ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)- The omicron variant BA.2 is continuing its climb upward to become the dominant variant making New Yorkers sick with COVID-19. On March 26, 59.6% of cases in the state were caused by BA.2, up from 41.6% on March 12, according to the Department of Health (DOH).
Cases in the state have fluctuated over the past three months. They have been trending upward since the beginning of March but nothing close to resembling the spike seen in January when cases peaked after the holidays.
The seven-day average in Albany County went up from Friday but County Executive, Dan McCoy urged people to keep a level head.
“Albany County’s average percent positive rate has now been trending upward for just short of three weeks now,” he said. “And while the highly contagious Omicron subvariant continues to drive up infection rates here and across New York, now is not the time to panic. Now is the time to get vaccinated, to get your children vaccinated, to get your booster shot, and to encourage others to do the same.”
Check out the number of cases in Capital Region counties below on April 1 compared to April 4, according to the DOH. Positive tests taken at home, and self-reported to counties, are not included.
| County | April 1 | April 4 |
| Albany | 39 | 45 |
| Columbia | 10 | 3 |
| Fulton | 11 | 7 |
| Greene | 10 | 1 |
| Montgomery | 7 | 8 |
| Rensselaer | 32 | 12 |
| Saratoga | 34 | 29 |
| Schenectady | 23 | 15 |
| Schoharie | 5 | 5 |
| Warren | 15 | 11 |
| Washington | 8 | 8 |
Northwest of the Capital Region in Onondaga, Oswego, and Cayuga Counties, levels of COVID in the community are at the highest levels given by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The only other state with more counties at the CDC’s highest ranking for community spread is Montana, which has six counties. All Capital Region counties are designated as areas of low community spread.
