ALBANY, N.Y. – Albany County saw its COVID-19 death toll rise to 20 people.
As of Wednesday morning, the county also eclipsed 500 positive cases, according to Albany County Executive Dan McCoy.
During his daily press briefing, McCoy noted four people died Tuesday night. Among the four were two men, aged 87 and 67 and two women, aged 62 and 76, respectively.
In addition to those deaths, McCoy confirmed the county is at 515 positive cases, with 663 in mandatory quarantine, and 71 under precautionary quarantine. Plus, 29 residents are hospitalized, 12 of which are adults in the ICU.
Along with Albany County Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Elizabeth Whalen, McCoy was joined by Dr. Micheline Ford and President & CEO of Whitney M. Young Jr. Health Center David Shippee.
Both were on hand in conjunction with the announcement of four new more equitable test sites for minority communities in downtown Albany and Watervliet.
“I have made my Equity Agenda a top priority of my administration, and one thing we are seeing throughout the state and across the nation is health disparities in underserved communities and inequity of health outcomes. Equitable health outcomes must also apply to testing for the coronavirus, and these new mobile testing sites will ensure those who do not have access to reliable transportation are able to get tested and protect themselves and their loved ones,” McCoy stated.
“I want to thank Dr. Ford for offering her unique insights on the need for those members of the African American and minority communities who are disproportionately affected by conditions like heart disease and asthma to seek medical care. And of course, thank you to Whitney Young for being such an incredible partner to make this new testing a reality. This is a critical step towards a better understanding of just how far this virus has spread throughout the Capital Region and ultimately stopping it in its tracks,” McCoy remarked.
Whalen echoed those sentiments in being able to provide test access in more diverse communities among the population.
“Across the nation, we’re hearing about disparate outcomes of COVID-19 dependent on race. The data we have so far is not robust enough to get a good picture of how this is playing out in Albany County,” Whalen remarked.
“I believe having this additional test site is going to enable us to get better data. It is going to enable us to look at these communities, these high-need communities that we serve every day with our public health programs and services to try to prevent poor outcomes with many chronic diseases and it’s going to enable us to get a better look at the community and we’re really thankful to be able to do that,” Whalen added.
Testing for COVID-19 will begin Thursday at noon and stretch until 4 p.m. at the first new mobile site at the Capital South Campus at 20 Warren St. in Albany. On Friday, there will be testing at the Whitney Young, Jr. Health Center, 920 Lark Drive, Albany from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Additionally, on Friday, there will be testing at the Bleecker Terrace Apartments on North Manning Boulevard from 9 a.m. to noon. More testing on Friday will be held at the Watervliet Health Center at 1804 Second Ave. in Watervliet from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
All testing is conducted by appointment only and after being screened for symptoms over the phone by calling the Whitney Young, Jr. Health Center at 518-465-4771.
The Whitney Young site will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The three other sites are rotational with a morning location and then an afternoon location. Schedule for location and times will be posted on the county website.
No test sites will be open on the weekend.
“We are pleased to partner with the Albany County Executive’s Office and Department of Health to bring COVID-19 testing to the community,” David Shippee commented.
“This opportunity allows us to reach the most vulnerable residents in our community, many who lack transportation and experience barriers to care every day, let alone during an unprecedented global health pandemic,” Shippee added.
In addition to the test sites, McCoy highlighted a food drive being hosted by Voorheesville Community Cares at the First United Methodist Church of Voorheesville at 68 Maple Ave.
The food drive is being held in the upper parking lot and the Voorheesville Public Library at 51 School Road on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The food drive serves to benefit the Voorheesville New Scotland Food Pantry at St. Matthews Church, the Berne Food Pantry at the Lutheran Church and the Westerlo Food Pantry at the Reformed Church.
One may donate nonperishable items like soup, pasta, tuna, granola bars, mac & cheese, and personal care items including soap, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, baby wipes, and toothpaste.
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