ALBANY, N.Y. (WROC/NEWS10) — Gov. Andrew Cuomo Thursday updated New Yorkers on the state's progress during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
"We have nine days left in the holiday season and today, 299 days into the COVID crisis, it is more important than ever for New Yorkers to stay Smart and Tough," the governor said in a statement. "We are rapidly distributing the vaccine to the most vulnerable New Yorkers and frontline heroes, but COVID continues to spread at high rates throughout the nation and we cannot let our guard down even for a moment. The holiday season is normally a time for celebration, but this year is different—we must celebrate smart, and not allow COVID to be the Grinch that results in increased viral spread as a result of the holidays."
The governor gave the following statewide numbers for Wednesday:
The regional hospital bed capacity and occupancy numbers, including the number of hospitalizations as a percent of the region's population, is as follows:
| Region | COVID Patients Currently in Hospital in Region | COVID Patients as Percent of Region Population | Percent of Hospital Beds Available in Region |
| Capital Region | 393 | 0.04% | 24% |
| Central New York | 435 | 0.06% | 26% |
| Finger Lakes | 834 | 0.07% | 33% |
| Long Island | 1150 | 0.04% | 24% |
| Mid-Hudson | 785 | 0.03% | 34% |
| Mohawk Valley | 218 | 0.04% | 30% |
| New York City | 2387 | 0.03% | 29% |
| North Country | 69 | 0.02% | 48% |
| Southern Tier | 161 | 0.03% | 45% |
| Western New York | 496 | 0.04% | 32% |
| Statewide | 6928 | 0.04% | 30% |
The regional ICU bed capacity and occupancy numbers are as follows:
| Region | Total ICU Beds in Region | Total Occupied ICU Beds in Region | Percent of ICU Beds Available in Region (7-Day Average) |
| Capital Region | 220 | 186 | 20% |
| Central New York | 278 | 205 | 26% |
| Finger Lakes | 397 | 279 | 31% |
| Long Island | 825 | 645 | 23% |
| Mid-Hudson | 681 | 411 | 41% |
| Mohawk Valley | 130 | 96 | 28% |
| New York City | 2434 | 1804 | 27% |
| North Country | 71 | 35 | 51% |
| Southern Tier | 125 | 74 | 37% |
| Western New York | 543 | 317 | 42% |
| NYS TOTAL | 5704 | 4052 | 30% |
According to the state’s surge and flex plan, if a region’s hospital capacity trends to 90%, if would initiate a red zone designation which would effectively shut down all non-essential businesses.
Each region's 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows:
| REGION | MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY |
| Capital Region | 6.98% | 6.98% | 7.48% |
| Central New York | 6.58% | 6.44% | 6.38% |
| Finger Lakes | 8.39% | 8.48% | 8.35% |
| Long Island | 6.51% | 6.41% | 6.41% |
| Mid-Hudson | 6.29% | 6.31% | 6.22% |
| Mohawk Valley | 8.54% | 8.55% | 8.71% |
| New York City | 4.31% | 4.28% | 4.34% |
| North Country | 5.23% | 5.30% | 5.86% |
| Southern Tier | 2.48% | 2.59% | 2.66% |
| Western New York | 6.49% | 6.39% | 6.33% |
| Statewide | 5.46% | 5.43% | 5.45% |
Of the 891,270 total people who tested positive for the virus, the geographic breakdown is as follows:
| County | Total Positive | New Positive |
| Albany | 10,045 | 259 |
| Allegany | 1,662 | 35 |
| Broome | 7,429 | 111 |
| Cattaraugus | 2,167 | 34 |
| Cayuga | 2,297 | 62 |
| Chautauqua | 2,987 | 70 |
| Chemung | 4,211 | 46 |
| Chenango | 1,036 | 16 |
| Clinton | 863 | 22 |
| Columbia | 1,435 | 19 |
| Cortland | 1,831 | 33 |
| Delaware | 609 | 4 |
| Dutchess | 10,929 | 157 |
| Erie | 38,196 | 441 |
| Essex | 479 | 17 |
| Franklin | 635 | 17 |
| Fulton | 1,140 | 17 |
| Genesee | 2,301 | 101 |
| Greene | 1,062 | 31 |
| Hamilton | 97 | 7 |
| Herkimer | 1,699 | 84 |
| Jefferson | 1,468 | 46 |
| Lewis | 750 | 36 |
| Livingston | 1,579 | 36 |
| Madison | 2,017 | 64 |
| Monroe | 30,051 | 574 |
| Montgomery | 1,091 | 19 |
| Nassau | 80,003 | 1,020 |
| Niagara | 7,446 | 152 |
| NYC | 396,302 | 4,662 |
| Oneida | 10,309 | 319 |
| Onondaga | 18,822 | 471 |
| Ontario | 2,761 | 60 |
| Orange | 21,822 | 273 |
| Orleans | 1,154 | 15 |
| Oswego | 2,970 | 52 |
| Otsego | 1,074 | 14 |
| Putnam | 4,338 | 49 |
| Rensselaer | 3,534 | 122 |
| Rockland | 26,048 | 209 |
| Saratoga | 4,608 | 194 |
| Schenectady | 4,961 | 147 |
| Schoharie | 456 | 7 |
| Schuyler | 468 | 10 |
| Seneca | 653 | 25 |
| St. Lawrence | 1,764 | 60 |
| Steuben | 3,022 | 80 |
| Suffolk | 86,715 | 1,330 |
| Sullivan | 2,849 | 52 |
| Tioga | 1,543 | 25 |
| Tompkins | 1,878 | 32 |
| Ulster | 5,164 | 85 |
| Warren | 961 | 64 |
| Washington | 703 | 26 |
| Wayne | 2,154 | 53 |
| Westchester | 65,137 | 577 |
| Wyoming | 1,166 | 23 |
| Yates | 419 | 2 |
Wednesday, 129 New Yorkers reportedly died due to COVID-19 in New York State, bringing the total to 29,149. A geographic breakdown is as follows, by county of residence:
| Deaths by County of Residence | |
| County | New Deaths |
| Albany | 2 |
| Allegany | 1 |
| Bronx | 7 |
| Broome | 2 |
| Cattaraugus | 3 |
| Chemung | 1 |
| Cortland | 1 |
| Dutchess | 2 |
| Erie | 11 |
| Genesee | 2 |
| Kings | 7 |
| Madison | 4 |
| Manhattan | 4 |
| Monroe | 12 |
| Montgomery | 1 |
| Nassau | 8 |
| Niagara | 1 |
| Oneida | 1 |
| Onondaga | 11 |
| Ontario | 1 |
| Orange | 3 |
| Oswego | 2 |
| Otsego | 1 |
| Queens | 10 |
| Richmond | 5 |
| Rockland | 1 |
| Saratoga | 1 |
| Seneca | 3 |
| St. Lawrence | 1 |
| Suffolk | 15 |
| Tompkins | 1 |
| Westchester | 4 |
