Upper East Side Coronavirus Rates Remain Among Lowest In NYC

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Most Upper East Side ZIP codes saw slight increases last month in the percentage of coronavirus tests coming back positive, but rates in the neighborhood remain low overall.

Of the five ZIP codes covering the Upper East Side, three had increases in their positivity rates last month, according to city data released Thursday, which shows COVID-19 test results over four weeks ending Oct. 31.

Positivity rates rose in October in the 10028, 10065 and 10128 ZIP codes compared to the previous four-week period, which covered most of September. The neighborhood's highest rate is in 10028, which covers the area between East 80th and 87th streets, where 1.15 percent of coronavirus tests came back positive over those four weeks.

Positivity rates decreased slightly in 10021 and 10075, bordering ZIP codes that partly include Lenox Hill.

Virus rates on the Upper East Side have stayed relatively low, ranking within the bottom quarter of all New York City ZIP codes last month.

By contrast, further uptown in Harlem, nearly all ZIP codes saw an increase in positivity rates through mid-October, including one that edged above 2 percent.

That increase is part of a citywide trend that has alarmed health officials. On Thursday, Mayor Bill de Blasio described a worrying uptick on Staten Island, as cases continue to rise well outside of the hotspots in Brooklyn and Queens that arose earlier this fall.

Here is a portion of the four-week testing data through Oct. 31 for the five ZIP codes covering the Upper East Side:

• 10021 — Lenox Hill/Upper East Side: 55 positive cases, 0 deaths, 0.92 percent positivity rate
• 10028 — Yorkville/Upper East Side: 65 positive cases, 0 deaths, 1.15 percent positivity rate
• 10065 — Lenox Hill/Upper East Side: 42 positive cases, 0 deaths, 0.98 percent positivity rate
• 10075 — Lenox Hill/Upper East Side: 27 positive cases, 3 deaths, 0.8 percent positivity rate
• 10128 — Yorkville/Upper East Side: 66 positive cases, 1 death, 0.86 percent positivity rate

Zooming out the timeline further, the Upper East Side's positivity rates have climbed in all five ZIP codes compared to mid-August and early September, when neighborhood rates stood at 0.55 percent or lower. That coincides with a citywide increase.

City Councilmember Mark Levine, who represents West Harlem and chairs the Council's health committee, told Patch last week that the trends were "extremely worrisome."

That cases rose in Harlem but held relatively steady on the neighboring Upper West and Upper East sides suggested that the virus was spreading more rapidly in lower-income neighborhoods with more crowded households, he said.

"Once again in Manhattan you're seeing inequality play out," Levine said. "It's really Uptown that is again showing the highest rates."

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