In hard-hit New York state, 606 lives were lost on Wednesday.
However, intubations are down, the hospitalization rate is down and ICU admissions are down, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday.
“It means we can control the virus,” he said. “We did not know for sure we could do that.”
Cuomo said New York’s shutdown — in coordination with other Northeast states — will be extended to May 15.
“I don’t want to project beyond that period,” Cuomo said.
“The close down has worked,” he said, “however, we’re not there yet.”
Cuomo announced Monday that seven Northeast states — New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Rhode Island and Massachusetts — were joining forces to create a reopening plan.
Cuomo said Thursday he needs a “coordinated action plan” with the other states.
Going forward, the phased return to the “new normal” will involve determining how essential a business is and how risky it is for spreading the virus, Cuomo said.
Businesses must have new practices when they reopen, he said, like making sure employees can get to work safely and ensuring the workplace is designed to include social distancing measures.
The governor called testing the “single-best tool to inform decisions.”
Cuomo said New York — home to 19 million people — conducted 500,000 tests in 30 days, which he said was more than California, Florida and Michigan combined.
