Gov. Cuomo Says Hospitalizations Outpacing Predicted Number So Far: ‘That’s a Challenge’

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Janet Ybarra
Democrat
Former Washington Journalist
Contributor on The Bipartisan Press

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Projections for the coming effects of the ongoing novel coronavirus and COVID-19 pandemic in New York state appear to outpace capacity in the Empire State, and that will present “a challenge,” according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D).

In the United States, 68,802 have been reported sickened, with 1,037 reported deaths, according to the most recent figures.

New York state alone has the largest number of cases in the nation.

“The projection models are important because they are projecting the possible trajectory and projecting the possible need. So we’re planning for a need. The projection models do that. The projection models are just that. They are models of projections. They’re not necessarily definitive, but it’s the only device that we have to plan. Follow the data, follow the data, follow the data. The actual hospitalizations have moved at a higher rate than the projected models, than all of the projected models. So that was obviously concerning,” Cuomo said. “Because that higher infection rate means faster, higher capacity on the hospitals, and that’s the critical point for us, is the number of people going into hospitals.

“Right now, what we’re looking at is about 140,000 cases coming into the hospitals. The hospital capacity is 53,000 beds. That’s a problem. We’re looking at about 40,000 ICU cases coming into the hospitals. We have about 3,000 ICU beds. That’s a challenge. What is an ICU bed for these purposes? Basically, a bed with a ventilator. The ventilator is the most critical piece of equipment for an intensive care unit bed. Because this is a respiratory illness and people need more ventilation than usual.

“What do we want to do? Reduce the number of cases coming into the hospitals, slow the number of cases coming into the hospitals. That’s what Dr. Fauci’s talking about on TV every day,” Cuomo added, referring to Dr Anthony Fauci, a famed immunologist a member of the federal coronavirus task force. “Flatten the curve, flatten the curve, flatten the curve.”