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In Suffolk County, 575 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed, bringing the total to 162,818, while there were 559 new infections reported in Nassau as the number of cases hit 148,669.
On Long Island, the COVID-19 positivity rate of those tested has dropped in the past three days from 4.06 percent to 3.98 percent on Sunday, Feb. 28, still the second-highest rate in the state.
Statewide, the infection rate dipped slightly from 3.18 percent to 3.08 percent over the same stretch.
As of Monday, March 1, there were 902 COVID-19 patients - down from 944 late last week week - hospitalized on Long Island, representing 0.03 percent of the region's population.
The state was also reporting 644 of Long Island's 865 ICU beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients, leaving 22 percent available in case of another surge of the virus.
If Long Island - or any of the state's nine other regions - finds itself in danger of hitting its 90 percent hospital capacity rate within three weeks, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vowed to shut down the entire region.
Ten new COVID-19 fatalities were reported in Suffolk, as the total rose to 3,086, according to the state, and there were four in Nassau, as the death toll climbed to 2,918 since the pandemic began.
The latest breakdown of the communities with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nassau, according to the most recent data provided by the county Department of Health on Feb. 26:
- Levittown: 4,020;
- Hicksville: 3,262;
- Freeport: 3,219;
- Hempstead: 3,219;
- East Meadow: 2,965;
- Valley Stream: 2,874;
- Oceanside: 2,466;
- Elmont: 2,465;
- Long Beach: 2,432;
- Franklin Square: 2,382;
- Glen Cove: 2,276;
- Uniondale: 2,119;
- Massapequa: 1,794;
- Rockville Centre: 1,762;
- Baldwin: 1,614;
- Woodmere: 1,580;
- Plainview: 1,535;
- West Hempstead: 1,508
- North Bellmore: 1,495;
- Wantagh: 1,485;
- North Massapequa: 1,465;
- Lynbrook: 1,431;
- Mineola: 1,419;
- Merrick: 1,415;
- Massapequa Park: 1,382;
- Garden City: 1,381;
- East Massapequa: 1,381;
- Seaford: 1,364;
- Bethpage: 1,291.
The breakdown of cases reported in Suffolk County, according to the Department of Health:
- Brookhaven: 45,338;
- Islip: 40,170;
- Babylon: 22,539;
- Huntington: 18,262;
- Smithtown: 11,324;
- Southampton: 4,795;
- Riverhead: 3,021;
- Southold: 1,443;
- East Hampton: 1,435;
- Shelter Island: 45.
"It's been exactly one year since we first identified COVID in New York, and while we've made incredible progress towards defeating it, testing and vaccinating more and more New Yorkers, we need to stay vigilant," Cuomo said.
There were 174,158 COVID-19 tests administered in New York on Feb. 28, according to Cuomo, resulting in 6,234 new cases for a 3.58 percent positive infection rate, up from the previous day
Forty-eight COVID-19 patients were released from New York hospitals, leaving 5,307 still being treated statewide. There are 1,065 in ICU and 741 intubated.
There were 80 new COVID-19-related deaths reported in the past 24 hours.
Cuomo made note that 92 percent of the first COVID-19 vaccine doses allocated to New York have been administered as of 11 a.m. on March 1.
A total of 3,206,430 first doses have been received, with 2,954,858 administered. New York has received 5,229,950 first and second doses, with 4,583,616 administered.
"Our ongoing effort to get shots in arms is producing increasing numbers of sites where New Yorkers can get vaccinated, but we're going to need more supply to reach enough residents to put a serious dent in the virus' spread," Cuomo added. "It's critical that New Yorkers continue to practice safe behaviors—washing hands, wearing masks and social distancing—while we're still working to vaccinate a large portion of the population.
"This has been an incredibly long 365 days and there are more ahead, but New Yorkers have already shown unprecedented perseverance and toughness throughout this pandemic—now we just need to get to the light at the end of the tunnel."
Statewide, a total of 1,636,680 positive COVID-19 cases have been confirmed out of 38.28 million tests that have been administered. There have been a total of 38,577 virus-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
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