OSWEGO COUNTY – Oswego County Public Health Director Jiancheng Huang announced today, Oct. 1, that 10 additional residents have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of positive cases to 648. Five hundred eighty-six people have been released from isolation. There are four confirmed COVID-19 related deaths in Oswego County. 

Among today’s 10 cases, five are SUNY Oswego on-campus students. The remaining patients include one staff member at St. Luke Health Services and a staff member and three residents at Bishop’s Commons at St. Luke.

The Oswego County Health Department continues to monitor COVID-19 activity throughout the county. “COVID-19 activity continues,” said Huang. “Every agency and individual should follow New York State and CDC guidelines to get the virus under control.”

St. Luke Health Services Director of Community Relations Greg Osetek said, “Based on testing across our healthcare campus, we learned that one staff member at St. Luke Health Services and one staff member and three residents at Bishop’s Commons have tested positive for COVID-19. Both staff members were asymptomatic and are now in isolation at their homes. They will not return to work for at least 14 days, if the illness is resolved. We are now putting protective isolation measures in place for any residents who we believe have had contact with the St. Luke employee at St. Luke Health Services and residents are being closely monitored by our medical staff.”

He added, “As per a federal directive, all St. Luke residents were tested for the virus this afternoon. Likewise, as a proactive measure at Bishop’s Commons, all residents have been tested. We will continue with all our precautions and infection control practices that have been in place to protect our residents and staff, including weekly testing of all staff. We are working closely with our state and local Departments of Health throughout this pandemic and are following their recommendations.”

COVID-19 has been identified in every city and town in Oswego County. 

This report is current as of 3 p.m. Oct. 1.

Please know that these numbers fluctuate frequently. Recovered people are not deducted from the total number of positive cases.

• Total # of tests conducted: 49,048
• Total # of positive cases: 648
• Total # of positive cases released: 586
• Total deaths: 4
• Total # of positive cases active: 58
• Total # of negative results: 48,280
• Total # of people in mandatory isolation/quarantine: 224

Antibody report is current as of 3 p.m. Oct. 1
This does not include Price Chopper data previously collected by the state Department of Health.

• Total # of positive antibody tests: 84
• Total # of negative antibody tests: 3,393

The Oswego County Health Department investigates all cases and, when appropriate, family members and close contacts are also placed in mandatory quarantine or isolation. All known close contacts of COVID-19 positive patients are notified.

In the event that a person who tests positive for COVID-19 had public exposure when they were contagious and the health department could not contact those at risk individually, a news release is issued. Investigations go back two days prior to symptom onset for symptomatic positive patients, or two days prior to testing for asymptomatic positive patients, up until the time a positive patient is isolated.

Oswego County Legislature Chairman James Weatherup urges residents to continue to take every necessary precaution to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. He also reminds businesses and organizations that they must follow New York State guidance in their operations.

“The data shows that COVID-19 is still active in our community,” said Chairman Weatherup. “We must continue to take personal responsibility and help prevent the spread of the disease.”

Health officials urge residents to take these precautions:

• Wear a face mask or covering over your nose and mouth.
• Keep six feet from other people.
• Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially before eating.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Stay home if you are sick unless you are seeking health care.
• Call your healthcare provider from home if you are experiencing symptoms such as a fever, cough or shortness of breath.
• Call 911 if you are experiencing life-threatening conditions.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, chills, repeated shaking with chills, gastrointestinal illness and new loss of taste or smell.

Residents are asked to continue monitoring reliable sources of information. Go to oswegocounty.com or health.oswegocounty.com/covid-19 for the latest news releases, updates and video presentations. For more information go to cdc.gov.

Additional questions can be directed to the Oswego County Health Department COVID-19 hotline at 315-349-3330 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. For information about emotional supports, visit the Oswego County Department of Social Services Division of Mental Hygiene at www.oswegocounty.com/mentalhygiene.

Oswego County presents videos highlighting various COVID-19 topics on Tuesday afternoons. They are posted on Oswego County's COVID-19 play list on YouTube, Facebook, and the county government web site at oswegocounty.com.

New York State provides online links to report violations of health and safety restrictions and requirements for businesses, gatherings and individuals. To file a complaint about a business, location or incident in your community, go to https://mylicense.custhelp.com/app/ask. To file a complaint against your employer or place of work, go to https://labor.ny.gov/workerprotection/laborstandards/coronavirus-complaints.shtm.

Under New York State Public Health Law, the Oswego County Health Department is the sole local public health authority regarding the COVID-19 pandemic response over all persons and entities within the County of Oswego. The Oswego County Health Department works closely with New York State Department of Health regarding COVID-19 monitoring, response and reporting.