Shutdown Extended to May 15 in New York
By Chava Gourarie April 16, 2020 1:37 pm
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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has extended New York State’s shutdown for another month, he said in his daily press briefing on Thursday.
The PAUSE rules, as they’re called in New York, which mandate social distancing and the closure of nonessential businesses will remain in effect until May 15, he said.
“We must stay the course,” Cuomo said in a tweet shortly after.
The May 15 cutoff is past the federal government’s stay-at-home mandate, which currently expires on May 1, and President Donald Trump is expected to discuss the timeline for reopening of the economy later this afternoon.
Cuomo also ordered New Yorkers to wear masks when out of their homes, particularly if they’re unable to remain six feet apart, including on public transportation or during rideshare or taxi rides.
The governor also discussed the road to reopening the economy now that the rate of infections is going down. “How do we unpause New York?” he said. “First, do no harm. Don’t let that infection rate go up.”
He said it would be a phased return, and that private businesses would need to take a role: “There’s no light switch,” he said. “It’s not, all businesses go back tomorrow.”
Business categories will be evaluated on how essential they are, and how much of a risk they pose, before deciding whether they should open, Cuomo said, and that it would all be done in coordination with other states in the region.
“The private sector now has to think about what they do and how they do it, and how they can do it differently in this new normal,” Cuomo said. “Reimagine your workplace.”
