Gov. Cuomo good morning. A pleasure to be with you. Everyone knows the doctors, the budget director. Today is day 62. Feels like just yesterday. Before we look at the numbers, i want people to recall the context of these numbers and remember what we have accomplished. We were faced with the situation where the infection rate numbers were going straight up. That was only 30 days ago that we saw the number of cases, the number of people coming to hospitals, everything was going straight up. That number would have just continued to go straight up. And that is why all the projections, national projections, state projections, local projections turned out to be incorrect. Excuse me. Because they were all believing that that line was going to continue to keep going up. When happened is, new yorkers, americans, changed reality. Literally changed reality. They literally changed the path of the virus spread and reversed the spread, and that is what the closedown procedures did. That is what the masks have done. That is what the social distancing has done. And new yorkers and all across this country, you saw that number change from that upward trajectory to the downward trajectory. That shift in the trajectory reduced by about 100,000 the number of new yorkers who would have been hospitalized. 100,000 hospitalized. To be hospitalized, you have to be seriously ill. A portion of those 100,000 would have passed away. So all of this inconvenience, all this turmoil, for what . To keep 100,000 people out of hospitals. That is for what. And the 100,000 people in hospitals would have overwhelmed the hospital system, it would have been chaotic, where italy was, and a number of those hundred thousands would have died. So remember that context. And not just for the retrospective, but for the prospective. Our past actions changed the past trajectory. Our present actions will determine the future trajectory. It is not clear. It is cause and effect. You tell me what we do today, i will tell you the number of people sick tomorrow. So every day we get up, every day everyone says, oh, my gosh, i have to do this again. Yes, but what you do today is going to determine the number of sick tomorrow. And new yorkers have continued to do what they have to do, and you see that number of hospitalizations dropping. And that is all good news, and that is a credit to the community and the social conscience and responsibility of new yorkers. The question now is, as we are on the decline, how fast is the decline, and how low will the number actually wind up . Right now, we are at about 1000 new cases per day, in the 900s, 954, 973, and day before that, it was 1076. That looks like the number is flattening and plateauing at about 900 to 1000 cases, three days to five days, between 900 and 1100. That is still too high a number of new cases to have every day. It is not where we were. It is a lot better than where we were, for sure, but 1000 new cases every day is still a very high infection rate. It is still a burden on the hospital system, so we now want to take it to the next level. Lets drill down on those 1000 new cases. Where are they coming from . Why is the infection rate continuing . Who is getting infected . And lets get more targeted in our response, right . We are fighting this statewide, but you have to wage the battle and wage the war on many fronts, the statewide battle, now that we have it basically stabilized and on the decline, the enemy is on the run, the virus is reducing, lets get more refined and targeted. And i am going to be speaking with the hospitals this afternoon and say we want to get more specific information on those new cases that are coming in the door. Where are they coming from . Who are they . To see if we can come up with a more specific target. If you look at the past few days where the cases have been coming from, this is a threeday what they call rolling average, but 17 from manhattan, much of it correlates to population, but much of it also correlates with downstate new york. 17 manhattan, 17 kings, 12 bronx, 11 queens, 10 nassau, 7 westchester suffix, so it is the downstate region, and upstate in neary county. So it gives you a snapshot of where the cases are coming from, but we need more specific information to have a specific battle plan. Literally, where do the new cases come from . Are they essential workers . Are they people staying home and getting infected by a Family Member . Or, are they essential workers who are still traveling and possibly getting infected at work . Where do they work . How do they commute . Is this a question of getting infected on Public Transportation . We Just Announced new subway and bus protocols. Where in the state are these being transferred from a nursing home . What is their sex, age, Previous Health status and demographics . Lets get more specific information from the hospitals to see if we can come up with a strategy more tailored to the reduction of these 1000 cases per day. The number of deaths, 289, lower than it has been, but still tragic and terrible, and all the good numbers, the good news for me, every day, this number just wipes that all away. We have announced a statewide policy for our schools. We did it last march 18. We said we were going to close schools all across the state k12 and Higher Education schools, we waived what was called the 180 day requirement, which is a state regulation schools had to have 180 days of teaching. Schools then transferred to Distance Learning programs, Meal Delivery services, child care options for essential workers. That has actually worked out well, not perfectly. We had to do it in a rush, but there are lessons we can learn here that could change teaching Going Forward and teaching in these types of situations Going Forward, but it did work. Basically, it functioned well, and teachers did a phenomenal job stepping up to do this. It was a hardship on everyone, but we made the best of the situation. Colleges and universities were also moved to Distance Learning. Campuses were closed, unless a student really needed housing. Schools, obviously, by definition, have higher density, have transportation issues, kids getting on buses. We did not have the Protection Measures to put in place. You have 700 Public School districts, 4800 schools in this state, and then you have 1800 private schools, 89 suny and cuny campuses, 100 private campuses for a total of 4. 2 million students. The decisions on the Education System are obviously critically important. We must protect our children. Every parent and citizen feels that. We must protect our students and educators. Given the circumstances we are in and the precautions that would have to be put in place to come up with a plan to reopen schools with all those new protocols, how do you operate a school thats socially distanced without masks, without a Transportation System with a lower number of students on it, how would you get that plan up and running . We dont think it is possible to do that in a way that would keep our children, students, and educators safe, so we are going to have the schools remain closed for the rest of the year. We will continue the Distance Learning programs. Schools have asked about Summer School and whether we will have attendance in schools for Summer Schools. That decision will be made by the end of the month. Again, nobody can predict what the situation is going to be three weeks or four weeks from now, so we are trying to stage decisions at intervals that give us the information but also enough time for people to make preparations they need to make, so any decisions on Summer School will be made by the end of the month. In the meantime, meal programs will continue and Child Care Services for essential workers will continue. We want schools to start developing a plan to reopen, and the plan has to have protocols in place that incorporate everything that we are now doing in society and everything that we learned. We are going to be asking businesses to come up with plans that safeguard workers. When we reopen, we need schools to come up with plans, also, that bring the precautions into the schoolroom. That is also for colleges and the state will approve those plans. Related issues that we need to discuss and Pay Attention to, this covid crisis has caused significant disruption and many unintended consequences, and ancillary issues that have developed, and one of them is when you have people who are put in this situation immediately with no notice, it has caused Serious Mental Health issues. You have anxiety, depression, insomnia, loneliness, that feeling of isolation. We are seeing the use of drugs and Alcohol Consumption go up. This is a chronic problem. If you are feeling these issues, you are not alone. As a matter of fact, half of all americans have said that their Mental Health has been negatively impacted. Dont underestimate the stress of the situation, and it happens on a lot of levels. Three out of four say that their sleep has been affected. You do not know where your next paycheck is coming from. You do not know if your job is going to exist. You are at work one day, and then next day, they say everything is closed, stay in the house. You are in that house, in a confined situation, or in an apartment and in a confined situation, and you cannot get out. It is difficult for emotional support. We have a hotline set up. People should not be shy in any way or have any second thoughts about calling for help. It is a pervasive problem, and people should make a call and get the help if they need the help. We also see, in line with what we are talking about, a dramatic increase in the incidence of Domestic Violence. There was a 15 increase in march. A 30 increase in april. March is when this started, 15 . April, 30 . That is a frightening rate and level of increase. Again, new yorkers in need, we have a Domestic Violence helpline. 8449972121. You can call, just discuss the issue. You do not have to give your identity or say where you live, but people who need help should reach out. There is no shame in reaching out and saying i need help. This is a national epidemic. It is a statewide epidemic. Ask for help, and we are here to help. We are especially concerned about these issues for frontline workers. I mean, just think about what the frontline workers are going through. Think about what the Health Care Workers are going through. They are working extended hours. They are seeing a large number of people die. Theyre working in frightening situations. They are worried about their own health. They are worried if they get infected, they then have to go home, worry if they are infected and bringing that infection home. So this is a terribly, stressful, difficult time, especially for the frontline workers, and we want them to know that we not only appreciate what they are doing, but we are there to support them, right . Saying thank you is nice. Acting in gratitude is even nicer. We have a special emotional support hotline for our essential workers. And we are also going to direct all insurers to waive any costsharing copay deductibles for Mental Health services for essential workers, which means the Mental Health services will be free for frontline workers. And they will be at no cost. Too many people, too many families have said to me, i would go for services, but i do not want to pay the cost. I cannot afford it. I do not want to take that money from my family. That is gone. There is no cost to get Mental Health services. So just wipe that reason away, and get the help that you need. It is even in the best interest of your family. Last point, personal opinion, who said when life knocks you on your rear, learn, grow up, and get back up. Was it a. J. Parkinson . It was me. Nobody ever said that, it was me. When life knocks you on your rear, learn, grow, and get back up. This has been a difficult situation for everyone, but when life knocks you on your rear, learn and grow, and we will collectively learn and grow. We are going to learn many difficult lessons from this situation. We are going to learn about Public Health threats we never saw before. We never anticipated. We never actualized. Everyone talked about global pandemics in that possibility, but until it happens, people do not really get it. Our hospital system, how it works in an emergency, how teleeducation works, how telemedicine works, how to keep society functioning during an emergency, how you communicate to people the dangers of a situation without panicking people because you still need essential workers to come out and do their job. You do not want to panic people where they say, i am not leaving the house, but you need to communicate the facts so people act responsibly. How do you do that in a short period of time . What do you do about Public Transportation . Learn the whole lesson with the downstate Transportation System. There will be a lot to learn from this, which we will learn, and we will be the better for. I believe that. That is part of life. In the meantime, we have to go day to day, and we try to make the best of a bad situation. You try to find that Silver Lining through the dark clouds. All of us try to do it in our own way. Everyone is struggling with it in their own way. And that is all across the board. In many ways, this is the great equalizer. Doesnt matter who you are, where you are, this impacts your life. Dramatically. Personally, if you work at it, maybe you can find a little Silver Lining. I am sitting there last night with my daughter, michaela, the baby, now 22, and she says to me, you know, dad, think about it, i have spent more time with you now than i will probably spend with you in the rest of my adult life. I said, wow, what does that mean . She said, think about it. I have been with you for over a month. I will not be with you for another month for the rest of my adult life, which is kind of jarring because i still think of her as my baby. You know what . That is probably right. She is 22. She is going to go off and do whatever she does, and then you see her at holidays for a few hours, maybe you steal a saturday once in a while. It reminded me of the harry chapin song the cat in the cradle, from a great man, great new yorker, too. But these are, with all the bizarreness, i have not been able to see my mother in two months, but i have my daughter probably for a longer period of time than i will probably have for the rest of her adult life. That is probably true, so you try to find the Silver Lining, you try to stay positive. We stay socially distant but spiritually connected. New yorkers have been so supportive of each other. You can feel it. There is a spirit of community and mutuality. People are there to help one another. People understand everybody is stressed. You look at the way people have complied with these rules, as annoying as they are, masks, six feet this. That is out of respect for another. I love the metaphor of the mask. The mask does not protect me. I wear the mask to protect you. What a beautiful sign of caring, of mutuality. I wear a mask to protect you. That is the spirit, even in this terrible time of difficulty. Yes, you can be socially distanced, but you can be spiritually connected and close in certain ways you have never been before. I believe that is where we are. Because we are new york tough. Which means tough, smart, united, disciplined and loving. Questions . What about submitting reopening plans . If school start to reopen as early as fall, possibly sooner, we are hearing that in in new york city the teachers are looking at Remote Learning possibly in the fall . We are wondering about the timeline and what could happen at the earliest . Gov. Cuomo there will be no opening of any school in the state for the remainder of the academic calendar year. We have to decide on Summer School. That decision will be made by the end of may. There is no decision on the fall, because the fall is a long time away. When do they have to submit plans by . Gov. Cuomo it depends on when they will open. They should start preparing their plans now, because this will be a real exercise. We are talking about companiescturing socially distanced, Construction Companies socially distanced. How does a school socially distance . This is a bizarre set up, right . Look at this room. How do you run a school like this . How many more rooms would you need to do this . How many more buses do you need to socially distance . How about a cafeteria . There is a whole set of questions. How about a dorm room . They should start working on those plans now. Just a followup. Do you think that teachers can realistically do this . Kids are kids. They are going to want to run around and be together. Gov. Cuomo thats a good question. Talking to educators across the state, you can come up with a plan. Thats very hard. You talk about spatial requirements. If you require this in a classroom, how many classes do you need . Then theres the question of k12, and how do i get students not to socially distant . Ce . We are going to err on the side of caution. For Summer School, you would need to see my opinion, a drop or stabilization of the infection rate for a time, because kids are going to be kids. I think you are right. Schools are going to lose money. How are they going to manage all of this . They dont even have the money for this. Gov. Cuomo you couldnt get them all classrooms anyway. You couldnt build more classrooms in a way that would have any difference for Su