Health

East Hampton Town will begin enforcing summer beach parking regulations on Friday, April 24, weeks earlier than the regulations usually take effect, in order to forestall overcrowding at beaches and in parks during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Suffolk County's number of new confirmed Covid-19 cases went up again on Wednesday to 844, contributing to a new total of 29,588, and an end to a three-day decline in new cases.

County Executive Steve Bellone acknowledged in Wednesday's press briefing that this was an increase from the 587 cases reported on Tuesday, which had been the lowest number of positive daily test results achieved since March 26. 

A brigade of sewers and cutters is turning donated fabric into 1,600 protective masks outfitted with surgical-grade filters for East Hampton health care workers, first responders, and essential personnel in the town and village.

At one point the county was seeing at or more than 1,000 new confirmed cases every day. From Monday to Tuesday, that number dropped to 587, the lowest since March 26.

Private golf clubs, while still deemed nonessential, have been allowed to reopen to their members, the governor said, with restrictions.

The ferries connecting the South and North Forks with Shelter Island now require that all customers wear a mask or facial covering, even inside their cars.

On Sunday afternoon, County Executive Steve Bellone reported receiving word of 132 more deaths, bringing the county's total to 825.

Confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Suffolk County jumped by more than 1,200 to 26,702, but hospitalizations in the county have been down for the past three days, indicating a possible plateau.

A team of more than 100 people have been rushing to provide medical workers with 10,000 isolation gowns, which have been in high demand and short supply as the Covid-19 pandemic rages.

On Thursday, as confirmed cases of Covid-19 neared 222,300 and deaths across the state climbed above 12,000, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo extended the New York State on PAUSE executive order to May 15. Schools and nonessential businesses will remain closed and social distancing restrictions will remain in place.

The task force's mission is to "work together with the White House to chart the path forward toward a future of unparalleled American prosperity," amid an economic contraction that has seen 22 million new claims for unemployment insurance in the past four weeks.

Suzanne Kirby’s health care practice offers chiropractic and homeopathic medicine; muscle, exercise, and bio-magnetic therapy; noninvasive acupuncture and auriculotherapy; nutritional assessment, kinesiology, and laser therapy.

Just last week, Suffolk County began offering text message updates specifically in Spanish and opened “targeted testing sites” to help those who speak languages other than English. The county also began reaching out to non-English speaking communities through nonprofit and faith-based organizations to get the word out about those testing sites, which opened in Riverhead, Huntington Station, and Brentwood — all communities with large populations of minority residents.

Chef Jill Hamill has quite the following on YouTube lately. In just a few days, a handful of her cooking videos have racked up hundreds of views and subscribers.

The East Hampton Chamber of Commerce is offering free 30-minute virtual appointments to help small businesses apply for loans the federal government has made available for those economically impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Diana Balnis, a family portrait photographer, found a way to turn a time when she is not allowed to work as she usually does into a time to use her work as a way to do good.     

With consistently warmer weather on the way, and already here on some days, and people out and about enjoying that weather, one particular pest has the potential to cause havoc: ticks.     

With restaurant dining shut down, food distribution networks disrupted, and the prospect of farmers markets in doubt because of the Covid-19 pandemic, several East End farmers said they are developing new ways to get their produce directly, and safely, to customers.

New York State’s total Covid-19 hospitalizations have been flat and “even a tick down,” according to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Tuesday, and Stony Brook Southampton Hospital’s confirmed Covid-19 admissions appear to be following suit.     

When the country’s first cases were diagnosed in Washington State, the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office began working on a plan. Suffolk’s first case was diagnosed on March 8, and his office was able to implement protective measures by the next day.     

On Wednesday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced an executive order requiring everyone to wear face coverings in public when social distancing is not possible.

Mientras el estado de Nueva York llega a lo que podría ser el punto máximo de la pandemia del coronavirus, el Gobernador Andrew M. Cuomo extendió su orden ejecutiva Nueva York en Pausa por dos semanas más este lunes pasado; esto significa que todas las escuelas y los negocios no esenciales deben permanecer cerrados hasta el 29 de abril, como mínimo.

Glimmers of hope, calls for continued vigilance, and a seven-state collaboration to develop a plan for easing restrictions.

East Hampton Town’s government is calling on residents to wear coverings when venturing out in public, following federal recommendations, but also asked for donations of masks and gloves for grocery store workers.

A statement issued from Town Hall on Saturday morning referred to the federal Centers for Disease Control’s recommendation that people wear a cloth face covering to slow the spread of the Covid-19.

In the past 24 hours, there have been another 52 deaths from Covid-19 in Suffolk County, bringing the total to 414. The number of confirmed cases surged to 20,320, up by 1,517, County Executive Steve Bellone said in his daily press briefing on Friday.

The state and Stony Brook Medicine are asking that patients who have recovered from Covid-19 donate blood plasma to help others with the virus.

Another 39 people have died from Covid-19 in Suffolk County in the last 24 hours, bringing the total deaths 362, Suffolk County Steve Bellone reported in his daily update on Thursday. 

“This is different. This is worse,” Mary Bromley said. “We can’t touch one another. We can’t visit each other. Hospitals aren’t allowing family members to visit patients. This is going to be a long haul.”

Supplies for Success, a national organization founded 18 years ago and now based in Sagaponack, has handed out thousands of art kits filled with coloring books, crayons, construction paper, washable glue, and other items to help keep children learning and busy during the Covid-19 pandemic.

As Christians observe Holy Week and Jews gather for Passover Seders, the Covid-19 pandemic has closed the doors of houses of worship, and religious leaders have been forced to come up with new ways to reach their congregants at a time when spiritual support is perhaps needed the most.