New York Gov. Cuomo: Antibody test could be critical in speeding up return to normalcy
Fox News correspondent Bryan Llenas reports.
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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday that his state will be bringing in “additional funeral directors” to deal with bodies as the coronavirus death toll there continues to escalate.
The state reported 799 new deaths since Wednesday, its highest daily number yet. A total of 7,067 New York residents have now died as a result of the coronavirus, although Cuomo says the steadily declining hospitalization rate "does suggest... we are flattening the curve.”
“It's gotten to the point frankly that we are going to bring in additional funeral directors to deal with the number of people who have passed,” Cuomo said Thursday. “If you ever told me that as governor I would have to take these actions, I couldn’t even contemplate where we are now.”
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In recent weeks, refrigerated trucks acting as temporary morgues have become fixtures outside hospitals across New York City, while funeral homes and cemeteries have been overwhelmed trying to keep pace with the death rate.
The state’s unemployment hotline also has been slammed since the outbreak began, with some of those who have lost their jobs taking to social media to complain about having to call a phone number hundreds of times to get through. More than 800,000 New York residents have filed for unemployment since March 9, officials say.
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Cuomo said Thursday that 1,000 people are now handling unemployment applications, while New York – in collaboration with Google – is launching a new online platform tonight to streamline the process.
Cuomo announced Thursday that the state is also opening up additional coronavirus testing sites primarily in African-American and Latino communities, who New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says have been disproportionately affected by the crisis.
