Gov. Cuomo confirmed new cases of COVID have increased at alarming rates in New York while announcing new drastic action to slow the spread.

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On Monday, Gov. Cuomo confirmed new cases of COVID have increased by over 1,000 percent in recent weeks with over 80 percent of all new cases coming from the highly contagious Delta variant.

"When COVID ambushed New York last year, New Yorkers acted, while the Federal Government denied the problem," Cuomo stated. "Now, the Delta variant is spreading across the nation and across New York -- new daily positives are up over 1000% over the last six weeks, and over 80 percent of recent positives in New York State are linked to the Delta variant. We must now act again to stop the spread."

Cuomo also announced new rules to try and slow the spread. All healthcare workers in New York State must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Monday, September 27.

Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul's administration was briefed prior to the announcement, according to Cuomo.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio praised Cuomo's decision. The mayor also said he will likely require all New York City teachers to get vaccinated.

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Cuomo also said a large group of New Yorkers can start getting their third COVID vaccine shot today. President Biden reportedly plans to recommend a third vaccine dose for all, as soon as this week. The booster shot would be needed eight months after being fully vaccinated.

According to Cuomo, 3.61 percent of all COVID tests came back positive in the past 24 hours. The state's seven-day positivity rate stands at 3.09 percent. 11 New Yorkers died from COVID in the past 24 hours.

Seven people died from COVID-related illnesses in the Hudson Valley over the past few days. Five died in Dutchess County and one person passed away in both Putnam and Orange counties. State officials did not report if those who died had been vaccinated against the virus

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