New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday provided his daily coronavirus update from the Javits Convention Center, which opened today as an emergency field hospital.
The governor said both the Javits Center and the USNS Comfort hospital ship, which docked in the city this morning, will serve patients dealing with non-coronavirus medical needs. That should leave New York City hospitals to serve as the frontline of the coronavirus outbreak.
While expressing gratitude for federal support the state has received, Cuomo stressed that the city is not an "anomaly" but rather a "canary in the coal mine" for what the rest of the state and country will soon experience.
"What you see us going through here, you will see happening all across this country," he said.
"Anyone who says this situation is a New York City-only situation is in a state of denial."
All but one county in the state of New York has a confirmed COVID-19 case, he added.
Collaboration has been complicated, however, by the fact that states are competing for the same stock of limited supplies.
"We're competing amongst ourselves. We're driving the prices up. When we started buying ventilators, they were under $20,000. The ventilators are now over $50,000 if you can find them," Cuomo said.
The governor echoed a message from Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier today emphasizing that New York would provide guidance and direct assistance to other areas once they, too, become hot zones.
The state's latest death toll from the virus now stands at 1,218, a jump of about 300 from Sunday. Cuomo said the jump correlates with an increasing number of patients who have died after prolonged periods of ventilators use, suggesting that patients with more serious cases are beginning to succumb to the disease.
In a bit of positive news, Cuomo reported that cases are now doubling at a slower rate than that had been, down from doubling every two days to every six days.
"While the overall number of cases is going up, the rate of doubling is actually down," Cuomo said.
President Biden and Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell meet at the White House today for the first time since Powell's renomination to the position. The President and the Fed Chair discussed the economy and historically high inflation, as new data shows inflation may be cooling slightly. Morning Consult economic analyst Jesse Wheeler joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss how the Biden administration at the U.S. central bank can work together to combat soaring prices for American consumers.
In the second part of Cheddar's talk with Governor Asa Hutchinson, the Republican from Arkansas discussed his state's abortion trigger law and the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Texas law that would prevent social media platform moderation currently being held up by the U.S. Supreme Court, and rumors of his 2024 presidential run. "I did go to New Hampshire. I am testing the waters out there, so no decision at this point. But we're looking at it," he said, noting that if former President Donald Trump runs, it would not affect his own decision.
Cheddar Politics looks at the ongoing efforts to pass meaningful gun safety laws in both Chambers of Congress following multiple mass shootings. Lisa Hagen, senior political reporter for U.S. News and World Report, helps break down why Senators are hopeful that a modest bipartisan gun safety package might be able to overcome a filibuster.
Join Cheddar News as we break down the top headlines this morning including updates on the Tulsa medical center shooting, Johnny Depp V. Amber Heard verdict, and Democrats push for gun control reform.
After two subway shootings in two months and the more recent mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, Mayor Eric Adams is calling for gun detection scanners to be installed in New York City subways. The tech would be similar to that used in sporting arenas, however, experts note multiple difficulties with such a setup including the need for nearby human operators.
Catching you up on what you need to know on Wednesday, June 1, 2022, House lawmakers hold an emergency hearing on gun control measures in the wake of the Uvalde shooting, the Supreme Court temporarily blocks Texas' law stopping social media moderation, and the James Webb Space Telescope gets a new mission.
With the baby formula in the United States surging to an out-of-stock rate of 70 percent, the FDA has given Abbott permission to reopen its Michigan plant amid the crisis and authorized foreign imports. Professor Peter Pitts, a former FDA associate commissioner and current president of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest, joined Cheddar News to discuss the ongoing shortage and its wide impact. “As difficult as things is in urban areas, they’re even worse in small communities and tribal areas where parents can't just go to the next store on the corner," he said. Pitts also noted that the Abbott factory was a "disaster" prior to its shutdown and that it would have been "regulatory malpractice" to have left it open.
Cheddar's Megan Pratz reports from the ground in Uvalde, Texas where the community's grief and frustration with lawmakers and police officers grows as more details emerge.
