Virus likely to speed state’s budget talks
Test kits way too short in NYC & nation, says Hizzoner
New York still doesn’t have enough coronavirus test kits, Mayor de Blasio said Saturday.
There are no immediate plans to implement drive-through testing in the five boroughs like the center that was established in badly hit New
ALBANY — Budget negotiations between Gov. Cuomo and legislative leaders could go in to overdrive in the coming days as the state grapples with the growing coronavirus epidemic.
State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) told Democratic senators Saturday to expect the unexpected and to be prepared to take action on a fiscal plan by the end of the week, multiple sources told the Daily News.
“Things are moving fast,” one Albany insider said. “There’s a real sense that this needs to get done this week.”
Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) were planning on releasing their one-house budget proposals by Wednesday and begin negotiations with the governor ahead of the April 1 budget deadline.
But that time line could be significantly accelerated and the legislative session potentially suspended as coronavirus cases surge. New York recorded its first COVID-19-related deaths on Saturday.
“This is going to get much worse before it gets better,” Cuomo said a day earlier. “That was always the fact. That was always the necessary mathematical conclusion to this.”
As the state moved to curtail the spread by banning large gatherings and upping its testing capacity, Cuomo was mostly mum on the impacts on budget negotiations, admitting last week that the emergency response efforts have been “allconsuming.”
Traditionally, the budget bill contains a multitude of policy
Rochelle in Westchester County, the mayor said. De Blasio said the city has not yet seen any evidence of President Trump’s claim that millions of test kits would soon be available.
The mayor said the city is waiting on FDA approvals from a number of companies, and for direct federal support for testing. “We are nowhere near where we need to be as a nation,” de Blasio said.
The city is still prioritizing tests for those considered high risk, such as the elderly or those with preexisting conditions. Anyone who believes they have the virus should first call their doctor or health care provider before seeking treatment in person, health officials say.