New York state will allow mortgage payments to be waived for 90 days based on financial hardship, and suspend fees for overdrafts, credit cards, and ATMs, as a way to provide relief to consumers during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo also said Thursday that businesses, starting Friday, will be required to allow at least three-quarters of their employees to work from home.
Those actions are intended to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, or COVID-19, which had tested positive in 4,152 people in New York as of Thursday morning. The spike — up nearly 2,000 from Wednesday — is the result of a boost in testing in New York.
“Why are you seeing the numbers go up? Because we are seeing more tests,” Cuomo said. “That’s not how many people have the virus. You’re taking more tests, so you’re finding more positives.”
The new rule to waive mortgage payments for the next three months won’t reduce the overall amount of the loan, it will only delay the expense until mid-June. Banks and lenders will be required to waive the payments based on financial hardship.
Cuomo is expected to issue the order, with more details on the parameters, later Thursday, but he said it would likely apply to people who either aren't working, or are restricted to working part-time, because of the disease.
Employers who provide essential services, like grocery stores, pharmacies, and transportation, will be exempt from the new rule requiring three-quarters of their workforce to work from home. There’s a full list of essential employers in a separate order from Cuomo issued Wednesday.
Cuomo said New York state has continued to work with the Trump administration, in recent days, to identify more hospital space for individuals who contract the coronavirus. Aside from physical space, a key problem is a lack of ventilators for critical patients, he said.
There is a potential solution to that problem, Cuomo said. He suggested that the federal government invoke the Federal Defense Procurement Act to essentially order businesses to manufacture medical supplies and ventilators.
“We’re going to need protective equipment in hospitals, we’re going to need ventilators,” Cuomo said. “That is something that a state cannot do, but the federal government can do.”
Cuomo said he spoke to President Trump Wednesday night, but didn’t say whether the topic came up in their conversation.
Michaela Kennedy-Cuomo, Cuomo’s daughter, made a rare appearance at the Thursday press conference. Cuomo used her to advise that young people should take the same precautions as those more vulnerable to the disease.
Kennedy-Cuomo, Cuomo said, was scheduled to go on a trip, but cancelled the vacation to avoid contracting, and spreading, the coronavirus. He criticized other young people who’ve chosen, instead, to spend spring break in crowded areas.
“These pictures of young people on beaches … this is so unintelligent and reckless, I can’t even begin to express it,” Cuomo said.