New York State Death Toll Surpasses 10,000... Formation of Economic Reopening Council

New York COVID-19 Deaths Drop to 600s After a Week
Governor Cuomo: "If We Respond Smartly, the Worst Is Over"
Six States Including New York Agree to Coordinate Economic Reopening
Trump: "Economic Reopening Is My Authority"

Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York State
Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The number of deaths from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New York State, USA, has surpassed 10,000, but a task force to discuss the reopening of the economy near New York has been formed.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced at a press conference on the 13th (local time) that the number of COVID-19 deaths in New York State increased by 671 from the previous day, reaching 10,056. It was encouraging that the daily increase in deaths, which had been in the 700s, dropped to the 600s.

Governor Cuomo described the death toll surpassing 10,000 as "terrible news," calling it "a terrible level of pain, sorrow, and grief."

However, Governor Cuomo emphasized the slowdown in the number of new hospitalizations, total hospitalizations, and intensive care patients, evaluating that "the (infection) curve is continuing to flatten," and stressed, "If we respond smartly, I believe the worst is over."

On the same day, governors of six states in the U.S. East Coast, including New York, agreed to form a working group to discuss plans for easing and lifting various restrictions. The states involved are New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.

These states, which are experiencing the most severe outbreak in the U.S., have thus laid the groundwork to voice their own opinions on economic reopening.

However, the governors took a cautious stance regarding the specific timing of normalization. Governor Cuomo, who led the conference call, announced that he would appoint health and economic officials to the working group to decide when to begin easing restrictions.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

However, their independent actions are also expected to cause conflicts with President Donald Trump, who claims authority over the reopening of the economy at the federal level.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, when asked if the formation of the six-state working group was a "rebuke" to President Donald Trump's emphasis on economic reopening, avoided a direct answer by saying, "We are focusing on decisions based on facts and science. Economic recovery is inseparable from public health recovery."

President Trump stated on the same day, "The reopening of the economy is the president's decision. And there are many valid reasons for this."

Meanwhile, according to Johns Hopkins University as of this day, the number of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. has surpassed 570,000, with deaths reaching 23,000.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.