At his daily briefing, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo reported the number of coronavirus patients in I.C.U.’s fell for the first time since the outbreak of the crisis.
The New York Times writes: “The drop was small — 17 people, to 4,908, from 4,925 yesterday. But it provides an important data point indicating that the curve of infection is flattening, the governor said. The vast majority of those patients are on ventilators.“
The number of deaths continues to be mind-numbing. On Thursday, New York reported 777 deaths due to COVID-19. The state total is now 7,844.
“We continue to lose a tremendous number of lives,” Mr. Cuomo said on Friday. “As someone who searches for solace in all this grief, the leveling off in lives lost is a somewhat hopeful sign.”
CBS News reports: “The three-day average of hospitalizations has seen a dramatic decline in numbers, Cuomo said, adding that the change in ICU admissions is a negative number for the first time since the pandemic started. He said the curve the state is seeing is much lower than what was projected.“
“All of this data suggests we are flattening the curve so far. So far, our efforts are working, they’re working better than anyone projected they would work, [and] that’s because people are complying with them.” Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY)
The governor added that in order for life to return to some semblance of normal, testing will be key. He said millions of tests will be needed if the country’s economy is to be opened safely and effectively.
President Trump said yesterday at the White House that widespread testing “isn’t necessary.”
