This week, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo deployed a SWAT team to SUNY Oneonta to contain a COVID-19 cluster that has developed there. According to a press release from the governor’s office, the State team will include 71 contact tracers and eight case investigators.
The release continued that New York State will also open three free, rapid testing sites in the city of Oneonta. The sites will be open to all city residents by appointment, and results come back in 15 minutes.
The state action comes as SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras announced a two-week suspension of in-person instruction at the SUNY Oneonta campus to help address the cluster.
“Colleges are the canary in the coal mine, and a three percent infection rate is high in a congregate situation, similar to a dense urban environment where you have people taking public transportation. That’s why we’re deploying state resources to contain the new COVID cluster at SUNY Oneonta,” Governor Cuomo said.
Governor Cuomo added, “I think the Chancellor is doing the exact right thing at Oneonta and I think he’s taking the right actions across SUNY, and I think the private colleges should really follow the example.”
State Guidance for Infection Rates on College Campuses is available here.
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