Coronavirus on Long Island: Updates for May 5

Trump determined to reopen country despite risks                                               

President Donald Trump acknowledged Tuesday evening that more Americans will likely die of the coronavirus as the states begin reopening "but the country needs to go back to work."

In an interview with ABC News in Arizona after he toured a factory that makes protective masks, the president said ordering the country shut down amid the COVID-19 pandemic was the "biggest decision I ever had to make" but so is his call for the country to start up again.

When asked about comments on CNN from Dr. Anthony Fauci, a key member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, in which the infectious disease expert wondered aloud how many deaths the country will accept to reopen, Trump told ABC News anchor David Muir that "it's possible there will be some [deaths] because you won't be locked in an apartment or house, but at the same time we will be practicing social distancing and washing hands, but we have to get our country back."

— NEWSDAY STAFF

Bellone: COVID-19 hospitalizations up for second day in a row

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said that, for the second day in a row, the number of people hospitalized for the coronavirus has gone up.

Bellone said he was concerned about the trend — four more went in Sunday and 18 more went in Monday.

"This is not the way we wanted to come across the finish line," said Bellone, who nevertheless said he was confident the overall trend would still decline.

The CDC says a community must have at least a 14-day decline in hospitalizations to consider a possible reopening. Prior to Sunday, the trend had been downward.

He said 38,252 people in Suffolk have tested positive for the virus, including 2,563 who tested positive on the antibody test.

He said 37 people left hospitals but 23 more people died from the virus, bringing the total number of deaths to 1,296.

Bellone said first responders were tested Monday at the Suffolk Police Academy. He said 400 people were supposed to be tested but 700 were tested instead. — NEWSDAY STAFF

Nassau begins antibody testing for essential personnel

Nassau County on Tuesday began COVID-19 antibody testing for all first responders and essential personnel, County Executive Laura Curran said.

The blood-draw testing, in partnership with Northwell Health, is voluntary and by appointment only, Curran said. Up to 500 eligible employees will be tested every other workday, she said.

Among those eligible: police, medics, correction officers, deputy sheriffs, fire service personnel, other law enforcement and essential government workers from the county, its cities, towns and villages; and volunteer firefighters and volunteer EMTs.

While testing positive for antibodies doesn’t necessarily guarantee immunity to the coronavirus, Curran said doctors agree that it is likely antibodies provide some kind of immunity for a period of time.

Curran said there have been 191 coronavirus cases in the police department, 148 in the corrections department, and 270 cases in 71 fire departments throughout the county.

The testing follows what Curran called a successful dry run last week.

For more information on how to get the antibody test, call the county coronavirus hotline at 516-227-9570. — NEWSDAY STAFF

20th straight day of declining COVID-19 hospitalizations in Nassau

Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said the county experienced its 20th straight day of declining COVID-19 hospitalizations Monday, bringing the total to 1,014.

Curran said "a significant number" of those patients live outside of Nassau County.

"We draw a lot of patients from other counties to our hospitals," she said.

Curran also said that 11% of those tested in the past day were positive, but the numbers are higher at clinics in Hempstead, Freeport, Elmont and Westbury.

"We've seen a disproportionate impact in our African-American and Hispanic communities," she said at her briefing Tuesday at OEM headquarters in Bethpage.

Curran reported 26 new COVID-19 deaths in Nassau, for a total of 1,818.

A total of 37,152 in the county have tested positive for the coronavirus since the beginning of the outbreak in early March. — NEWSDAY STAFF

Cuomo: 'Time to put politics aside' after Trump's bailout comments

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Tuesday called for an end to partisanship after President Donald Trump expressed opposition to a coronavirus bailout for Democratic-run states like New York and California.

A bailout would be "not fair to the Republicans" because the states that need help are run by Democrats, Trump told the New York Post in an interview.

But Cuomo said at his daily briefing that every state, including New York, needs federal support to weather the coronavirus pandemic.

"And if you don't pass the legislation, you will never get the economy back on its feet," Cuomo said.

The governor also noted that New Yorkers pay more in federal taxes than they get back.

"We have a national crisis, outbreak, epidemic, and it’s time to put politics aside … and time to come together," Cuomo said. — NEWSDAY STAFF

Northwell down to 985 COVID-19 patients

Northwell Health on Tuesday said the number of COVID-19 patients at its Long Island hospitals has fallen to 985, representing a 25% decline from the same period last week. The decline on Long Island is on par with the health system's overall drop.

The New Hyde Park-based health system said it has 1,429 COVID-19 patients at the 19 hospitals it owns and operates throughout the region, a 26% fall from a week ago. Its biggest drop is at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, which fell 29% to 255 COVID-19 patients.

— DAVID REICH-HALE

De Blasio criticizes Trump for opposing NY bailout

Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday likened President Donald Trump to Herbert Hoover — the president who ushered in the Great Depression — after he expressed opposition to bailing out Democratic-led states like New York and California, which have been among the worst ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic.

In an interview with the New York Post, Trump said a bailout would not be "fair to the Republicans" because the states that need help are run by Democrats.

"Who cares who runs the states? The people need help! They're Americans who need help right now," de Blasio said at his daily news conference. "Do you not care about that firefighter? That EMT? That paramedic? That police officer? That health care worker? Because they live in a state run by a Democrat, or a city run by a Democrat? Does that make them less American in your view, Mr. President?"

De Blasio has said the city needs $7.4 billion to supplant the tax revenue lost from the virus' economic fallout. Without the bailout, de Blasio has said, layoffs of municipal workers are possible. — MATTHEW CHAYES