Gov. Cuomo provides a coronavirus update during a press conference in the Red Room at the State Capitol in Albany. | AP Photo
ALBANY — New York will reopen at a different rate in different regions of the state, Gov. Andrew Cuomo confirmed Tuesday morning.
“We’re going to make reopening decisions on a regional basis based on that region’s facts and circumstances,” he said during his daily briefing. The briefing was held in Buffalo, his first time venturing west of Schenectady since the pandemic began.
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“Just like some states will reopen before other states because they have a different circumstance when it comes to Covid and their status with Covid, it’s also true across the state,” Cuomo said. “[The] North Country has a totally different situation than New York City. Central New York has a different situation. We operate as one state but we also have to understand variations, and you do want to get this economy open as soon as possible.”
Cuomo first expressed conceptual openness to the idea of regional variations on Friday. But he acknowledged that it will be logistically difficult. If, for example, barbershops in Poughkeepsie reopen before those in Bronx, there might be a rush of shaggy people from areas with high infection rates traveling even more than they would have under normal circumstances.
He provided the first taste of how this regional rollout will work by announcing that some hospitals can resume elective surgeries and treatments.
“We’re going to allow elective outpatient treatment, which means the number of beds remain available because the number of people are using those beds is still relatively minimal,” he said. “And we’re going to allow it in those hospitals and counties in the state that do not have a Covid issue.”
Cuomo said the policy will exclude hospitals in Westchester, Rockland, Erie, Albany and Dutchess Counties, as well as in New York City, where there still is “a real Covid problem.”
As far as broader reopening plans, the governor announced that Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will oversee the transition in Western New York. Former Lt. Gov. Bob Duffy will coordinate plans in the Rochester area.
A growing number of elected officials and business advocates have promoted the idea of regional variance in recent days.
“The economic impact … has taken an extraordinary toll on an already struggling Upstate economy,” Unshackle Upstate Executive Director Michael Kracker said in a statement Monday. “A one-size-fits-all strategy is simply not the best fit for Upstate New York.”
