UPDATE: Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced later Wednesday that regions in the second phase of the state’s reopening plan will be allowed to open restaurants for outdoor dining. That includes every region of the state except New York City, Long Island, and the Mid-Hudson region.
Hospitalizations from COVID-19 in New York have now dipped below 3,000 for the first time since the fourth week of March, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday, with only 135 people admitted to the hospital with the disease Tuesday, the latest data available.
The number of deaths have also reached a new all-time low since the peak of COVID-19, with 49 fatalities in New York Tuesday. That brings the total number of deaths to 24,079.
While the numbers would ideally be lower, Cuomo said they marked new progress on the disease, which was killing more than 800 people and hospitalizing more than 3,000 each day at its peak in early April.
“This was the beast that we didn't know we could beat,” Cuomo said. “But so far we have beaten it."
The total number of hospitalizations, as of Tuesday, was 2,978, a decline of 143 since Monday. The number of people intubated — patients requiring a ventilator — also reached a new all-time low since the peak, with only 638 people requiring that treatment.
New York tested an additional 61,642 people for the coronavirus Tuesday, according to data from Cuomo’s office, and only 1,045 new positive cases were identified.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday that, since the number of tests available has increased in the five boroughs, the eligibility requirements will now be dropped. That means that anyone, regardless of symptoms or work status, can get a test, de Blasio said.
“All New Yorkers are welcome to get these tests,” de Blasio said.
That comes as New York City is set to start the first phase of reopening its economy on Monday, June 8. It will be the last of the state’s 10 regions to start that process.
Western New York was the latest region to start the second phase of reopening Wednesday. The Capital Region entered the second phase Tuesday. With the exception of the Mid-Hudson region, every other region of upstate New York has already entered phase two.