Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/VCohen
Plans to install a temporary 1,000-plus patient overflow hospital on the grounds of Aqueduct Racetrack have been scrapped.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Plans to install a temporary 1,000-plus patient overflow hospital on the grounds of Aqueduct Racetrack have been scrapped.
Late last month, Gov. Andrew Cuomo noted that he had received approval from the federal governmentto construct a medical center at the South Ozone Park site to bolster existing hospital capacity.
However, it appears that the facility is no longer needed as critical COVID-19 stats consistently trend downward.
In other outbreak news, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Sunday announced steps the City is taking to re-start the economy and “rebuild a fairer New York.” The goal, according to Hizzoner, is not to go back to the status quo, but to spur a recovery that confronts deep inequities, reaches into every neighborhood, and leaves New York stronger than ever.
“This crisis is not only about a virus; it’s about the fallout from hundreds of thousands of our neighbors losing their jobs and struggling to provide for their families. It’s about the outsized devastation communities of color are facing across the country. I am not only calling on New Yorkers from all walks of life to help us get our city back on its feet—I am calling on them to join me in the fight ahead for a fair recovery, ” de Blasio added.
Photo Courtesy of NYPD
Navy Blue Angels and Air Force Thunderbirds teams on Tuesday conducted a flyover New York City to honor medical workers.
The City’s decisions in the coming weeks will be determined by the health indicators tracked every day. Administration officials said the City will evaluate gradual changes to restrictions as daily health metrics indicate that the virus has reached the low-level transmission phase. Last week, the Mayor announced the City’s plan to expand testing, tracing and isolation to continue to beat back COVID-19. To successfully re-open and rebuild a fairer City, the mayor announced that he is establishing a series of advisory groups: Sector Advisory Councils, Administration Task Force on Racial Inclusion and Equity, and the Fair Recovery Task Force.
According to de Blasio, the City will form a series of Sector Advisory Councils that will guide the administration’s efforts to reopen the economy and city life. The councils will serve as critical links to disseminate information about re-opening and provide guidance to shape the City’s response to the pandemic. These councils will start in the first week of May and meet weekly thereafter. Sector Advisory Councils will include: large businesses; small businesses; public health and health care; arts, culture, and tourism; labor; nonprofits and social services; faith-based; education and vocational training.
The Task Force on Racial Inclusion and Equity will be comprised of officials from across the administration to engage hardest-hit communities, monitor response and recovery efforts in those neighborhoods, identify unique needs associated with Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises and community health care providers, and work with City officials and agencies to narrow long-standing racial and economic disparities, de Blasio said. This task force will focus both on the immediate needs of these communities and shape a longer-term strategy to close the gaps that have been exacerbated during this crisis. The task force will be led by First Lady Chirlane McCray and Deputy Mayor J. Phillip Thompson, the mayor noted.
Photo Courtesy of Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
“We can’t let the natural desire to go back to normal life interfere with our efforts to defeat the virus,” Mayor de Blasio said.
And in the beginning of June, the Fair Recovery Task Force will put forward a recovery road map that will inform the City’s recovery efforts. Members of the task force will continue to support the City over the course of the recovery and adjust the roadmap to meet new challenges, Hizzoner added.
Mayor de Blasio also announced last week that social distancing measures are helping the City fight COVID-19, according to three indicators: tracking hospital admissions for suspected COVID-19 cases, intensive care unit occupants in NYC Health + Hospitals facilities, and percent of city residents testing positive for the virus.
According to the administration, admissions for suspected COVID-19 cases at hospitals citywide continue to decline. On April 22, there were only 227 admissions citywide. Comparatively, on March 31, there were 850 admissions for suspected COVID-19 cases citywide.
The daily number of people in ICUs across NYC Health + Hospitals with suspected cases of COVID-19 continues to decline. On April 14, Health + Hospitals was at double its ICU capacity systemwide, with approximately 887 individuals being treated in ICUs. That number is now 796, de Blasio said. To alleviate the burden on NYC Health + Hospitals, the City has added ICU beds at facilities citywide, and surged military and volunteer personnel across the system.
As the City continues to expand its testing capacity, the number of individuals testing positive for the virus at the City’s public health lab increased to 57 percent. The number of individuals being tested citywide in private labs decreased, however, to 33 percent.
“We can’t let the natural desire to go back to normal life interfere with our efforts to defeat the virus,” de Blasio said. “This is not a battle we can fight alone; the choices ordinary New Yorkers are making at every hour of each day hold the key to fighting COVID-19.”
