NY coronavirus cases in 20 counties, NYC; third death reported

There are confirmed coronavirus cases in 20 counties and New York City as COVID-19 continues to spread across the state.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday that at least 729 confirmed coronavirus cases have been reported statewide. The highest number of cases is in New York City, where 329 people have tested positive for COVID-19.

Westchester County has 196 cases. On Long Island, Nassau County is up to 98 cases and Suffolk County has 47 people with the virus.

Hospitalizations are up to 137, with 65 patients in intensive care units and 46 who are on ventilators.  In upstate NY the number of cases is also growing.

After New York announced the first two coronavirus-related deaths Saturday, a third person has died. Cuomo said a 79-year-old New York City woman with multiple underlying health conditions succumbed to COVID-19.

“New York is the state that has the most number of cases,” Cuomo said. “Again, you would have to correlate that to how many tests the other states are doing, because the more tests they’re doing, the more cases they will find.”

Cuomo wrote an op-ed in the New York Times urging President Donald Trump to have the military assist states add temporary hospital capacity.

In addressing the need to “flatten the curve” — a reference to the strain hospitals face if there is an influx of patients — Cuomo said the state has 53,000 hospital beds and 3,000 beds in intensive care units. Most of the ICU beds — 80% — are already occupied.

Cuomo wants Trump to mobilize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to retrofit state buildings, including State University of New York dormitories, and create temporary hospitals to treat coronavirus patients.

“I know it’s a dramatic action. It may be an unprecedented action,” Cuomo said. “This is a dramatic time and unprecedented time.”

As health experts continue to discourage mass gatherings, Cuomo is  asking businesses to “aggressively consider” closing as the coronavirus continues to spread.

For now, businesses have the option of shutting down during the pandemic. But Cuomo didn’t rule out taking action to mandate the closures.