Cuomo gives an update on the Pandemic Response in his state saying there appears to be a slowing down in infection rates. From earlier today, this is under 50 minutes. Gov. Cuomo good morning. We winnows the people with us. Everybody knows the people with us. Two doctors, the secretary to the governor. To our friend celebrate good friday, i wish you a good, good friday. To our friends celebrate and passover, i will send the best. To give you an update on where we are. To use an overused term, we are cautiously optimistic that we are slowing the infection rate. That is what the numbers say and what the data suggest to us. Hospitalizations is down, not relative to yesterday. But when it is averaged, the threeday average on hospitalizations, you see and dramatic decline in those numbers and that is very good news. The change in icu admissions the negative number for the First Time Since we started this intense journey. That means there are fewer people in the intensive care unit statewide than there were. Again, that is the first time we have seen a negative number. So that is good. The free the threeday average of that is down. The change in intubations is a little tick higher than it has been in the past few days but it is still over all down. The threeday average is also down. The bad news is, we continue to lose a tremendous number of lives. And to endure great pain as a state. Lives lost. I understand intellectually why it is happening. It does not make it any easier to accept. What is happening is, the number of people who came in two weeks ago, when we had those very high hospitalization rates, either you get treated and get better and get discharged. Or you stay in the hospital, and probably wind up on a ventilator. And the longer you are on a ventilator, the less likely he will come off the ventilator. That is what is happening now. Lives lost are people who came in at that height hospitalization. And we are losing them. The number is lower than yesterday for those who can take solace in that fact. As someone who searches for , thee in all of this grief leveling off of the number of lives lost is a somewhat hopeful sign. The number of total lives lost, 7844. To put this in perspective, i lived through 9 11, as many new , who are of somewhat advanced age. I believed 9 11 was the worst situation i was going to deal with in my lifetime. To put it in perspective, 2753 people lost their lives in 9 11. We are at 7844. In terms of lives lost, the 9 11 n should exceed that the situation should exceed 911 is still beyond my capacity to fully appreciate, to tell you the truth. We have been watching a spread to the suburban communities. Now suffolk, westchester, rockland. That seems to have stabilized. We have hotspots in Suffolk County we are watching. Aggressive have been in these suburban communities. N jumping on those hotspots and the percentage of growth in upstate new york and suburban areas around new york city has been stabilized and flat, so that is good news as well. Overall, new york is flattening the curve. And we have to flatten the curve. Because when they showed us the projection models of what the statisticians projected the curve would do, we have no capacity to meet those projections. In other words, columbia university, who was protecting the highest caseload, said we hospital beds in new york city when we started. It was just several weeks ago. 136,000 hospital beds in new york city. 036,000have 33,00 hospital beds in new york city. So that was distressing, to say the least. Mckinsey had projected we would hospital beds. They had a second moderate scenario, which was 55,000 hospital beds, statewide. And we do not have that capacity, even on the moderate scenario. Ihme suggested we doded 73,000 beds and not have that either. So, none of these projections were omma in any way, comforting to us. Projections were not in any way comforting. The actual curve is much lower than any projected. What is the variance . How do you come up with an actual curve that is so much different than what those experts predicted . First, in fairness to the experts, nobody has been here before. Nobody. So everyone was trying to figure it out the best they can. There is no model to track against. Second, the big variable was, what policies do put in place . And the bigger variable was, does anybody listen to the policies put in place . Right . I am governor of the state of new york. You can announce a policy. That does not mean anyone is going to follow it. You can announce a policy that we are going to close all businesses and everyone must stay home. And if do not follow it, or they do not take it seriously, or they believe your being premature, or your being political, they would not follow it. And then what do we do . Do we arrest 19 Million People . Or ticket 19 Million People . So the big variable was, what policies do put into place . And the bigger variable was, does anybody care and will anybody follow that . And the social distancing and stay at home, nobody has ever done that before. So the statisticians had to come up with a promise eight on how a premise, many would comply. We have exceeded that. We have to keep doing it. People tend to think this is a natural trajectory of the disease. There is no natural trajectory. The trajectory is the trajectory that we create, by our actions. Would,ural trajectory see that line continue to go up. It will continue to go up and up and up, until you develop herd immunity, where you see many, many more infections. So we did that and we are doing that. That is why we have to state the course. Meaid this morning, you tell how we behave today, and i will tell you the infection rate two days or three days from today. What we do today, will determine the infection rate two or three days from now. What we are doing is working. Stay with it. Even though it is a grind. Even though it is difficult. We have to stay with it. We have to stay with it operationally, on our hospital system, where we are coordinating statewide in that surge and flex system. Additional capacity on our hospital system. We are sharing equipment across the system. Have to continue helping people who are struggling every day. Food assistance is a real issue for people. We are going to add 200 million to provide 700,000 lowincome households more funding for food. Basic food. Continue to help our medical workers, who are the front line soldiers in this battle. And who have done a phenomenal job. I say it all the time, but every day they are out there doing truly, the lords work. We are going to provide additional housing and i want to thank the companies who have come forward to be part of this effort. Airbnbs contribute in funding to provide housing for our health care workers. Is working with airbnb providing their members with additional benefits. Have hotels coming forward and Offering Free Hotel rooms. So we thank them all very much. Last night, as a signal of our thanks to the workers who are out there every day, we lit up our landmarks in the new york city area. Falls, blue in their honor. And that is a nice abolished tribute. What is more, what is better is, to take action that shows our gratitude, saying it is nice, doing it is even better. Created a, Congress VictimsCompensation Fund. I have been working with our congressional delegation and we think the federal government should set up a Heroes Compensation Fund to compensate our health care and other frontline workers for what they did here. Saying thanks is nice. Actually providing assistance is even better. The big question is going to turn to, when we reopen . Especially in places like new york. We are going to see the numbers starting to change. Thenatural trajectory, human movement, is going to be ok, now lets reopen, i need to get out of my house. I have been cooped up, cabin fever. I need funds have to work. And that is going to be the next question, the next issue, that we have to deal with. Question and that again, none of us have been here before. So, lets learn from what has happened so far. And lets learn from what we have been seeing over these past few months so it informs what we are seeing going forward. First of all, the key to reopening is going to be testing. I have said that from day one. It is not going to be a light switch where you flip this economy like you flip a light switch. It is not going to be everybody goes back next thursday. It is not going to happen that way. It is going to be a gradual, phased process, and it is going to be reliant on testing. Testing of antibodies. Testing for diagnostic results. And testing on a scale that we have not done before. New york state has been very aggressive on testing. Our state lab has been very aggressive on testing. Our state lab is not belting and which is a fast and not invasive test. Right now, the state department of health can do free hundred tests per day. By next friday they will be able tests1000 tests and 2000 the following week. It sounds like a lot, but 2000 tests are still a drop in the bucket. I am proud of how new yorkers advanced on testing. If you look at how quickly new york state has moved on testing, and how many tests we have done, we have done a higher percentage of tests in new york state that other countries have done. And new york state far exceeds what this nation as a whole is doing on testing. Highcapacity and highperformance on testing, it is still not enough. It is not enough if you want to. Eopen on a meaningful scale and reopen quickly. So, the testing front is going to be a challenge for us. Why cant new york just develop more tests and do more testing . How do we get the new York State Department of health to scale . That is an issue we have been working on. It is harder than it sounds. You need certain reagents so you can do the testing. You need certain materials so you can do the testing. And it is very hard to get these reagents. You are in a situation were countries across the globe are trying to do the same thing. The federal government has something called the defense production act, dpa, which i have been saying from day one is a very powerful tool, for the federal government to use, when they need to secure a product in the defense of this nation. This is in the defense of this nation. The federal government has used it effectively. They have used it in this situation more as a point of leverage that anything else. Basically saying to a company, we need you to do with it. We do have the defense production act that we could use. An unprecedented mobilization, or government can the newese tests York State Department of health is doing several thousand. We have 9 Million People we want to get back to work. You need more than several thousand tests per week. If this is going to happen anytime soon. Private Sector Companies on their own, i do not believe, will be able to come to scale. We are working with the private Sector Companies. They have the tests but they do not have the capacity to come to scale. You are going to need Government Intervention to make that happen. The federal government is in the best position to do that. To be a state offers full partner with the federal government. We do have the largest number of cases, in york. New york is an economic engine. I cannot do it as a state. If i had a defense production act in this state, i would use it. I would use it. I do not have that tool. The federal government does. Anyway we can partner with the federal government, to get these tests up to scale as quickly as possible, we are all in. I would like to operate as a coalition with new jersey and connecticut, because we are the tristate area. I have spoken or to governor murphy of new jersey and governor lamont of connecticut. They were joined in a testing coalition. They would join in a testing coalition. So i asked the federal government if you are willing to step in and use the federal powers. New york state, new jersey, and connecticut would partner with the federal government. And lets get the testing up to scale quickly, so we can start to build that bridge to reopening the economy. Second, on reopening. You need a federal stimulus bill. You need a federal stimulus bill. They have passed a couple already. What you need a fair federal stimulus bill that is not a political porkbarrel bill. Right . You know that cases are. You know with the need is. I understand the applicable dynamics of the u. S. Senate. Understand not i the political dynamics of the u. S. Senate. But this is not a time to be passing bills that really art to make sure that your home state gets enough funding. That is not what this is about. This is about helping the country come back. And focusing on the need. When i say the bills were unfair to new york, the past bills. It is not because i am advocating for new york. Look at the need. Get where the cases are. Look at where the damage has been done. The federal government is trying to address that damage. You know where it has been done. At the chart on where the cases exist. Look at the number of deaths. The number of cases. The number of hospitalizations. And help those places come back and come back quickly. That is what the stemless bill is supposed to be doing. That is what the stimulus bill is supposed to be doing. Also, lets make sure we are learning from what we just went through, and are going through. . Ok . Because there are lessons i think we all should be aware of, over the past few months. Before you take a step forward, lets make sure we are stepping into. Question that i have had from day one. And when you look back at this, where were the horns that should have been triggered back in december and january . Where were the warning signs . Who was supposed to blow the whistle . The president has asked this question and i think he is right. He president s answer is, the World Health Organization should have been blowing the whistle. I do not know enough to know whether that is right or wrong. I know that the question is right. And sometimes, the question is more important in the answer. How did this happen . I still want to know, how this happened. Because the warning signs were there. And, if you do not know the answer, then how do you know it is not going to happen again . Right . Once, full me once. Fool me once. You go back and look at the headlines in january and you see and uc warnings. And you also see warnings. They were all of the map. But we saw what was happening in asia and what was starting to happen in europe. Where were the International Experts saying, well, if this is happening there, this is what we expect to happen in the United States . Or prepare to happen in the United States . January, february, you still had sources in this country, saying, basically, there is nothing to worry about. How does that happen . And did we really need to be in the situation, where the United States winds up with a higher number of cases than the places that went before . We sat here and we watched china. China wants of having 84,000 cases and we wind up having 474,000 cases. South korea with 10,000 cases. In italy, winds up cases and we wind up with 143,00 cases. I raise the question because the answer, again, is less important than the question. But before we move forward, let us make sure we are not repeating the same mistakes that we made. Right . George santayana. Those who do not room or the past are condemned to repeat it. Remember thedo not past are condemned to repeat it. I do not want to repeat what we just went through. Is there going to be a second wave . Lets look at the countries who have gone through this reopening process and what can we learn from them . Right . Well, we have to start to we are open. Start to reopen. Lets look at the other countries who have gone before us and look at what worked, and what did not work. When you take a cursory review, you see caution signs. Hong kong appeared to have the virus under control. They let its guard down and the buyers came back. Hong kong reported the biggest rise in cases and a new wave of infections. And the virus came back. Is that true . Could it happen here . An article yesterday, italy has seen a bump in the number of cases. Before we take a step, make sure we are more informed, and more aware, then we were in the past. They are talking about a second way for singapore. You go back and look at the 1918 flu epidemic. That was over 10 months. There was a first wave. There was a second wave. The second wave was worst than the first wave, because the virus you tainted the virus mutated. The third peak, and the whole expense was 10 months. The whole experience. Is there any extrapolation that we can learn . I do not know the answers. This is not what we do, it is not what a state does. But we know the questions. And we should have their questions answered before we take a step forward. Because yes, no one has been here before. These are uncharted waters. None of thisw that is predetermined. And it is all a function of our actions. We are in total control of our destiny here. , will affect, literally, life and death, for hundreds of people. So, where do we go from here . First, keep doing what we are doing. Stay home. Because that works. We are flattening the curve. We must continue to flatten the curve. We have to get testing to scale. Entirely new exercise. It is something we still have not done well in this country. We need both diagnostic testing, and Antibody Testing. And we need millions and millions of them. And we need them in a matter of weeks. Not months. Prepared as amore nation. We should never go through this scramble we went through, with states competing against other states to buy masks from china. I mean, we should never have been here in the first place. But certainly we should never be , here again. And then lets make sure we , study the waters ahead and proceed with caution before we set off on the next journey. When we talk about reopening, lets study the data. And lets look at what has happened around the world. And lets make sure the best health minds in the country are giving us their best advice. How do we go forward . We stay new york tough. New york tough means or than just tough. It means disciplined, unified, loving, and it means smart. Now is the time to be smart. Now more than ever. That is what it means to be new york tough. We are. Questions. To their fullest potential and how long would they stay up and running . Are temporary hospitals to their potential and how long will they stay up and running . Gov. Cuomo the temporary hospitals are in overflow relief capacity valve. Overflow relief c