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New York remains the state most plagued by the virus, with 44,635 cases that resulted in 519 deaths, up from 385 the day before. New Jersey has the next most confirmed cases with 6,876, followed by California (4,060), Washington (3,208), and Michigan (2,878).
Of the 44,635 positive cases, 6,481 are hospitalized, with 1,583 patients in ICU. Since the outbreak, 2,045 people who tested positive and were hospitalized have been discharged. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo noted that the rate of hospitalizations has slowed, even as the number of cases continues to climb.
The New York counties that have the most COVID-19 cases:
- New York City: 25,398 (4,005 new cases);
- Westchester: 7,187 (1,243);
- Nassau: 4,657 (743);
- Suffolk: 3,385 (650);
- Rockland: 1,457 (260;
- Orange: 910 (159);
- Dutchess: 225 (35);
- Erie: 219 (85);
- Albany: 187 (16);
- Monroe: 160 (21).
There have also been confirmed cases in Putnam, Sullivan, Litchfield, and Ulster Counties. Just six counties in the state are reporting zero cases.
“We’re seeing a significant increase in the number of deaths because the lengths of time people are on a ventilator is increasing, and the longer you’re on a ventilator, the more likely you never get off the ventilator,” Cuomo said. “It’s the worst news, but it wasn’t unexpected.”
With the potential apex in the number of cases just weeks away, Cuomo noted that they’re working on any and all contingency plans, including opening up temporary healthcare facilities in large gathering places such as hotels and college dorms to ensure hospitals aren’t overwhelmed.
In addition to a 1,000-seat temporary hospital at the Javits Center in Manhattan, facilities are already being transitioned at SUNY Old Westbury, SUNY Stony Brook and the Westchester County Center.
On Friday, Cuomo said he's asking FEMA to build four more such facilities: at the Aqueduct Racetrack, CUNY College of Staten Island, Brooklyn Cruise Terminal and the New York Expo Center -- covering all the boroughs now. (See second image above for a look at all eight facilities.)
The 1,000-bed US Navy Ship Comfort, which will be stationed at Pier 90 in New York Harbor, is expected to arrive on Monday, March 30. (See third and fourth images above.) It has 12 operating rooms, a pharmacy and a laboratory and will be treating non-COVID-19 patients while hospitals and temporary hospitals treat manly patients with the virus.
“We’re doing things that have never been done before,” Cuomo said. “We’re doing things that when we first put them on the table, sounded impossible. But now we’re doing the impossible.
“We’re looking far and wide, we’re being very creative and very aggressive in finding all the space we can possibly find and converting it to be ready in case we have that overflow capacity if we hit the apex.”
Cuomo also said that they are stockpiling emergency supplies such as N-95 masks, exam gloves and protective gowns that can be dispatched at a moment’s notice to hospitals or regions statewide that require them.
The governor praised New Yorkers’ response to the outbreak, for mostly adhering to social distancing protocols and to the 62,447 medical staff volunteers and 10,099 mental health professionals who have stepped forward to lend a helping hand.
“New Yorkers never cease to amaze me how big their hearts are,” he said. “We talk about how New Yorkers are tough, and you have to be tough to live in a place like this. But as tough as we are is how loving we are, and how big our heart is, and when someone needs something, there’s no place I’d rather be than in New York.”
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