Atlanta – The Democratic governor of New York flew to Georgia on Monday, vowing to help the city of Savannah fight COVID-19, in a reprimand barely concealing the Republican leadership of Georgia as virus cases in the state of the state increased. south.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo declined to directly criticize Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, but warmly praised Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, a native New Yorker who has been a scorching critic of Kemp in recent days.
Cuomo said New York must be interested in what is happening in other parts of the country because infected people from other states are likely to spread virus cases in New York, and previously promised to help Atlanta and Houston. He portrayed his mission as an effort to help overcome political divisions on how to fight COVID-19.
“This virus preys on the weak and vulnerable,” said Cuomo. “It is the weak body that has trouble solving the virus. The American body is, in many ways, weak at the moment. The political body is weakened.”
Cuomo also endorsed the use of masks, saying that “somehow in this crazy partisan world we have even politicized a virus.”
“I wear the mask because I respect you,” he said. “You wear the mask because you respect me.”
Johnson pioneered a revolt by local Georgia officials against Kemp’s refusal to allow local governments to order people to wear masks. Johnson signed an order requiring masks in the coastal city on July 1. More than 15 cities and counties will eventually follow suit, and Kemp will eventually sue the Atlanta mayor and city council, asking a judge to order local officials to stop taking action contrary to his own executive orders on the coronavirus.
Georgia’s attorney general’s attorneys are scheduled to argue that case in court on Tuesday.
Cuomo provided masks, test kits, gowns, masks, and hand sanitizer. He said he would help Savannah establish two new public test sites targeting low-income people, and said he would share his experience in contact tracing.
“Today’s discussion was about testing. Today’s discussion was about screening, and it was about training,” Johnson said. “And, most importantly, it is about encouraging a tired city that has been through this since the beginning of March.”
Contacts monitoring in Georgia is under the responsibility of the state Department of Public Health, which did not attend the meetings on Monday, said Nick Zoller, a Johnson spokesman. He said the city will not establish a separate contact tracking program.
Kemp’s spokeswoman Candace Broce declined to comment on Cuomo’s visit. Kemp separately announced a previously promised initiative with Mako Medical, a North Carolina laboratory company, to increase the Georgian government’s testing capacity by 10,000 per day, providing results in 48 hours. Kemp spokesman Cody Hall said Georgia will pay between $ 100 and $ 110 per test and chose Mako because it offers the best combination of price, response time and capacity.
The number of people hospitalized due to respiratory illness in Georgia continues to rise, reaching almost 3,200 on Monday, a level that has tripled in the past month. The total number of cases in Georgia exceeded 145,000 on Monday, while the number of deaths increased to 3,176.
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