New coronavirus hospitalizations on Monday across the state of New York were their lowest since March 25, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Tuesday as he revealed his plan to let some parts of the state reopen before others.
There were 1,308 new hospitalizations from COVID-19 across the state on Monday which is the lowest number since March 25.
Deaths were 481 which marks the second consecutive day that they have been less than 500. That has not happened since March 31 and April 1.
At his daily briefing on Tuesday, he said he would reopen parts of the state by looking at each area’s case count and infection rate and weigh it against their local capacity to cope with an outbreak.
It raises questions of when New York City – the epicenter of the US’s outbreak – will reopen.
It has by far the highest number of cases anywhere in the state with more than 130,000, but it has also passed its peak and is descending from it faster than other areas.
Cuomo will allow elective surgeries to resume in parts of the state ‘in the near future’ but did not say when. Areas that are excluded from that are New York City, Erie, Albany, Dutchess, Westchester, Rockland, Suffolk & Nassau County which is where most cases are.
Cuomo will later go to the White House to speak with President Trump about the state’s necessity for federal help with ramping up antibody testing.
He said that while it is the states’ responsibility to carry out the tests once they get them, the federal government must step in to facilitate the international supply chain that mass testing relies upon.
At present, US labs and manufacturers cannot physically produce enough tests to get the country back to work because many of the chemicals they need come from overseas, namely China.
Cuomo said the federal government should step in to address that issue and allow the states to get on with carrying out and then processing the tests.
His announcement came as New York daily deaths were less than 500 for the second day in a row.
On Monday, 481 people died across the state and there are now at least 251,690 cases of coronavirus – a rise of 4,178 from the previous day.
Cuomo said on Tuesday that he would allow some parts of the state to reopen before others but he did not say which would get back to work first
‘We have to remember our calculus of good. Good, now, means not terrible but on an absolute scale, 1,300 people walking in the door with COVID in a single day in the state of New York… that would not be good news in any other context besides the context we are living in.
Cuomo did not specify which parts of the state he would allow to reopen first, but he did make a note of how the statistics in New York City far outweighed what is being seen anywhere else.
The strategy contradicts his earlier comments that he would apply a blanket rule to the entire state and work in conjunction with surrounding states to avoid people in one area that is in lockdown from traveling to another once it reopens and risking another spread.
At the moment, New York’s lockdown remains in place until May 15. He did not indicate whether any part of the state might be able to open before then.
‘The point is that different regions of the country have different curves. The virus does not hit at the same time at the same rate.
‘This state, we have very different regions within New York. New York City is one of the densest places on the globe.
‘You also have upstate New York and you see a variety across the country. We have a variety across the state. You have to watch each one of those individual curves and when does that region hit a high point and where is that.
‘Depending on that region’s curve is how long you have to calculate your strategy. How long are we on that plateau and how long is the descent from the plateau>
‘Downstate New York, it appears we are on the descent. But how quickly do we descend?’ he said.
‘We’re going to make reopening decisions on a regional bases based on that region’s facts and circumstances. In other words, just like some states will reopen before some states, it’s also true across the state.
‘North country has a totally different situation than New York City,’ he said.
FILE PHOTO: A nurse wipes away tears as she stands outside NYU Langone Medical Center on 1st Avenue in Manhattan as cops and other units came to cheer and thank healthcare workers at 7pm during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease
New York City Police officers, donning facemasks, patrol Washington Square Park Tuesday, April 21, 2020, in New York
Fire Department of New York medical staff attend to an elderly person experiencing difficulty breathing outside of an apartment building on April 21, 2020, in the Bronx borough of New York City
Mayor Bill de Blasio, who called for shutdown orders before Cuomo implemented them and has been more drastic in his general rhetoric about the pandemic response, has already canceled all June parades and concerts across the city.
Outside of New York City, there were small areas which Cuomo called ‘little fires’ that the state was watching and responding to.
West New York was of concern, he said, particularly in Eerie and Buffalo.
Cuomo previously said he is among the most ‘aggressive’ of the country’s governors when it comes to a reopening strategy.
Cuomo will go to the White House to meet with President Trump on Tuesday afternoon to discuss how they can work together to ramp up testing
‘We’re operating two rules – do no harm and start to plan the reopening.
‘We paid a tremendous price to get where we are today, to control this beast. We closed down everything. Peopel worked tirelessly… do no harm: don’t go backwards.
‘Then plan the reopening,’ he said.
Later today, Cuomo will meet with Trump in the Oval Office to ask for help with testing. He said that he needs the federal government to buy the relevant parts from China or other countries that are needed to ramp up antibody testing in his state.
He spoke of Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan who purchased 500 kits from South Korea himself and said it had prompted his daughters to ask him why he hadn’t done the same for New York.
Cuomo placed the blame for it on Trump.
‘Last night, I get home and I have my three daughters with me now… we’re sitting there watching the news. Governor Larry Hogan comes on, great guy, he says, “I bought 500 test kits from South Korea.”
‘My daughter turns t me and says, “wow that was really smart.” She didn’t have to say anything else… I felt an immediate wave of guilt descend upon me.
‘One of my other daughters turns to me and says, “why didn’t you think of that, Dad?” Now, I’m feeling de minimus as a governor. Larry Hogan is a better governor.
‘Why didn’t I think of it? It’s not what the states normally are responsible for. God bless Larry Hogan, he thought outside of the box and got really creative with it.
‘But this is the piece where the federal government can help us,’ he said.
Cuomo launched an antibody testing study in New York on Monday which involves 3,000 people being randomly selected at grocery stores to find out how much of the population had the virus and has recovered from it.
It is unclear when those results will be delivered.