Albany County reports six new cases
ALBANY, N.Y. » The county only reported six new COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
There are now 1,625 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Albany County.
Additionally, there are now 906 people under mandatory quarantine and 3 people under precautionary quarantine. To date, 4,187 individuals have completed quarantine, with 1,153 of them having tested positive and recovered.
With 28 people currently hospitalized, the hospitalization rate for Albany County stands at 1.72%, up slightly from 1.66% Friday. There is currently one person in an Intensive Care Unit, unchanged from Friday.
“To everyone staying home and doing the right thing, thank you for doing that,” Albany County Executive Dan McCoy said on Saturday. “That’s what’s keeping our numbers down and that’s where we want to stay.”
Kema’s Kreations founder and owner Kema Maxwell joined the county executive to discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed her business and impacted her in recent months.
Maxwell was laid off from her full-time job and was able to transition her own business from sewing bags to making face masks. She has received a $20,000 grant from the Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region and employs two people. Her masks may be found at www.kemaskreations. com
“I was able to turn my business around to service a need and that’s where this started,” Maxwell said. “When the governor put the [mask] mandate in place, we needed to make sure that everyone was protected, so I pivoted my business to make the masks so that my community was safe as well as myself.”
“I am so grateful to the community loan fund,” Maxwell added.
The county executive also talked about Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s recently announced $100
million loan fund for small businesses that will open for pre-applications at noon on May 26. To find out more about the New York Forward Loan Fund, click here
While the thirty reported overdoses linked to fentanyllaced crack cocaine did not involve Albany County residents, the county has seen a small uptick in the number of overdoses compared to last year’s numbers, McCoy noted.
In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,
McCoy announced that the county’s monthly free Opioid Overdose Prevention Training sessions in partnership with Project SAFE Point have been postponed and will now be offered weekly via ZOOM.
Every Tuesday at 11 a.m. participants can learn how to spot the signs of an overdose and how to use the overdose-reversing antidote NARCAN. Accessing free NARCAN kits will be addressed during the training.
McCoy also announced that Shaker Place Rehabilitation and Nursing Center is receiving $675,000 in federal funding through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and
Economic Security (CARES) Act that will ensure the county facility continues to offer the highest level of care to residents during these challenging times.
For those experiencing stress, anxiety, or depression while confined to their homes for extended periods of time, the Albany County COVID-19
Mental Health Support Line is available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at (518) 269-6634.
Anyone experiencing a psychiatric emergency should still call the Albany County Mobile Crisis Team at (518) 549–6500. The 24hour sexual assault hotline number is (518) 447-7716.