Cuomo: NY state of emergency for COVID-19 expires Thursday  Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo speaks Wednesday. Credit: AP / Mary Altaffer Gov. Cuomo said the state of emergency he issued in March 2020 as the pandemic began to take hold in New York will end Thursday and not be renewed. "The emergency is over," Cuomo said during a news briefing at his Manhattan office, citing the state's plateauing positivity rate of far less than 1% for many days. He said the state has progressed so much in its fight against the virus that he was not discusing the daily COVID-19 indicators on Wednesday at his news conference. "We know where we are. We are past the day-to-day monitoring of COVID," he said. "We have reached a new plateau, a plateau that should give us all confidence." But he added that the threat is not gone, with new variants of the virus posing a particular danger. The number of new positives reported today: 16 in Nassau, 24 in Suffolk, 178 in New York City and 310 statewide. The chart below shows the number of new coronavirus cases confirmed each day in Nassau and Suffolk. | | | Newsday readers support our strong local journalism by subscribing. Please show you value this important work by becoming a subscriber now. | | |  Just 40 new cases were confirmed Tuesday on Long Island. Credit: Newsday Search a map of new cases and view charts showing the latest local trends in testing, hospitalizations, deaths and more. A question of new-normal etiquette  Dennis Garcia, 37, of Franklin Square, with his daughter Anjali, 4. He said he wouldn't hesitate to ask someone if they are vaccinated. Credit: Debbie Egan-Chin One seemingly simple question has Long Islanders grappling with proper etiquette as they wade through the new post-pandemic normal. Have you gotten the shot? It's a question that's being asked more than ever — at indoor and outdoor gatherings, pool parties and dinners — after most pandemic restrictions were lifted by Cuomo June 15, says Newsday's Lisa L. Colangelo. Cuomo eased restrictions after New York State hit the 70% mark of adults having received at least one dose of the vaccine against COVID-19. Counselors and experts in medical ethics said people should ask the "shot" question but do so without sounding judgmental. "We've gotten used to saying, 'What pronoun should I call you?' and 'Are you married?' " said Renee McLeod-Sordjan, director of the Division of Medical Ethics at Northwell Health's Department of Medicine. "We got comfortable with that. So why are we uncomfortable with asking whether we are vaccinated or not vaccinated?" Encouraging COVID shots can be tricky for employers  Elizabeth Brown of Southold shows her COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card after receiving her first dose of the vaccine in Stony Brook on Jan. 18. Credit: Barry Sloan How far can an employer go to mandate or encourage its employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19? Federal guidelines leave some room for interpretation and discretion, especially when employee objections are based on religion or an individual's disability. Recently updated guidance from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said such requirements would not run afoul of existing federal discrimination laws as long as reasonable accommodations are provided where necessary, such as for disability and religious beliefs. Employers can also offer incentives to encourage employees to get vaccinated, the guidance says. Employer rights to mandate vaccinations have already been resisted on legal grounds, Jamie Herzlich writes for Newsday. "Employees have already filed legal challenges based on the fact that the vaccines currently are only distributed under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)," says Gerald C. Waters Jr., a partner at Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP in Mineola. Earlier this month a federal court in Texas dismissed a challenge from employees at Houston Methodist Hospital who faced suspension and ultimately termination for refusing the shots. The employees said they would appeal. A taste of the luxe life outdoors  Patrons enjoy outdoor dining at Revel in Garden City. Credit: Yvonne Albinowski Remember how the coronavirus was going to spell the end of fine dining as we know it? Chefs, restaurateurs and almost everyone else with a fork sang the same tune: no sector of the industry would be affected more deeply. For three- and four-star establishments, the pandemic would be an extinction event, an apocalypse, writes Newsday's Scott Vogel. Fortunately, it was not. Thanks to efforts both speedy and heroic, high-end establishments cobbled together takeout businesses overnight, navigated supply chain disruptions, and made good on promises to feed the hungry and the overworked. They survived by adapting, and because we — the diners — adapted too. Enjoy this look at Long Island restaurants with luxe outdoor patios. More to know The Suffolk County Legislature Tuesday night approved a bill designed to combat discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders after a nationwide increase in anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic. The Amsterdam at Harborside, an upscale retirement community in Port Washington, has filed for bankruptcy protection from its creditors for the second time in seven years, records show. The nonprofit stopped making debt payments and refunds of resident entrance fees during the pandemic. Long Island's unemployment rate fell below 5% last month — the first time that's happened since the pandemic began. News for you  Dino Safari costs $49.95 for cars with up to seven occupants, and $54.95 for cars with eight or more. Credit: Newsday / Steve Pfost More than 40 dinosaurs invade Tanger Outlets Deer Park. That drew you in, didn't it? They're animatronic dinosaurs at the drive-thru Dino Safari there through July 11. A cartoon character, Professor Noteworthy, welcomes carloads to Pangea National Park. Says exhibit designer Ana Valente: "It's the kids' mission to get mother T-Rex her egg before Pangea breaks apart." No freedom from traffic. Thursday and Friday before the Fourth of July will be the worst for drivers leaving Long Island ahead of the holiday weekend, according to AAA, as "travel-starved" Americans abandon at least some COVID-19 curbs. AAA statisticians are not forecasting the worst times to return to Long Island — though Robert Sinclair Jr., a spokesman in the Garden City office of AAA Northeast, said his more than two decades of experience suggests that 6 p.m. through midnight July 5 will see the heaviest traffic. Coming up Thursday on Newsday Live. Thinking of buying a home for the first time? We'll give some hot tips in this event, which begins at noon. Plus: We present family-friendly theater productions to catch this summer. Sign up for text messages to get the most important coronavirus news and information. Commentary  Credit: Getty Images / iStock "Long COVID" may help us understand other chronic diseases. Bloomberg Opinion columnist Faye Flam writes: There's a lot at stake in the quest to understand so-called long COVID. It may come as a surprise to some, but lingering post-infection symptoms don't happen only with SARS-CoV-2. And what we're learning from studies of COVID long-haulers might eventually help us understand other diseases, from chronic fatigue syndrome to cancer to Alzheimer's. "What we're seeing in COVID isn't really exactly new," said epidemiologist Zihad Al-Aly, who is studying long COVID at Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System. "There are a lot of other viruses that produce long-term manifestations." Before COVID came along, many previously healthy people developed debilitating symptoms or extreme exhaustion following viral infections. Such post-viral syndromes were inherently difficult to study, said NIH director of clinical neurology Avindra Nath. Many patients wouldn't realize there was something wrong for some time after the initial infection, since it's normal to feel wiped out for a couple of weeks of being sick. It isn't yet clear which viruses are likely to cause chronic symptoms or which kinds of people are most at risk from them. Often lumped together as chronic fatigue syndrome, even the numbers are hard to pin down. Keep reading. | 
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