New York, Nov 11 (IANS): The COVID-19 test positivity rate in the focus areas under New York state's micro-cluster strategy, where the pandemic has been the most severe, was 5.59 per cent on Monday, up from 4.32 per cent one day earlier, tweeted Governor Andrew Cuomo.

The statewide positivity rate excluding these focus areas was 2.56 per cent, down from 2.69 per cent on Sunday, he said on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Of the 128,036 tests reported on Monday, 3,965 were positive, or 3.09 per cent of the total, up from 2.82 per cent one day earlier, he added.

"While New York's COVID-19 positivity remains the third-lowest in the nation, we continue to see increases in both new positive cases and hospital admissions, demonstrating we are not immune to the surge we are seeing throughout the rest of the nation," said Cuomo in an official press release.

"While we may be tired of COVID-19, it is not tired of us. It's clear that COVID-19 fatigue and a lack of compliance leads to viral spread, so it's more important than ever that as we prepare for winter, each of us stays smart and New York Tough by taking simple everyday actions like washing hands, wearing masks and socially distancing," he said.

"Likewise, local governments need to be vigilant and actively enforce public health law throughout the state," he added.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University reported 33,705 coronavirus deaths in New York state, the worst in the country.