Daily Briefing – 216
British Airways and Delta Airlines Agree to Test All Passengers Before Entering New York State
Governor Cuomo yesterday announced that in the wake of a new, highly contagious variant of the COVID-19 virus found in the United Kingdom, British Airways and Delta Airlines have voluntarily agreed to require a COVID-19 test before allowing passengers to board planes traveling from the United Kingdom to New York. With this move, New York joins the list of 120 countries with a similar requirement on flights from the U.K. The Governor has asked Virgin Atlantic, the other airline that runs flights from the U.K. to New York, to do the same.
COVID and “Winter Plan” Update
Governor Cuomo held a press conference yesterday morning providing an overview of New York’s COVID-19 tracking data from Sunday, December 20th. Hospitalization tracking data for the Mid-Hudson region and the rest of the State are below.
- Hospitalizations Statewide
- Patients Currently in Hospital in Region = 6331
- COVID Hospitalizations as Percent of Region Population = .003%
- Percent of Hospital Beds Available in State = 30%
- Hospitalizations Mid-Hudson Region:
- Patients Currently in Hospital in Region = 745
- COVID Hospitalizations as Percent of Region Population = .003%
- Percent of Hospital Beds Available in Region = 33%
- ICU Beds Statewide
- Total ICU Beds = 5664
- Occupied ICU Beds = 3945
- Percent of ICU Beds Available = 32%
- ICU Beds Mid-Hudson Region:
- Total ICU Beds = 712
- Occupied ICU Beds = 425
- Percent of ICU Beds Available = 42%
- Transmission Rate (R0): 1.09
- Statewide Positivity Rate: 5.75%
Here are some useful websites:
- Read the press release
- See the cluster maps
- Check your site address (State will ask to track your location)
- See the school districts dashboard
- See the SUNY Dashboard
- State transmission rates (R0)
What Is in the $900 Billion Covid-19 Aid Bill
The Wall Street Journal has a nice breakdown of what is in the AID Bill Congress passed yesterday. It includes help for some sectors that weren’t prioritized the first time around. New York Senator Chuck Schumer announced some additional details to look out for, including $25 billion in rental assistance, $15 billion for theaters and other live venues, $82 billion for local schools, colleges, and universities, and $10 billion for child care.
Also included are more help for individuals, the unemployed, small businesses and others.
Cuomo Announces New York Has Administered 38,000 Doses of COVID-19 Vaccine
Governor Cuomo announced yesterday that more than 38,000 vaccine doses have been administered in New York State as of Monday morning – the highest reported total in the nation thus far. Bolstering this effort, the first 346,200 doses of the Moderna vaccine are expected to begin arriving in New York Monday, with an additional 120,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine expected later this week.
The Governor also announced the launch of New York’s Vaccine Equity Task Force chaired by Secretary of State Rossana Rosado, Attorney General Letitia James, National Urban League President & CEO Marc Morial, and Healthfirst President & CEO Pat Wang.
Monday Economic Report – Manufacturing Production Rose for the 7th Straight Month
Manufacturing production increased 0.8% in November, rising for the seventh straight month, led by strength in durable goods. The largest increases in output in November were in motor vehicles and parts, primary metals, paper, miscellaneous durable goods and aerospace and miscellaneous transportation equipment. Overall, manufacturing production remained 3.7% below the pre-pandemic pace in February.
There is also reports on Manufacturing Production, IHS Manufacturing PMI, Regional Fed Reports, Residential Construction, Consumer Spending, Unemployment Claims, Fed Plans and more.
Monday Economic Report 2020-1221
New York State Manufacturers PPE Survey
If you are manufacturing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and/or looking to access PPE, you are asked to please take this brief surveybelow. As part of the COVID Recovery Initiative, the NYMEP will use your responses to get a better sense of the demand for PPE categories and types, and will then validate competitive suppliers and recommend PPE buying channels to manufacturers statewide.
Survey: 57% of Employees Back Mandated Vaccine
Fifty-seven percent of employees support mandated COVID-19 vaccinations from employers, and that percentage significantly increases among older, white-collar and Democrat-voting workers, according to a survey by CNBC and SurveyMonkey. “For CEOs and human resources professionals, the return to work is already a fraught endeavor, and factoring in political considerations adds yet another challenge,” write Laura Wronski and Jon Cohen.
New Regulations and Fact Sheets on NY Paid Sick Leave Law
Council Associate Member and friend Harris Beach Attorneys write that on December 9th, the DOL published proposed regulations that further implement the Paid Sick Leave Law. Although the regulations answer some questions, employers should note that the regulations are still in “proposed” form and not yet final. Employers and other members of the public have until February 7, 2021, to submit comments and feedback to the DOL regarding the proposed regulations.
The DOL has also issued several topic-specific and industry-specific “Fact Sheets” on the new law, including Fact Sheets specific to restaurants, farm workers, seasonal workers, and unionized employers.
The Fact Sheets and the Proposed Regulations can be found at the bottom of this page
Cutting Tool Orders Rising as Manufacturing Recovers
U.S. machine shops and other domestic manufacturing operations consumption $167.9 million worth of cutting tools during October, according to Cutting Tool Market Report issued jointly by the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI) and AMT – the Association for Manufacturing Technology. The total represents a 7.6% increase over September’s result and a -22.4% shortfall of the October 2019 total.
The CTMR presents cutting-tool consumption as an indicator of overall manufacturing activity, as cutting tools are used in production of components used by virtually every industrial sector.
Read more at American Machinist
The Newest Supplier KPI? Employee Vaccination Rate
The percentage of employees vaccinated against COVID-19 will be the most important supplier key performance indicator of 2021, surpassing the standard KPIs of on-time delivery, quality, and cost management. This according to a column in Supply Chain Dive
Vaccine compliance needs to be a top-line component of a supplier risk assessment. Procurement professionals today should immediately reach out to critical suppliers to learn about their vaccination plans and subsequent efforts to secure a healthy workplace, and workforce, during the pandemic recovery. If there is no established plan, request one. Be an early leader in the supply chain recovery.
Read more at Supply Chain Dive
