ALBANY – The latest number of individuals in New York State who’ve been diagnosed as having the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is now up to 105.
That’s the latest figure provided by the governor’s office after 16 new cases were identified late Sunday.
The majority of cases continue to be located in Westechster County, New York City and long island areas, although there are some new cases now found further north, including in Saratoga county just outside of Albany.
According to the latest figures, there are 82 confirmed cases in Westchester County, 12 cases in New York, five cases in Nassau County, two cases in Rockland and Saratoga Counties, and one each in Suffolk and Ulster Counties.
In total, more than 500 infections have been reported in the United States and an estimated 110,000 have been reported world-wide.
As a result of the increasing number of cases in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has called on the federal government to expedite their approval of private labs and automated and manual testing to expand New York State’s testing capacity. The governor also announced he declared a state of emergency to help New York more quickly and effectively contain the spread of the virus. And he encouraged New Yorkers in to work from home, telecommute and avoid densely populated spaces whenever possible to help contain the spread of the virus.
The state of emergency declaration allows, among other things:
- Expedited procurement of cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer and other essential resources;
- Allowing qualified professionals other than doctors and nurses to conduct testing;
- Expedited procurement of testing supplies and equipment as well as the leasing of lab space;
- Allowing EMS personnel to transport patients to quarantine locations other than just hospitals.
The New York State Department of State’s Consumer Protection Division has also launched an investigation into reports of unfair price increases of consumer products such as household cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer amid the novel coronavirus outbreak. It has also launched a toll-free hotline – 1-800-697-1220 – for New Yorkers to report suspected price gouging.
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