Gov. Andrew Cuomo again reiterated that the apex of the COVID-19 outbreak in New York, which is the epicenter of the virus in the U.S. right now, will likely hit about 21 days from now, and the state - hospitals in particular - is racing to try to prepare.
The governor did have some positive news to share, saying that projections of hospitalization have indicated that the rate of cases is slowing somewhat. As of yesterday, the projection was that hospitalizations would double every 4.7 days, which is a lot longer than Sunday's projection of every two days.
"That is almost too good to be true," Cuomo said, though he quickly added that the "arrows are pointing in the right direction."
Cuomo said New York has now conducted 103,000 new tests - 12,000 as of yesterday. That's 28 percent of all testing nationwide. He said anyone who shows symptoms and meets the protocol can get tested, but also that testing is focused on dense areas because the state is "hunting positives so we can isolate them and reduce the spread."
There are now 30,811 COVID-19 cases in New York (that's 5,146 additional cases from the last time numbers were released), 17,856 of which are in the five boroughs of New York City (up 2,952 cases).
Some 40,000 retired health care professionals have heeded the state's call to create a reserve health care corps to backfill for when the current teams of doctors, nurses etc. on the front lines are unable to continue to working because they fall ill themselves or simply need a break.
In addition, 6,175 mental health professionals voluntarily signed up to provide counseling for free to any New Yorker who needs it. There's a "COVID-19 emotional support helpline" to call - 1-844-863-9314 - and you can schedule a time to speak to someone.
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