The Governor also announced that the New York State Department of Health has finalized and released official guidance for classroom instruction. These follow the announcement last week of a mask requirement for everyone in school buildings during instructional hours and extracurricular activities.

Per the new guidance, schools should implement physical distancing of at least 3 feet between all students. Physical distancing should be at least 6 feet is recommended between students and teachers or staff, and between teachers and staff who are not fully vaccinated. Students and drivers must wear masks on school buses, regardless of vaccination status, subject to applicable exclusions and exemptions.

The Commissioner’s determination for masking in schools applies to all indoor settings, including indoor sports and extracurricular activities. For indoor sports and extracurricular activities in which masking is not possible, such as swimming, a minimum distance of 6 feet must be maintained. Schools are encouraged to implement required screening testing for participants who are not fully vaccinated.

Schools must have capacity and offer screening testing for any teachers and staff at least once a week. Schools must also have the capacity to provide diagnostic testing for any student, teacher, or staff member who is symptomatic or has been exposed to someone infected with COVID-19.

In addition to implementing the test-vaccine requirement, the DOH recommends that all public school districts and non-public schools should support opportunities for students and staff to access COVID-19 vaccination clinics in collaboration with local health partners. The guidance continues the daily reporting requirement for school districts to ensure they are providing data to the NYS School COVID Report Card, another tool to share COVID-19 information with families and communities.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo

ALBANY – Governor Andrew Cuomo announced an emergency executive action to ban the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes in New York State – the latest in a series of actions to combat the increasing number of youth using vape products, largely driven by e-cigarette companies the governor says is marketing flavors that are intended to get children addicted to nicotine.

The state health commissioner will hold an emergency meeting with the Public Health and Health Planning Council this week to ban flavored e-cigarettes.

The Governor also directed State Police and State Department of Health to immediately partner to ramp up enforcement efforts against retailers who sell to underage youth, with the possibility of criminal penalties.

Finally, the Governor announced he will advance legislation to ban deceptive marketing of e-cigarettes to teens and children.

The American Lung Association was critical of the governor’s announcement saying it doesn’t go far enough. The organization says the action does not apply to menthol flavored e-cigarettes, which with mint flavored e-cigarettes are favored by a majority of high school students.

According to the latest National Tobacco Youth Survey, e-cigarette use soared by another 32 percent among high school students from 2018-2019 -showing that 27.5 percent of high school users have used e-cigarettes in the last month. 63.9 percent of these users report using mint or menthol flavors in the last month.

The Establishment and Project Review Committee for the state Public Health and Health Planning Council (PHHPC) reviewed and approved the application for UPMC Chautauqua Services Inc. to become the active parent and cooperator of WCA.

Prior to acting on the agreement, the Jamestown Post-Journal reports that there was a public hearing and representatives from three unions were on hand to speak against the merger, questioning UPMC about its insurance agreements and access to health care. The controller of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania also spoke against the merger, criticizing UPMC for exploiting loopholes and manipulating the health care system to drive out competition.

Despite the concerns, the board moved forward with approving the agreement with one member explaining that no alternative options have been suggested by those who oppose the merger.

“We are very excited and appreciative of the state’s approval to move forward,” said WCA president/CEO Betsy Wright.  “This is a great day for WCA and UPMC and more importantly, the citizens that we are so privileged to serve in southern Chautauqua County.  We are one more step closer to the integration of the two health systems.  We continue to work through the final regulatory process which is contingent upon approvals from the New York State Office of Mental Health and New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services.”

According to WCA Hospital, the next regulatory steps include approvals from the New York State Office of Mental Health and Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services.

In December, WCA and UPMC officials announced the signing of an affiliation to integrate agreement. Once finalized, WCA Hospital will be the first New York state hospital to integrate with UPMC.

Once an agreement has been finalized, the new title for the health care facility will be UPMC Chautauqua at WCA.

In May the Establishment and Project Review Committee for the state Public Health and Health Planning Council met to discuss several applications, including one from WCA.

The application was for state approval for UPMC Chautauqua Services Inc. to become the active parent and cooperator of the hospital.

The committee opted to table the request, based on some late public comment that had arrived regarding the agreement.

The committee will meet again today and will likely take up the proposed merger.

In December, WCA and UPMC officials announced the signing of an affiliation to integrate agreement. If approved, WCA Hospital will be the first New York state hospital to integrate with UPMC. The new title for the health care facility will be UPMC Chautauqua at WCA.