'How much is a human life worth?' Gov. Cuomo outlines pitfalls of reopening too quickly
Projection models have doubled the number of expected deaths because of reopening acceleration.
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May 5, 2020, 3:13 PM
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Updated 1,543 days ago
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331ds agoProjection models have doubled the number of expected deaths in the United States due to COVID-19 because of reopening acceleration in many states.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said during his daily briefing that the projection made by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation jumped from 60,000 to 135,000, which "reflects increased human mobility and the easing of social distancing measures in many U.S. states."
“The faster we reopen, the lower the economic cost, but the more lives will be lost,” he said. He called every human life “priceless.”
MORE: LIVE BLOG - Coronavirus updates from the tri-state area and beyond
TRACKER: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut coronavirus cases and deaths
TRACKER: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut coronavirus cases and deaths
The governor also called for an end to partisan politics and for the federal government to help states reboot their economies through funding. Gov. Cuomo was reacting to President Donald Trump’s statements to the New York Post where he says Democratic states have been mismanaged for years and shouldn’t get a “bailout:”
"What government does today will literally determine how many people live and how many people die,” said the governor. "This is not mismanagement by the states, if anything the mismanagement has been on behalf of the federal government, and that is where the mismanagement has gone back decades."
New York lost another 230 residents to the pandemic on Monday.
Briefing Notes
- The number of new hospitalizations is down in the state.
- Cuomo: 230 New Yorkers died yesterday due to COVID-19.
- Gov. Cuomo: Reopening the economy will be about "following the data."
- "We endured the pain. Let's benefit from the gain." Gov. Cuomo says there are important lessons to be learned from the pandemic.
- The subways will be shutdown overnight for disinfecting.
- One of the areas we can really learn from is education. How can we use technology to provide more opportunities to students no matter where they are.
- On reopening: How much is a human life worth? There's a cost for staying closed and there's a cost for reopening too quickly.
- The faster we reopen the lower the economic cost, but the more lives will be lost. Gov. Cuomo says a human life is "priceless."
- Projection models have doubled the number of expected deaths because of reopening acceleration.
- On federal government partisanship: "What government does today will literally determine how many people live and how many people die."
- "This is not mismanagement by the states, if anything the mismanagement has been on behalf of the federal government, and that is where the mismanagement has gone back decades."
- Gov. Cuomo's daughter, Mariah, to volunteer with new mask program. More details here: WearAMask.NY.Gov.
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