WNBC: “The highly transmissible delta variant continues to burn through New York City, now accounting for 83% of all positive samples – and every key indicator in the city is moving in the wrong direction. The situation is deteriorating so quickly, in fact, that as of Friday, all five boroughs of the city now meet the CDC guidelines to be considered ‘high transmission’ areas where extra precautions should be taken, including universal indoor masking. New confirmed plus probable cases are up 25% in the city versus a week prior, and up 70% two weeks prior. The seven-day rolling averages for positive tests in general, and positive percentages of all tests, hospitalizations and deaths are all higher than the 28-day averages, suggesting a steepening curve.”
“To be sure, there are some faint signs of optimism – the daily new case totals did finally drop a bit this week after weeks of unabated increases. Vaccinations are on the rise too, spurred by the city’s offer of $100 for every first dose, as well as new measures increasingly closing daily life to the unvaccinated. But the fight against the delta variant isn’t anywhere close to over, it’s only just beginning, as Mayor Bill de Blasio and other city leaders have made clear.”