Three more COVID-19 Omicron variant cases confirmed in New York State

New York — On Saturday, 3 more COVID-19 omicron variant cases were confirmed in New York State, bringing the total in the state to eight.

All three of the new cases are from New York City, according to a press release from the Governor’s office.

These additional cases from the area brought the total New York City residents with the variant to seven, the one remaining case is from Suffolk County. Three of the Omicron cases were identified at Mt. Sinai, three cases were identified at the Pandemic Response Lab, one case was confirmed by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Suffolk County case was identified by PRL on December 2.

According to Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett, New Yorkers should take the necessary precautions to combat further spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant.

“The Omicron variant is here, and as anticipated we are seeing the beginning of community spread. We continue to work closely with our partners at the national, state, and local levels,” Bassett said. “At this time, we do not know how quickly Omicron will spread or how severe the symptoms of Omicron will be. What we are seeing is that the rise of cases across New York State continues to be traced to the Delta variant. We encourage all New Yorkers to use the best preventative tools we have: get vaccinated, get boosted, and wear a mask.”