New York coronavirus hospitalizations keep falling, shutdown extended

The number of people hospitalized for the novel coronavirus and related deaths in New York fell to their lowest levels in more than a week, adding to evidence that the hardest-hit state was controlling its spread, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday.

Cuomo also extended an order closing businesses and schools by two weeks until at least May 15 in coordination with other states in the region, and added details to mask requirements, saying New Yorkers should wear them on buses, taxis and trains.

Cuomo, who has emerged as a leading national voice on the pandemic, said the improvement in key metrics reflected social distancing efforts which had brought the state's infection rate low enough to control the outbreak.

The governor said that a total of 17,735 people were hospitalized across New York because of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus, down from 18,335 a day earlier and the lowest since April 6. Intubations and admissions to intensive care units also declined, he said.

"The good news is it means we can control the virus. We can control the spread," Cuomo told a daily briefing. "And we did not know for sure that we could do that."

But Cuomo noted that about 2,000 infected people were newly admitted to hospitals on Wednesday and that while deaths declined to 606, marking the lowest daily count in more than a week, the toll on his state was still significant.

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