New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says if the trends of the past several days hold, New York has passed the high point of the coronavirus infection and is now on the way back down. Despite that good news, more than 500 people died over the past 24 hours, and 1,300 new patients came to hospitals around the state seeking treatment.
Cuomo said at his daily briefing that New York's Department of Health is gearing up over the next week to begin a statewide program testing thousands of people for coronavirus antibodies. He says this will be the first accurate snapshot of who has the virus and who has recovered, and he says that's critical for reopening New York.
The governor also said it's critical to have federal support for diagnostic testing as well, which is hampered by inability of testing labs to get the necessary chemical reagents to process the results. Cuomo says only the federal government can help with that supply chain.
Governor Cuomo also repeated his call for direct federal aid to the states, covering their losses in dealing with the coronavirus. He says states need to support reopening the economy by providing schools, police, fire and transit services. He says New York's losses are so severe that it will only be able to provide half of last year's aid to school districts without a stimulus package for states.