weiss. “Grandparents want to see their grandchildren and children all the time, and they will be put at risk if those children and grandchildren are not vaccinated.”
Karaba said long COVID is another concern because so little is known of the disease where people can experience aches, breathing problems and other issues months after they were infected with the virus. Some studies have shown getting vaccinated can help prevent long COVID.
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have increased on Long Island and around the United States in recent weeks, sparking concerns about a possible wave during the summer season.
The seven-day average of cases on Long Island is the highest since February, and hospitalizations have jumped 50% in the past two weeks, state figures show. There also is a high percentage of the virus in wastewater, an early indicator of future spread.
There has been a “steady rise” of COVID-positive cases at local Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care centers that started in early June and has continued over the last two weeks, said Dr. Neal Shipley, medical director of the urgent care system.
“The good news is that the majority of our patients are vaccinated, so their symptoms tend to be mild and similar to other upper respiratory viral infections — including a sore throat, dry cough, body aches and fatigue and sometimes a fever,” he said.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Cases of COVID-19 are ticking up across Long Island and the rest of the United States.
- Experts say the increase could be caused by the new variants and waning immunity from past vaccinations and infections.
- Getting a COVID-19 vaccine is especially important for the elderly, immunocompromised and chronically sick or anyone who can come in contact with them.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen to 156 as of Monday, from 104 two weeks ago and a low of 46 on April 26. The numbers are higher than last year, when there were 61 hospitalizations on Long Island on July 3, 2023. Cases last summer increased more sharply through the end of the month and into August.
Positive cases are also trending higher than this time last year. There were 225 positive cases on Saturday, compared with 112 on June 29, 2023. Experts point out that positive tests only represent a portion of cases, since people who test at home don’t generally report their results and some never test at all.
Still, last week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed out that in April and May, COVID-19 activity was the lowest since the start of the pandemic.
“While there are indicators for the potential start of a summer surge, nationally COVID-19 activity remains low,” the agency said.
Dr. Stanley H. Weiss, professor of medicine at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said part of the reason for the increase in cases can be traced to human behavior.
“Every day I'm hearing about new cases,” he said. “I think everyone wishes that the COVID pandemic was over and people are acting as if it is over and therefore people are no longer taking any precautions. Some of that is reasonable, by the way … so they will be exposed and they will get infected.”
Interest in the updated COVID-19 vaccine continues to be low. The CDC estimates that between September 2023 and June 2024, only 22.5% of adults across the country received the updated vaccine and about 15% for children between the ages of 6 months and 17.
However, immunity through the vaccine or infections has most likely waned for many people in recent months.
“The virus continues to evolve and mutate to evade the immunity that people have built up,” said Dr. Andrew Karaba, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “We’re just in this window right now where we as a population don't have our best immunity and the virus has adapted.”
A new and updated COVID-19 vaccine is expected to be available this fall, with a formulation that could better match circulating variants. Experts said even though that might be a moving target, the vaccine still prevents people from becoming seriously ill or needing hospitalization.
Estimates from the CDC said the variants KP.2, KP.3 and LB.1 have knocked out JN.1 as the dominant strain fueling cases in the nation.
“I remain concerned about how these variants play into the changing epidemiology and occurrence in the pandemic,” said Weiss, who is also a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the Rutgers School of Public Health. “It’s very hard to predict the impact of variants in the virus.”
Both Weiss and Karaba said it’s vital for the elderly, immunocompromised and people with chronic health conditions to get vaccinated. But it’s also important for young, healthy people because of their ability to spread the virus to others.
“We know that they can place others at risk,” said Weiss. “Grandparents want to see their grandchildren and children all the time, and they will be put at risk if those children and grandchildren are not vaccinated.”
Karaba said long COVID is another concern because so little is known of the disease where people can experience aches, breathing problems and other issues months after they were infected with the virus. Some studies have shown getting vaccinated can help prevent long COVID.
Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.