December 24, 2020
Christmas cheer: WNY no longer center of state's Covid-19 surge
Western New York's Covid-19 positive test rate has continued its recent improvement compared to other regions in the state.
The region's rolling, seven-day average positive rate stood at 6.33% as of Wednesday, according to the most recent state data. That's a decline from the average of 6.39% on Tuesday and of 6.49% for Monday in the counties of Erie, Niagara, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany.
And, after a lengthy stretch when Western New York had the highest regional positive rate in the state, drawing the concern of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, the five-county region now ranks sixth in the state and well behind the 8%-plus rates for the Mohawk Valley and the Finger Lakes.
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"Western New York, we've made progress," Cuomo said in his most recent news conference with reporters on Wednesday.
The overall state positive rate is 5.55%.
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