Cuomo: No to N.J. bug ban
ALBANY — Don’t worry New Jersey, Gov. Cuomo’s got your back.
The governor dismissed the idea of quarantining Garden State residents Thursday if coronavirus cases climb on the other side of the Hudson, saying it would be near impossible to stop people from crossing into the Empire State.
“I don’t know how you could quarantine New Jersey,” Cuomo said during a call with reporters. “They don’t fly into New York. You’d have to blockade roads and we’re not talking about blockading.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy warned this week that COVID-19 cases are on the rise again in his state, attributing the uptick to indoor parties and larger gatherings.
The state reported an additional 489 cases and 18 deaths on Wednesday. A day earlier, Jersey saw 565 new cases and 24 deaths, the highest daily case number since June 6.
Cuomo said New York is offering any assistance needed to get cases back under control.
“We’re working with them,” he said. “Obviously they’re our neighbor, they’ve been our neighbor all through this. I’m hopeful we can get that number down.”
The two states have been working together, along with Connecticut, on a tri-state travel advisory for anyone entering the region from states or localities with high infection rates.
Earlier in the week, Cuomo announced that another three states plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico were added to the quarantine list, bringing the total number of states to 34 as coronavirus cases continue to climb across the U.S.
The quarantine applies to any state with a positive coronavirus testing rate higher than 10 people per 100,000 residents or with an overall positive rate of 10% or higher, both based on seven-day rolling averages.
It’s unclear what would happen if one of the three states met that threshold.
“Quarantine is basically through the airports, that wouldn’t apply to New Jersey,” Cuomo said. “We’re going to keep our fingers crossed and work with them to get the number down.”
New York, meanwhile, conducted more than 73,000 coronavirus tests on Wednesday and reported 777 positives, a 1.06% infection rate. Another 13 New Yorkers died from the virus, Cuomo said. Statewide, 586 people are hospitalized with the virus, the lowest number since March 17.
“That is all great, great news,” the governor said.
Another 41 bars and restaurants, including 20 in Manhattan, were hit with violations from the state on Wednesday for failing to follow or enforce coronavirus safety guidelines. The State Liquor Authority has cracked down on establishments in recent weeks as crowds of young drinkers congregated, often not wearing masks or practicing social distancing, outside bars and pubs.
Cuomo also announced that New York is setting aside $30 million to help counties across the state boost coronavirus contact tracing and combat the flu while the state scraps plans for a $3 billion environmental bond.
The Restore Mother Nature Bond Act, which was set to be on the ballot in November, fell victim to COVID-19-fueled economic uncertainty, he said.
“We’re going to postpone the environmental bond issue hopefully one year to next year,” Cuomo said during a call with reporters.