Coronavirus Update, December 3, 2020

The Tompkins County Health Department is reporting a potential COVID-19 public exposure at the Walgreens on South Meadow Street in Ithaca. The individual who tested positive for COVID-19 is an employee at the pharmacy, and is now in isolation. Any close contacts are being notified to quarantine. Potential public exposure may have occurred at the Walgreens pharmacy at 615 South Meadow St. in Ithaca on Sunday, November 29, from 9:15 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Anyone who thinks they've been exposed should get tested and monitor themselves for symptoms of COVID-19.

More information about the exposure, and how to get tested for COVID-19, or to see a full list of symptoms, visit tompkinscountyny.gov/health or call 607-274-6688. Or, visit wrfi.org/coronavirus.

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Looking at the local COVID-19 caseload, the latest numbers, released yesterday from the Tompkins County health department, indicate that there are 23 additional positive cases, and 16 new recoveries. According to the County Health Department, that leaves 233 active cases of COVID-19 in Tompkins.

In Schuyler County, there are 4 new cases of COVID-19 reported as of today, and with 3 recoveries recorded today there are 29 active cases, according to their Health Department. 3 people remain hospitalized.

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Up next on our program, you’ll hear an interview from WRFI’s Locally Sourced Science about research inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic. Contributor Esther Racoosin speaks with Dr. Jason Guss, a former graduate student of the Cornell Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering.

Guss, together with fellow Cornell alum Dr. Apoorva Kiran, established Iterate Labs.  The company initially developed wearable devices that could improve workplace ergonomic safety.  Now the devices are being modified to provide location awareness to prevent spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus in manufacturing workplaces. They also facilitate contact tracing when and if a worker contracts the virus. This interview first aired on the September 1, 2020 edition of Locally Sourced Science.

Today's Contributing Writers were Pamela Tan, Esther Racoosin, Christian Maitre and Antonio Ferme.