Cuomo says coronavirus may have reached its peak
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Although the state has begun to discuss the logistics of reopening its economy, the decision poses both economic and public health questions, Cuomo said.
New York state has reported 783 deaths from the coronavirus since Friday, though its level of hospitalizations and infections is stabilizing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a briefing Saturday.
The coronavirus causes COVID-19, a respiratory disease that has infected at least 1.7 million people and killed 106,469 worldwide. There are 174,489 confirmed cases in New York state as of Saturday, and 8,627 people have died.
While the number of confirmed cases has continued to increase, data is showing that the virus may have reached its peak in New York state, Cuomo said. The change in data is due to measures the state has been taking and social distancing protocols residents have been following, he said.
“This is a time when our actions literally will determine life and death,” he said.
The state court system is recruiting volunteer lawyers to provide pro bono legal assistance, Cuomo said. The outbreak has created issues related to housing, government programing and food stamps that all require the understanding of a lawyer, he said.
Although the state has begun to discuss the logistics of reopening its economy, the decision poses both economic and public health questions, Cuomo said. Reopening the state will be impactful, and needs to be critically discussed, he said.
“I understand the need to bring back the economy as quickly as possible. I understand people need to work,” Cuomo said. “I also know we need to save lives and we have and one can not be at the expense of the other.”
The state is pulling together a team of experts to research what happened in Italy and Wuhan, China, areas where the virus hit the hardest, to see if a second wave of confirmed cases in the United States is possible, he said. No one knows how the crisis will turn out, he said.
“I know (everybody) wants me to say we’re going to be reopening the economy in two weeks and that we beat the beast,” Cuomo said. “The worst thing that can happen is we make a misstep and we let our emotions get ahead of our logic and fact and we go through this again in any manner, shape, or form.”
Published on April 11, 2020 at 7:32 pm
Contact Maggie: mehicks@syr.edu | @maggie_hickss
