Coronavirus News: Governor Cuomo unveils metrics for regional approach to reopening

ByEyewitness News WABC logo

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Reopening New York will be slowest for NYC

Derick Waller reports on the challenges NYC is facing with reopening

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Governor Andrew Cuomo said that New York will take a regional approach to reopening.

"If upstate has to wait for downstate to be ready, they will be waiting for a long time," Cuomo said.

The governor unveiled a series of metrics which are based on guidelines from the CDC, which include:

-Regions must have at least 14 days of decline in total hospitalizations and deaths on a 3-day rolling average.

-In regions with few COVID cases, it cannot exceed 15 new total cases or 5 new deaths on a 3-day rolling average.

-In order to monitor the potential spread of infection in the region: A region must have fewer than two new COVID patients admitted per 100k residents per day.

-We must make sure every region has the capacity to handle a potential surge in cases: Regions must have at least 30% total hospital and ICU beds available.

-This is coupled with the new requirement that hospitals have at least 90 days of PPE stockpile.

-Regions must have a baseline of 30 contact tracers for every 100,000 residents and additional tracers based on the projected number of cases in the region.

-We are building an army of tracers in partnership with Mayor Bloomberg, to meet statewide needs.

As far as testing goes, the governor championed the fact that 1 million New Yorkers have been tested. But, in order to reopen the CDC recommends that there must be 30 tests for every 1,000 residents.

Governor Cuomo talks about the regional reopening plan for New York State.

Governor Cuomo said that businesses that are most essential and pose the lowest risk will be the first to open.

Phase 1: Manufacturing, construction, curbside pickup etc.

Phase 2: Professional services, retail, real estate

Phase 3: Restaurants, food services etc.

Phase 4: Arts, sports, education.

The governor also addressed the fact that NY Pause ends on May 15. "May 15th, regions can start to reopen and do their own analysis, but these are the facts that they have to have in place to do it. Start now. Don't wait until May 15th. Don't call me up on May 15th, and say, well, the pause order expired. I want to open. Because I'm going to ask you the questions I just asked."