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Health workers take the patient to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Brooklyn district of New York City, New York, USA. USA (Image: REUTERS)
Governor Andrew Cuomo said the lower average hospitalization rates and intubations suggested a “plateau” of the epidemic and that he was working on a plan to gradually reopen the economy.
- AFP
- Last update: April 13, 2020 10:54 p.m. IST
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday that “the worst is over” in the state’s coronavirus pandemic, reporting that the death toll had exceeded 10,000.
Cuomo said the lower average hospitalization rates and intubations suggested a “plateau” of the epidemic and that he was working on a plan to gradually reopen the economy.
“I think we can now start on the road to normalcy,” Cuomo told reporters.
The governor announced that 671 people had died in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths in the most affected state in the United States to 10,056.
It was the lowest toll in a single day in New York since April 5. The highest of 799 was reported on Thursday of last week.
“The worst will happen if we remain smart in the future,” Cuomo said, adding that he would speak to neighboring governors later Monday to come up with a reopening plan.
He said a reopening would be gradual, it could start by recalibrating who is a core worker and would require an increase in testing to monitor infection rates.
“It is not going to be like that, we flip the switch and everyone leaves their house, gets in their car, greets and hugs, and the economy will start,” Cuomo said.
“Do it carefully, do it slowly, and do it intelligently.”
Cuomo encouraged New Yorkers to follow the patterns of social distancing, saying that “two or three days of reckless behavior” could delay the fight against the pandemic.
New York State quickly became the epicenter of the United States outbreak and accounts for almost half of the country’s 22,150 deaths, according to a count by Johns Hopkins University.
