Cuomo talks testing, tracing and coronavirus economic impact during trip to Savannah
ALBANY, N.Y. — Gov. Andrew Cuomo talked testing, tracing, New York’s coronavirus response and reopening Monday as he traveled to Georgia to meet with the mayor of Savannah and other local officials.
Cuomo conferred with Savannah Mayor Van Johnson during a public roundtable discussion and pledged to assist the southern city as COVID-19 cases continue to rise across the country.
The governor, in addition to delivering PPE and other supplies, said he hopes to pass on lessons learned in New York, which earlier this year became the epicenter of the outbreak before beating back the virus.
“The testing and tracing elements are key,” Cuomo said. “We can do the testing, we can do the tracing. But let’s not forget the bigger point: none of us is alone, we are a community whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. This nation is strongest when we are unified.”
New York, working with Somos Community Care, will also open a pair of testing sites in Savannah.
Cuomo and Johnson, who was born in Brooklyn, discussed the economic hardships created by the pandemic and the difficulties faced by states and cities as cases climb across the country.
Johnson, who gifted the governor a painting and a key to the Hostess City, thanked Cuomo for sharing supplies and his experiences with him.
“When you want to win, follow winners,” he said. “New York State literally went from worst to first and they have shown the entire country, the entire world the way to do this right.”
Asked why Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp wasn’t present for the roundtable, the pair of Democrats avoided directly criticizing the Republican leader, but made their differences known.
Noting that Kemp is suing several cities in his own state for instituting mask mandates, Cuomo questioned the political divides surrounding the virus and ripped the federal response to the crisis.
“A national mask policy would have saved 40,000 additional lives. How do we justify that? A mask is not a political statement,” he said. “The mask says, ‘I understand science.’ Why would you not wear a mask?
“There is no reason to be five months into this and still not have set up the basic systems we knew we needed to set up,” he added.
Earlier in the day, the governor issued a warning to younger New Yorkers who have been disregarding social distancing and mask rules while partying.
If the revelry continues, Cuomo threatened to roll back the reopening of restaurants and bars.
There were eight COVID-19 deaths statewide Sunday and a total of 716 people hospitalized, the lowest number for New York since March 16, according to the governor.
Cuomo noted that of 49,342 tests performed Sunday, 519 tests came back positive, a 1.05% infection rate.
“The positive rate is about 1%, that’s where we’ve been so we’re holding steady,” he said during an appearance at Kennedy Airport before departing for Georgia. “You look across the regions of the state, you see good news all across the region. The progress is all very good, so we did the impossible as New Yorkers; they really stepped up and conquered the COVID virus now we just have to stay there. We have to progress the progress we’ve made.”
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