NEW YORK -- New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called face masks a sign of respect for others on a day the state reported 195 new deaths. New York City is reporting more cases of a rare pediatric syndrome possibly linked to the coronavirus. Meanwhile, data released Tuesday shows that nine out of 10 people arrested for coronavirus-related offenses in New York City have been black or Hispanic.
Here are the latest coronavirus-related developments in New York:
COVER UP
Warning that the state isn’t out of danger yet, Cuomo on Tuesday urged New Yorkers to wear masks out of respect for the nurses and doctors who have died to protect people from the pandemic, which he said had killed another 195 people.
During his daily briefing, Cuomo recounted a tense conversation about masks he had with a constituent while on a recent walk with his daughter. He said people should be aware that masks, which are worn to reduce the wearer’s chance of infecting others, are a sign of respect to everyone they walk past, as well as to workers pulling society through the outbreak.
“This mask says, ‘I respect the nurses and doctors who killed themselves through this virus to save other people. And I respect the nurses and the doctors, so I’m not going to infect anyone or allow anyone else to be infected unnecessarily so I don't cause more stress on the nurses and the doctors,’” Cuomo said.
New York requires people to wear face coverings when in close proximity to others in public. As people grow wearier of the extended lockdown, some complain that requirement infringes on individual liberty.
Cuomo instead stressed “reciprocal responsibility” as some upstate areas prepare to start phasing in economic activity this week.
The 195 deaths recorded in New York are a jump from 161 the previous day, but still about a quarter of the highest daily tallies just over a month ago. Hospitalization rates also continue to decline.
————
ARREST NUMBERS SHOW RACIAL DISPARITY
Nine out of 10 people arrested for coronavirus-related offenses in New York City have been black or Hispanic, police department data released Tuesday shows.
Of 125 arrested between March 16 and Sunday, 83 were black, 30 were Hispanic, 9 were white and 3 were Asian.
The New York Police Department says the pandemic-related arrests fall into broad categories such as hate crimes, domestic violence and resisting arrest. They include fights that broke out over cutting supermarket lines and a bank robbery suspect who gave a note to a teller saying, “this is a bank robbery, I have COVID.”
“These are not social distancing arrests,” the department said in a statement. “Many were responses to calls for service where there was a clear victim and police took necessary action.”
Data released Friday showed that of the 374 summonses issued through May 5 for violating social distancing orders, 52% were given to black people and 30% to Hispanic people.
———
INFLAMMATORY SYNDROME AFFECTING CHILDREN
A total of 52 children in New York City have been diagnosed with an inflammatory syndrome possibly linked to COVID-19 and another 10 cases are pending, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday.
Of those 62 confirmed or possible cases, 25 have tested positive for the coronavirus and another 22 had antibodies for the virus, de Blasio said. One child has died.
The total of 52 confirmed cases in the city is up from 38 cases that had been announced previously.
Children elsewhere in the U.S. and in Europe also have been hospitalized with the condition, known as pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last week that New York is helping develop national criteria for identifying and responding to the syndrome at the request of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
De Blasio urged parents to call their pediatricians if their children exhibit symptoms including persistent fever, rash, abdominal pain and vomiting.
“It’s sobering, it’s bluntly frightening,” de Blasio said, “and I want to say to parents out there, if you’re hearing this information about pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome and it sounds scary, it does sound scary.”
De Blasio said the first 535 hires for the city's coronavirus contact tracing initiative are being trained using the Johns Hopkins University training program sponsored by Bloomberg Philanthropies, with the goal of having 2,500 contact tracers in place by early June.
Additionally, some 1,200 hotel rooms are being readied for people infected with the virus to self-isolate away from their families, de Blasio said.
Twelve new coronavirus testing sites will open in the coming weeks, the mayor said. He said about 14,000 coronavirus tests are conducted daily in the city now, and that he hopes to be able to test 50,000 a day within a few months.
———
OTHER CORONAVIRUS DEVELOPMENTS
- The shutdown on Broadway has been extended again — until at least early September. Although an exact date for performances to resume has yet to be determined, Broadway producers are now offering refunds and exchanges for tickets purchased for shows through Sept. 6.
- Two New England hospital systems tried the latest twist in internet matchmaking: online swap meets. As the coronavirus pandemic stretches on, online platforms have popped up to match hospitals that need masks, gowns, ventilators and even doctors with those that have extras.
- Even as President Donald Trump urges getting people back to work and reopening the economy, an Associated Press analysis shows thousands of people are getting sick from COVID-19 on the job.
- One is a Roman Catholic church in Queens; the other, a Lutheran church in Manhattan. But the COVID-19 pandemic has united the two Hispanic congregations in grief. Between them, they have lost more than 100 members to the coronavirus, and because of lockdown rules, they lack even the ability to mourn together in person.
———
Hill and Villeneuve contributed from Albany, N.Y.
