P.M. NEWS TUESDAY 1-5-21

Governor Cuomo announced today that the State Positivity rate was at 8.3% of all tested for COVID 19 Monday.  Over 152,000 New Yorkers were tested statewide Monday, with 12,666 testing positive, hospitalization went up to almost 8600, there were 149 deaths.

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A Chenango County Sheriff’s Office Deputy was assaulted on County Road 10 in the Town of Pharsalia Monday night. 44 year old Seymour Shaver was wanted on an active arrest warrant from a previous incident, the Deputy approached Shaver and attempted to take him into custody,  Shaver struck the Deputy several times & fled the scene.  The Deputy was taken to Chenango Memorial Hospital and was transported to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse with serious, non-life threatening injuries.  This Afternoon, Sheriff Cutting announced that Shaver was taken into custody in Pharsalia without incident in connection with the assault of the Deputy.

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Chenango County Public Health added 12 new Active Cases bringing their total to 188, with 10 hospitalizations, & 497 Active Quarantines.  Chenango County Public Health also reported that There is a limited amount of vaccines in Chenango County and the vaccine has been designated by NYS for only the priority groups listed in Phase 1a, Chenango County health department has not received any vaccine, but they anticipate the 1st delivery in a week or so.

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State Police announced today that they continue to investigate the 1980 murder of 30-year-old Barry Marquart of Binghamton.  On November 9, 1980, State Police in Oneonta were contacted Marquart’s father, who stated his son Barry had been missing from his Binghamton apartment by his roommate.   Marquart’s car was found parked at the Exit 5 rest area on Interstate 81, Troopers found Marquart’s body in the Chenango River, an autopsy determined the victim had blows to his head and face.  The case remains open 40 years later, anyone with information is asked to call State Police in Sidney at 561-7400.

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U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced that her first bill in the new Congress will be her Health Force, Resilience Force, and Jobs to Fight COVID-19 Act in order to aid the country’s lagging vaccine distribution campaign.

(Gillibrand 1-5-21)

Senator Gillibrand said that in New York State, only 236,941 of 774,075 doses available have been given. Federal aid is urgently needed to assist state and local health departments and providers who are already overburdened by mass testing and contact tracing efforts and a deadly holiday surge in COVID-19 cases.

A.M. NEWS Tuesday 1-5-21

Some new laws went into effect January 1st, among them: The state will be increasing the minimum wage from $11.80 an hour to $12.50 an hour. Workers in the fast-food industry will see an increase from $13.75 an hour to $14.50 an hour.  Also Workers who are eligible will now have access to up to 12 weeks of job-protected paid time off, mainly this is for those with a newborn, or those recovering from or assisting a loved one who is ill with COVID or other serious illnesses, or to assist a loved one who’s family member is deployed overseas. 

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The state is also amending some election laws this year.   A recount in elections statewide will be automatically done when the margin of victory for a candidate 0.2% of all votes cast. Recounts for all other elections will be done if the margin of victory is 0.5% of all votes cast. The recounts would be done manually.

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New York State has launched a new ‘Am I Eligible ” app to help New Yorkers determine their COVID Vaccine eligibility, connect them with administration centers, and schedule appointments. To access the app, go to: covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov.

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Governor Cuomo announced that the first confirmed case of the UK strain of COVID-19 virus has been detected in Saratoga Springs, it was detected by the Department of Health’s Wadsworth laboratory & the strain was traced back to an individual affiliated with a Saratoga Springs jewelry store and all individuals who visited the store from December 18 through December 24 are encouraged to contact the Department of Health and receive a COVID-19 test immediately.

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Delaware County Public Health reported 12 more new cases of COVID Monday; they have 119 active cases, 4 hospitalized & 209 quarantined.

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The Binghamton Devils will play the 2020-21 season in Newark, New Jersey at the Prudential Center, which is home to the New Jersey Devils.  The AHL announced that 4 teams have been granted provisional relocations for the 2020-21 season due to COVID concerns, including the Binghamton Devils.

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