Gov. Andrew Cuomo says New Yorkers deserve a pat on the back in the battle with coronavirus.

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On Monday during a press briefing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that New York State had a rate of positive COVID-19 tests of less than 1 percent for the tenth straight day.

Nearly 57,000 COVID-19 tests were reported on Sunday with 0.71 percent coming back positive, marking the state's lowest since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, officials say. In the Mid-Hudson Region, 0.8 percent tested positive on Saturday and Sunday.

"Right now, New York has one of the lowest infection rates in the country, and New York State's regions and New York City's boroughs are all basically consistent, so on the all the numbers it's good news, and I congratulate New Yorkers for doing what people said couldn't be done," Cuomo said. "We were told that we couldn't reduce the infection rate, that we would overburden our hospital system and that we'd cause it to collapse, but by banding together in the face of this unprecedented threat, New Yorkers proved those expectations wrong. Going forward, we need to protect the progress, which New Yorkers can do by wearing masks, socially distancing and washing their hands, and local governments can do by enforcing state guidance."

The average infection rate has been 1 percent or lower since June, Cuomo added.

"So that's great news," Cuomo said during his press briefing on Monday prior to announcing gyms across New York State can reopen. "To me that is beauty."

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