After announcing joint regional action to close casinos, gyms, and theaters along with neighboring states Connecticut and New Jersey, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo Monday announced an uptick in the state's coronavirus cases and issued a spate of new rules.
Cuomo revealed that there are now 950 confirmed cases in New York with 158 hospitalizations and seven deaths and pleaded with the federal government to provide nationwide plans and guidance. Specifically, he asked for the deployment of the Army Corps of Engineers to work with states to build temporary medical facilities, like the ones seen in China as it struggled to contain its own coronavirus outbreak. Yesterday, Cuomo made that plea in an op-ed.
“I want federal guidance,” he said. “You can’t have one state taking action that is different from other states.”
Among the emergency regulations announced Monday are a mandatory reduction in local government staffing and the addition of new drive-through testing sites.
He announced that after success in New Rochelle, more drive-through sites will open on Long Island, Staten Island, and in Rockland County.
To help ease the virus’ spread, restaurants, bars, and wineries in the state will be barred from hosting dine-in guests. The State Liquor Authority will adjust its rules to allow eateries to operate takeout service. Cuomo said the measures are being enacted throughout the tri-state region to prevent individuals from heading to neighboring states if they are unhappy with their own state’s rules or closures.
As the state, and the nation, stays home in efforts to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus, Cuomo made the assessment that he does not think the New York area can flatten the curve enough to avoid overwhelming the healthcare system
“I don’t think of a curve. I think of a wave. And a wave is going to break, and the wave is going to break on the hospital system,” he warned.
To combat what is likely to be dramatically increased pressure on the public health system, Cuomo asked local governments to immediately identify beds in available facilities. He called for 5,000 additional beds in NYC, 1,000 in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, and 2,000 in Westchester County, where the New Rochelle cluster is located. Additionally, he said Department of Health regulations will be suspended to allow hospitals to add space and is considering banning non-critical elective surgeries.
“They don’t build extra ICU beds ‘just in case.’ They don’t build a wing of ICU beds that sit empty for 10 years on the off chance there’s going to be a public health emergency and you’re going to need them,” he declared. Without federal guidance and funds, the state plans to organize the National Guard, building unions, and private developers to convert facilities with “basic configuration that could be retrofitted” like dorms and former nursing homes.
For those who are not yet sick, Cuomo said he will waive state park fees to encourage spending time outside in less densely packed areas.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
