Nonessential employees must work from home until at least April 15 as New York state prepares for the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Sunday.

Cuomo issued an executive order March 20 that directed all nonessential employees to stay home and banned public gatherings of any size. Essential employees include those working in hospitals and banks. After April 15, the order will be reviewed every two weeks, Cuomo said at a press briefing. 

New York state has confirmed 59,513 cases of the novel coronavirus as of Sunday, and 965 people have died. The novel coronavirus causes COVID-19, a respiratory disease that has infected more than 718,000 people and killed over 33,800 worldwide. New York state has confirmed the most cases in the country. 

Over a thousand patients are expected to die during the height of the outbreak, which will reach different regions of the state at different times, Cuomo said. 

The virus will likely reach its peak in New York City first, Cuomo said. Upstate New York is also expected to see a rise in cases and deaths from the virus, but the increase will be greater in regions with more cases, he said. 

“We are doing exactly what we need to do,” Cuomo said. “There is no state in the nation that is better prepared and better mobilized than New York.”

Both private and public hospitals should work together to help hospitals under stress, Cuomo said. He plans to speak with Mayor Bill DeBlasio and private hospitals to begin working together to increase capacity. 

“No hospital can exist unto itself,” Cuomo said. “We need to have a new mentality, a new culture, of hospitals working together.”

The temporary hospital at the Javits Convention Center in New York City will open this week, Cuomo said. The U.S.N.S. Comfort, a Navy hospital ship deployed to serve as an overflow site for patients with COVID-19, will also arrive in New York Harbor on Monday.

Over 76,000 medical professionals in New York state have volunteered to help address the outbreak. Detective Cedric Dixon, 48, and Kious Kelly, a 48-year-old nurse, are two first responders who have died from COVID-19 in New York state, Cuomo said.

“I don’t even have the words to express my admiration for them,” Cuomo said.

The federal government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also issued travel advisories for New York, New Jersey and Connecticut on Saturday. 

Cuomo said he understands New Yorkers may feel “under attack.” Rhode Island issued an executive order this week to stop all cars with New York license plates from entering the state. The order, which Cuomo said was not legal or “neighborly,” has been repealed, he said. 

“No one is going to attack New York unfairly and no one is going to deprive New York of what it needs,” Cuomo said. 

Economic recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak will be complicated, Cuomo said. There will be drastic cuts from the next state budget and significant revenue loss this quarter since the tax filing date has been pushed back to July 15, he said. 

“You’re fighting two things: you’re fighting the virus and fighting the fear.” Cuomo said. “Any obstacle that comes across, we will manage.”  

Published on March 29, 2020 at 7:09 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan