Natasha Vaughn is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Columbia Memorial Health has announced a new partnership with aptihealth, a telehealth provider that uses technology to integrate physical and behavioral health care services. With the agreement, CMH patients will now have immediate access to virtual mental health care. The partnership will allow patients to remotely access behavioral-health services integrated with the patient’s current physical health care using aptihealth’s platform. CMH Chief Operating Officer Dorothy Urschel said in a statement, “This partnership with aptihealth will allow CMH to better meet the demand and help more patients improve their mental health through a truly integrated and coordinated service model that is easily accessible through smartphones and other common electronic devices.” The need for mental health services increased during the pandemic, according to a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Between August 2020 and February 2021, the percentage of adults experiencing symptoms of an anxiety or depressive disorder increased to 41.5 percent, according to the report. The number of people with unmet behavioral health care needs nationwide increased by 21.3 percent during the same period of time. aptihealth CEO Dan Pickett said, “...This partnership expands our mission of patient-first care and now makes aptihealth accessible through primary care providers across the Capital Region, from the North Country to the Hudson Valley.” The new partnership will have no impact on the cost for patients or access to existing in-person services, CMH spokesperson Bill Van Slyke said. The hospital offered telehealth services to patients during the pandemic, which was widely used, he added. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Business [dot] org is reporting on the number of companies owned by members of minority groups in each state and the District of Columbia. The website provides research, product reviews, and expert recommendations for small- to mid-size businesses. The data showed that of the most diverse states for small businesses, New York ranked No. 11. They counted 2,200,000 small businesses in New York, with just under 382,000 of those owned by minorities, or 17.4 percent of all businesses in the state. Massachusetts, with only 8.9 percent minority-owned firms, was ranked 29th. In Vermont, one of the smallest states, 3 percent of its businesses are minority-owned. The state was listed 50 out of 51. Hawaii, another small state, is among the country's most diverse, with 39.1 percent of its small businesses minority-owned. Some of the biggest states are also the states in the nation that have some of the highest percentages of minority-owned firms, including California and Texas. The top 5 in business.org's state-by-state minority-owned business comparison are Hawaii, New Mexico, California, Texas and Arizona. Maine was ranked last. Read more at news10 [dot] com.

The Daily Freeman is reporting cashless tolling on the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge will start July 7, Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office announced July 5. The change means drivers will no longer have to stop at toll booths at the eastern end of the bridge. Instead, E-ZPass tag information will be captured by overhead gantries. Drivers without E-ZPass will have their license plates photographed, and bills for the tolls will be mailed to a vehicle's registered owner. The changeover will cause traffic delays about 11:50 p.m. on July 6, Cuomo's office said. There also will be eastbound lane closures near the current toll booths so they can be taken down. The Newburgh-Beacon carries Interstate 84 over the Hudson River between Orange and Dutchess counties. It is the first of the five spans operated by the New York State Bridge Authority to make the switch to cashless tolling. The others, including the Rip Van Winkle, will be changed over in the coming months, one at a time; the process is expected to be complete by the spring of 2022. Cashless tolling on the New York State Thruway began in November 2020. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Today's daily news update.

Sam Raudins reports for Columbia-Greene Media that the Greene County Jail did not open July 1 as planned. Local officials hope to open the Coxsackie facility later this month if they can complete changes mandated by the state. Greene County Sheriff Pete Kusminsky says July 26 is now the planned opening date, as workers add fencing around a recreation yard and and add top soil and stone to stabilize a clay ground. The new jail construction is two percent of all Greene County spending, with the county taking out a $39 million bond loan to pay for it. Building the jail was controversial as many critics said the county could not afford the facility they said was too large when jail populations were shrinking. The new facility replaces an aging Catskill jail that was closed because of problems with the building. Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.

Morgan McKay reports at Spectrum News that state health officials are finally working hard to get a congregate population vaccinated for COVID-19: prisoners. So far, New York's incarcerated are only about 45 percent vaccinated, below the rate of all local counties. COVID-19 spreads fastest in congregate facilities such as nursing homes and jails, and several COVID-19 community outbreaks began from prison cases that correctional officers then spread outside the facilities. But now some corrections officers are upset that inmates are being offered incentives to get vaccinated. “We had a large number of members that came down with the disease, we had many quarantines, we had some staffing issues going forward and, you know, we held it down,” Powers said, noting correction officers in Colorado are being paid $500 to get vaccinated. “We’re kind of curious as to why we're left out of the loop.” Prisoners are not receiving $500, and most won't get anything. Instead, they are entered into a lottery with five fully-vaccinated incarcerated individuals in each of the state’s 50 prisons receiving care packages with the “most popular food items sold at your assigned facility’s commissary, not to exceed a $75 value.” And six facilities with the highest percentage of vaccinated individuals will receive a full-scale facility barbeque. And only vaccinated prisoners will be allowed conjugal visits. The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision released a statement explaining the program: “The department is doing everything possible to encourage incarcerated individuals to receive their vaccinations. The maximum number of vaccinated incarcerated individuals ensures a safer work environment for staff, the incarcerated population and visitors to facilities. This type of incentive program has proven to be effective not only in the general public, but in correctional systems across the country. For the correction officer’s union to politicize this effort and dismiss all the challenges of the past year and a half is beyond the pale.” Read more about this story at Spectrum News.

Noah Zweifel reports in the Altamont Enterprise that in Westerlo in southern Albany County, voters won't have many choices to make in the voting booth this November. The Westerlo Republican and Democratic committees have both nominated the same slate of candidates for two town board seats and the supervisor position. Voters will only choose between a Democrat and a Republican for town justice. Ken Mackey, a Democrat, is running against Stuart Elderd, a Republican for town justice. Democrats and Republicans have nominated Matthew Kryzak for supervisor, and Lorraine Pecylak and Joshua Beers for town board. All three are Republicans. “They care about the community,” Democratic Party chair Ned Stevens said, explaining why his party is backing candidates from a rival party. “They’re all willing to work together.” Democrats could probably elect Democrats in Westerlo if they wanted, with a registration advantage of 953 Democrats to 578 Republicans there. Read more about this story in the Altamont Enterprise.

Today's daily headlines.

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Only 20 states, and no local counties, reached President Joe Biden's goal of 70 percent of the population at least partially vaccinated with one of the COVID-19 vaccines by July 4. CNN reports that in mid-April, U.S. health officials reported roughly 1.8 million people in the country were becoming fully vaccinated every day. That number has fallen now to about 685,000. Locally, Albany County was the closest to meet Biden's goal with 65.1 percent of its population getting at least one vaccine dose by July 4, according to the state's vaccine tracker website. In Greene County, only 52.5 percent of citizens have at least one dose, and in Columbia County the current rate is 60.2 percent. Ulster County has 63.4 percent of its citizens with at least one dose, Rensselaer County is at 58.5 percent, and Dutchess County has at least partially vaccinated 58.1 percent of its population. Farther out from the Hudson Valley, Schoharie County is at 48.2 percent, and Delaware County is at 47 percent.

Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media the Thompson House, a Windham resort started by a local family 140 years ago, has been sold. The resort, located on Route 296, was sold by the Goettsche family June 10, to Wylder Hotels. “We purchased [the] Thompson House resort,” Wylder Hotels founder and CEO John Flannigan said. “We are going to be renaming it Wylder Windham and it will open in the spring of 2022. We have big plans to do a great transformation, but we will honor the soul and history of the property and bring it up to speed and make it magical again.” Flannigan declined to disclose the purchase price. Wylder Hotels is a privately held company. Flannigan said a large-scale renovation is planned and the work is scheduled to begin in the next month or two. "...We are in the planning stages right now and moving quickly,” he said. The 20-acre property has eight buildings and all eight are slated for renovation, along with the pool, landscaping and grounds, Flannigan said. Wylder Hotels os based in Los Angeles, and it owns two additional resorts in Hope Valley, California, and Tilghman Island, Maryland. The Thompson House has been in the Goettsche family since it opened in 1880. “We owned the hotel 140 years,” Eric Goettsche said. “My great-great-grandparents started it and it has been passed down through the family since then.” Goettsche, 64, said his impending retirement was the impetus behind the sale. “We are not getting any younger and it seemed like the right time to sell,” he said. “It was a hard decision to make, but it was the right decision,” Goettsche said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Nick Reisman is reporting for State of Politics a bill introduced July 2, by U.S Rep. Paul Tonko is meant to fight an increase in addiction cases nationwide amid the physical and emotional stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic. The measure has Republican backing as well as support in the U.S. Senate, and it would boost funding for addiction prevention, education, research and recovery and would build on previous efforts to to fight drug abuse. The number of opioid overdoses and deaths has sharply increased over the past year. “With the global COVID pandemic continuing to drive unprecedented mental health challenges and a scary spike in opioid deaths, we need to take action now to expand access to safe, proven and affordable treatments and other lifesaving services,” Tonko said. The measure would fund research into non-opioid management efforts, boost access to telehealth services and prevent states from requiring prior authorization for medication-assisted treatment under the Medicaid program. The bill would also end the limit on the number of patients a doctor can treat with medication assistance under Medicaid. Read the full story at nystateofpolitics [dot] com.

Christopher Cicchiello is reporting for the Times Union the previously free permit to swim at Peekamoose Blue Hole in the Catskills of Ulster County, now costs $10 a day. Once a local spot to cool off, the swimming hole became a viral sensation in 2015. To control the increase in visitors, in 2018 the state Department of Environmental Conservation introduced New York’s first day-use permit system for a swimming hole on DEC land. Free permits were required on weekends and holidays between May 15 and Oct. 15. But fast forward to May 2021, the DEC announced a change in policy, declaring the permits would now cost $10. “This expanded permit system for the Peekamoose Blue Hole and Rondout Creek area will both protect public safety and the environmental health of this unique and irreplaceable resource,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. Like many parks and hiking trails during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, the Blue Hole saw a massive spike in visitors. At that point, visitation more than doubled to 24,281 people, according to the Catskill Center and the highest single day climbed back to around 1,000 people for the season. “What the state found,” Executive Director of The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development Jeff Senterman said, “and what we found being there, was that [for] almost 50 percent of the permits that were requested, people weren't showing up for. And if the permits weren’t being used, then sort of half the capacity was not being used, and we were turning people away that didn’t have the permit, even though there was space at the Blue Hole...” With so many registered people not showing up despite having permits, the DEC realized it needed to incentivize visitors to follow through on their reservation while the DEC covered expenses. From that, the $10 permit was born. Not only do the permits now come with a price, they are required seven days a week, and only 60 are issued daily to hikers, campers, picknickers and anglers. The permits are also required to park along the Peekamoose Valley and can only be obtained up to a week in advance. Since the system was implemented in mid-May, the attendance rate per registration has increased from 50 to 85 percent. Read the full story in the Times Union

Today's daily news update.

Aliya Schneider is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Hudson 3rd Ward Alderperson Calvin Lewis Jr. resigned July 1, to avoid a conflict of interest following his appointment to the position of assistant director of the city Youth Department. Lewis began working for the city on June 21, Director Liz Yorck said. Mayor Kamal Johnson confirmed Lewis’ resignation July 2. “I’m happy for him in his new position,” Johnson said. “I think it’s a huge loss for the council and he has done a lot of amazing work for his constituents.” The vacancy Lewis leaves on the Common Council will have to be filled before the end of the year. Johnson said the council will call a special meeting to discuss its next steps. Common Council President Thomas DePietro said Lewis’ intention was always to do the right thing. “He has served honorably on the council, especially leading the Tourism Board through a tumultuous time. The council’s loss is the Youth Center’s gain.” Lewis is now the former chair of the Tourism Board. Note: Johnson and DePietro are volunteer on-air WGXC programmers. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

Natasha Vaughn is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media it has been one year since a Kinderhook Independence Day party turned violent, but still no trial date has yet been set for those who stand accused of the alleged assault of Harold J. Handy III. The case has resulted in rallies, a countywide campaign for justice on Handy's behalf and a host of comments on social media. Handy was allegedly assaulted during a holiday party at the home of Alex Rosenstrach, the former owner of ClubLife Gym in Valatie and Columbia County Sheriff Deputy Kelly Briscoe Rosenstrach. The following October, four people were indicted: Kelly and Alex Rosenstrach, Bryan Haag of Kinderhook and Cory Gaylord of Craryville. The 25-count indictment included multiple felony charges against each defendant. Columbia County District Attorney Paul Czajka [CHAI-kah] and defense attorney William D. Roberts have both said there are no recent developments in the case. According to both, COVID has played a role in the case’s timeline. “It’s the same reason there haven’t been any trial dates for anything, any indictments, except the very oldest, Czajka said. “Because of the pandemic. Everything has been shut down.” Courts are beginning to reopen, scheduling dates for older matters, the DA said. But the trials now getting scheduled precede the Handy case by a substantial amount of time. “This is a problem that is not unique to Columbia County,” Czajka said. “It’s a problem throughout the state, and presumably the country." Czajka noted the amount of time that passed between the incident in July to October, when the indictments were handed up, was a different matter, but he declined to say more. During that time, the case drew scrutiny as people questioned jurisdiction and how the county sheriff could ethically investigate the incident given the Rosenstrachs' ties to area law enforcement. Roberts noted that it is not uncommon for a felony matter to take more than a year to reach trial. Many residents have spoken up in the past year in support of Handy, who owns Handy Repairs, an auto repair business. “I have enough hope in our justice system to believe after a three-month investigation, a grand jury and months of defense attorney motions that the indictments are accurate pertaining to this case,” Handy said last week. The court will soon hear motions and determine if the state's case is legally sufficient. Kelly Rosenstrach, who was suspended from the Sheriff’s Office, is still employed there, but Roberts claims to not know if she is a paid employee or not. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.

The Daily Freeman is reporting Ulster County will allocate $80,000 through a partnership with Family of Woodstock to administer housing vouchers for local hotel stays for people entering or leaving substance-abuse treatment, according to County Executive Pat Ryan. The housing vouchers are intended to help anyone successfully entering treatment or returning to the community after successfully completing treatment, Ryan’s office said. Residents will be allowed up to two weeks of respite housing. Ryan said the program is needed for people struggling with addiction while the county continues to invest in building long-term housing capacity. He said, “We are proud to partner with Family of Woodstock to make sure that residents have a roof over their heads as they prepare for their next steps of recovery treatment.” Ulster County’s High Risk Mitigation Team is a collaboration between the county sheriff’s ORACLE program, Samadhi, Catholic Charities, People USA, Ellenville Regional Hospital, and the county Health and Mental Health Department. The Behavioral Health Task Force has identified a lack of respite housing in Ulster Co. for people who are ready to enter treatment, but need a safe place to stay for a few days while they wait for their placement. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Today's daily news update.

Joseph Spector reports for the Democrat and Chronicle that 23 percent of New Yorkers surveyed by Siena College said Gov. Andrew Cuomo should resign immediately, while 39 percent said he should serve out his term but not seek re-election. Only 33 percent of New Yorkers polled said he should stay in office and run for re-election in 2022. Just 35 percent of those polled said they would vote for Cuomo if he runs, while 56 percent said they would prefer "someone else." Cuomo held a major fundraiser this week, and is expected to run for a fourth term in 2022. Meanwhile, the state Attorney General's Office is conducting an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo made by former female aides, as well as the use of top state officials and resources to help him write a book last fall about New York's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. And the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the state's undercounting of COVID deaths in nursing homes, and the state Assembly Judiciary Committee has an impeachment inquiry looking into all those allegations. Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said the poll "is surprisingly positive because New Yorkers have only heard one side of the story and haven't yet heard the truth." Read more about this story in the Democrat and Chronicle.

Diane Valden reports in the Columbia Paper that authorities in Massachusetts and New York are doing everything they can to keep folks out of the water at Bash Bish Falls. The highest waterfall in Massachusetts, where the Bash Bish Brook “drops about 80 feet into an emerald plunge pool” has now been barricaded by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. “Bash Bish Falls has a new policy this year where no one is allowed down on the stairs [to the falls] or on the water’s edge," says the message on the phone if one calls the Mount Washington State Forest, the park that includes the falls. Last year, thousands of revelers had parties, played in the water, and left behind much trash at the falls. Last year law enforcement officials on both sides of the state line closed down roads leading to the falls and turned people away when parking areas were full. Taconic State Park Manager Christopher Rickard says they are trying to keep the falls and surrounding area strictly a place for hiking—no swimming, no chairs, no cooking, no picnicking. Bash Bish Falls and Bash Bish Brook are nature preserves and the brook is a protected trout stream, so officials are trying to protect the natural environment. "Stay on the trails, don’t go in the stream, don’t bring chairs or coolers," Rickard says. “People who break the rules will be asked to leave.” Read more about this story in the Columbia Paper.