Tue, Apr 26th 2022 03:10 pm
A chance meeting at a photocopier. The promise of a safer way to vaccinate. Unexpected calamities in the lab. Finally, a breakthrough and a major publication, only to be met with ... crickets.
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Mon, Apr 25th 2022 03:20 pm
For the week of April 24-30, laboratories, health care facilities, academic institutions and public health departments will mark Medical Laboratory Professionals Week. This annual observance raises awareness, understanding and appreciation for laboratory professionals, and has been celebrated since 1975. The theme for Lab Week 2022 is "Giving the Gift of Health."
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Fri, Apr 22nd 2022 05:10 pm
On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Erie County meets the indicators for a "high" coronavirus level. This level is based on the number of new daily COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over seven days, new COVID-19 admissions per 100,000 population (seven-day total), and percent of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients (seven-day average).
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Fri, Apr 22nd 2022 05:10 pm
New York state announced the distribution of $20 million in federal funding this month to help struggling New Yorkers with multigenerational households avoid food insecurity.
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Fri, Apr 22nd 2022 10:40 am
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday announced all New Yorkers enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will receive the maximum allowable level of food benefits for April. All households participating in SNAP - including those already at the maximum level of benefits - will receive a supplemental allotment this month, which will result in New York state's economy receiving roughly $232 million in federal funding.
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Thu, Apr 14th 2022 07:35 pm
Earlier this week, the coronavirus case rate per 100,000 residents over seven days exceeded 200, which is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention threshold to move a community into a "medium" COVID-19 level. As reported COVID-19 cases are increasing locally and statewide, the Erie County Department of Health is sharing CDC safety recommendations.
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Mon, Apr 11th 2022 02:45 pm
Too many of New York school districts' mental health teams are understaffed, with too few available services and inconsistent and limited oversight of mental health education for students, an audit by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli found.
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Mon, Apr 11th 2022 02:10 pm
Individuals who receive a positive coronavirus test result through Erie County Department of Health's COVID-19 testing services will be offered a prescription for Paxlovid, if they are eligible.
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Fri, Apr 8th 2022 10:30 am
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday announced more than 70 million over-the-counter coronavirus tests have been distributed, to date, by New York state, as part of the administration's ongoing efforts to keep New Yorkers protected throughout the pandemic.
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Fri, Apr 8th 2022 10:10 am
The Erie County Department of Health is announcing updates to its coronavirus testing sites.
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Tue, Apr 5th 2022 02:25 pm
Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), announced an "all-hands-on-deck, multifaceted expansion of efforts to identify and support the SBA inspector general's recovery of fraudulently obtained COVID economic relief funds and to prevent potential future theft of taxpayer dollars."
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Mon, Apr 4th 2022 08:45 pm
Following the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent update to COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorizations, and New York State Department of Health approval, the Erie County Department of Health is offering free second booster doses of Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccines to all who are eligible.
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Mon, Apr 4th 2022 10:25 am
The FDA's approval last week of a fourth COVID-19 shot is injecting additional questions into the conversation over who should get which booster and when.
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Sat, Apr 2nd 2022 02:30 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday announced eligibility for second coronavirus vaccine booster doses. Eligible New Yorkers may receive an mRNA vaccine - either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine - for their second booster shot.
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Fri, Apr 1st 2022 10:05 am
Gov. Kathy Hochul recently announced nearly 70 million over-the-counter coronavirus tests have been distributed by the state, so far, as part of ongoing efforts to protect New Yorkers during the pandemic.
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Fri, Apr 1st 2022 10:05 am
Gov. Kathy Hochul recently announced up to $50 million in available funding for school districts to improve student access to mental health resources and assist students who have experienced trauma that has impacted their education. A request for proposals has been issued by the New York State Office of Mental Health, who will administer the program.
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Tue, Mar 29th 2022 03:40 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul issued a letter to the New York congressional delegation "illustrating the need for additional federal funding for the national COVID-19 response to ensure preparedness for future variants. This funding will help New Yorkers continue to move safely forward through the pandemic."
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Fri, Mar 25th 2022 10:40 am
The number of reported coronavirus cases in Erie and Niagara counties has gone up for the first time in several weeks. As of Wednesday, the seven-day average of cases per a population of 100,000 was 8.25%. The seven-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the past three days was 1.86%. One week ago, those numbers were 6.82% and 1.79%, respectively.
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Thu, Mar 17th 2022 04:30 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced nearly 29,000 small and micro-businesses throughout New York were awarded more than $500 million in grant funds through the COVID-19 Pandemic Small Business Recovery Grant Program.
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Thu, Mar 17th 2022 04:30 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced more than 20 million over-the-counter coronavirus tests will be distributed across the state through the spring to bolster New York's ongoing preparedness efforts.
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Thu, Mar 17th 2022 04:30 pm
On Wednesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul extended her executive order declaring a state of emergency in New York to April 15. This is in response to the continuing coronavirus pandemic.
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Thu, Mar 17th 2022 03:10 pm
A little more than two years after the first pandemic restrictions came into effect, in letters to the U.S. and Canadian governments, Congressman Brian Higgins is calling on leaders to remove all pandemic-imposed border restrictions. His request comes as Canada is preparing to announce plans to drop the existing testing requirement for vaccinated travelers entering the country through airports and land ports, effective April 1.
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Wed, Mar 16th 2022 02:05 pm
New York Attorney General Letitia James issued the following statement Tuesday in response to Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's audit of the New York State Department of Health's response to the coronavirus, which affirmed some of the findings of her January 2021 nursing homes report, most notably that DOH misrepresented the true number of deaths that occurred at nursing homes:
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Wed, Mar 16th 2022 02:05 pm
The New York State Department of Health was unprepared to respond to infectious disease outbreaks at nursing homes, even before the coronavirus pandemic hit New York, an audit released Tuesday by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli found.
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Tue, Mar 15th 2022 01:00 pm
On Tuesday, Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, directed the SBA to provide additional deferment of principal and interest payments for existing COVID Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program borrowers. That makes a total of 30 months deferment from inception on all approved COVID-19 EIDL loans.
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Mon, Mar 14th 2022 03:25 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the availability of $2.5 million over five years to create and support a Mental Health Resource and Training Technical Assistance Center for Schools. The center will support all New York state public and private schools, and assist them in providing mental health education as part of the K-12 health curricula.
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Thu, Mar 10th 2022 08:40 am
For a limited time, the American Red Cross has resumed testing all blood, platelet and plasma donations for coronavirus antibodies. Plasma from routine donations that have high levels of antibodies may be used as convalescent plasma to help meet the needs of COVID-19 patients with weakened immune systems.
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Wed, Mar 9th 2022 02:55 pm
Niagara County Legislator Irene Myers, left, delivers coronavirus test kits to Marlene Wessel and Karen Johnson of the Youngstown Free Library. The kits are available to any resident, free of charge, during the library's regular business hours.
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Fri, Mar 4th 2022 02:10 pm
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz on Friday issued the following statement regarding the ongoing state of emergency in Erie County, which has been in place since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in mid-March 2020 - and, his team said, "has allowed Erie County's response to the virus and its variants to be as flexible, quick and targeted as possible throughout each stage of the public health response."
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Fri, Mar 4th 2022 02:10 pm
Niagara County Legislator Rick Abbott announced Niagara County has tens of thousands of coronavirus tests kits from New York state that it is making available to not-for-profits and businesses. The tests are available through the Niagara County Department of Emergency Services.
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Wed, Mar 2nd 2022 04:35 pm
In accordance with the changes in guidelines from Erie County, New York state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, masks are no longer required for Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra performances at Kleinhans Music Hall. That said, the BPO stated, "We strongly encourage all patrons to continue to wear masks at all times while in the venue."
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Wed, Mar 2nd 2022 04:05 pm
New York State Senate Republican Leader Ortt on Tuesday "demanded" to know why the Senate Democratic Conference refused to take up his resolution to nullify Gov. Kathy Hochul's Feb. 14 executive order declaring a "disaster" emergency in the state of New York.
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Wed, Mar 2nd 2022 03:00 pm
University at Buffalo Provost A. Scott Weber announced via email to campus this morning that UB will lift its mask mandate effective March 5.
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Tue, Mar 1st 2022 03:35 pm
Congressman Brian Higgins, who serves as co-chair of the Northern Border Caucus and the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group, says the U.S. and Canada should follow guidance implemented by its health agencies and lift remaining pandemic-related border restrictions.
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Mon, Feb 28th 2022 12:35 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday announced nearly $2 million in federal funding is available for the New York Great Lakes Fisheries Relief Program, provided through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.
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Mon, Feb 28th 2022 12:35 pm
Following Gov. Kathy Hochul's announcement on Sunday related to mask requirements in New York state schools, as of Wednesday, March 2, students and school staff will not be required to wear masks in school settings.
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Mon, Feb 28th 2022 11:25 am
On Friday, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced the mask mandate currently in effect in all Erie County-owned buildings would be lifted as of Monday, Feb. 28. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website now includes information on COVID-19 community levels nationwide, a measure of the impact of COVID-19 illness on community health and health care systems, and lists Erie County in the "medium" category.
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Sun, Feb 27th 2022 05:25 pm
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sunday announced plans to end the state mask requirement in schools starting on Wednesday, March 2.
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Fri, Feb 25th 2022 05:35 pm
Effective Monday, Feb. 28, Niagara County Community College is removing the mandatory masking requirement on campus for those fully compliant with the coronavirus vaccine mandate as defined by the Centers for Disease Control, New York state, the State University of New York and the Niagara County Department of Health. While masks will no longer be required, it is encouraged that individuals wear them when in close proximity to others.
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Wed, Feb 23rd 2022 03:30 pm
The Niagara County Department of Health today released its weekly COVID-19 update.
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