NEW YORK - The COVID-19 test positivity rate fell below 5 percent on Wednesday in New York state's "Red Zone" focus areas, after topping 6 percent one day earlier, Governor Andrew Cuomo tweeted on Thursday.

The test positivity rate in the "Red Zone" focus areas, where the outbreak has been the most severe, was 4.84 percent on Wednesday, compared with 6.2 percent on Tuesday, said Cuomo.

Tuesday was the first time in days that the rate had surpassed 6 percent. It used to hover around 5 percent, according to official figures.

The statewide positivity rate excluding "Red Zones" was 0.99 percent on Wednesday, up from 0.95 percent one day earlier, according to the governor.

According to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. coronavirus death toll reached 217,497 as of Thursday afternoon, and the number of confirmed cases was more than 7.96 million. New York remains one of the worst-hit states in the country.