Yes, the New York State lockdown is still in place—and yes, you should continue to be practicing social distancing and stay at and/or work from home as much as possible. But in his April 11 press briefing, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo did say that, in regard to the spread of the COVID-19 virus throughout the state, “we believe that we have stabilized the situation upstate and in the suburbs.” (The suburbs being the counties that surround New York City.)
This comes on the heels of positive news yesterday about a downward trend in the number of hospitalizations, ICU admissions and daily intubations. Today brought more positive news in those areas: the three-day average of hospitalizations and ICU admissions were trending down, and the number of daily intubations was a negative one.
However, that positivity was tempered with more grim news about the number of COVID-19-related deaths reported. The number rose slightly, day-over-day, from 777 on April 9 to 783 on April 10, marking the fourth straight day in the 700s.
The talk of the stabilization did lead to that of the potential for reopening businesses in New York, but as Cuomo noted, it was not only an economic decision, but also a public health one. “I am unwilling to divorce the two,” he said. The state will only begin reopening businesses once it’s sure that there won’t be a “second wave” of the pandemic.
It’s also worth noting that there have been reports today that New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio cancelled school for the rest of the year there; the governor refused to confirm the closure of city schools, running in counterpoint to de Blasio’s order, because he felt that it would need to be coordinated with all other counties in the region. It’s unclear whether this decision would affect the school year statewide. The governor said he also hoped to coordinate the eventual reopening of schools with that of the state’s businesses.
