Here’s the latest on the coronavirus outbreak in the region:
The federal government has turned down New York state’s request for additional $300 unemployment benefits.
More than 2 million New Yorkers have got these weekly payments through FEMA’s lost wages program since August. Now, they’ll have to rely only on the state’s $504 unemployment benefit.
Connecticut’s COVID-19 positive rate has dropped to 2.6 percent, after hitting 3 percent earlier in the week.
Long Island and Westchester County, New York have COVID-19 positive rates around 1 percent. Only one other state has a lower positive rate than New York. Governors Ned Lamont and Andrew Cuomo said non-essential travel between the states is discouraged.
Acting Commissioner of Connecticut’s Department of Public Health, Deirdre Gifford, said she is not surprised by the rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths. She said computer models have long predicted a second wave of the virus, and the state is ready.
The University of Connecticut told staff this week that they will continue to work remote through the spring 2021 semester.