A day after New York City's mayor said schools in several neighborhoods would have to close on Wednesday because of the spread of Covid-19, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the schools to close one day earlier.
The New York Times reports that Cuomo announced Monday that he was accelerating the mayor’s plan to close schools in those newly hard-hit areas,
Cuomo defended his decision to close schools in nine ZIP codes in New York City by saying that testing was insufficient to protect children in those schools.
“I’ll never let a New Yorker send a child to a school that I wouldn’t send my child to,” he said.
The governor says he will meet with religious leaders in the hot spots, many of which are home to large communities of Orthodox Jews, who officials say have openly flouted mask rules and limits on mass gatherings.
Earlier:
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has proposed temporarily closing all schools and nonessential businesses in nine ZIP codes that have seen Covid-19 test positivity rates above 3% for at least seven consecutive days.
CNN reports that the plan -- which requires state approval -- includes the closure of all nonessential businesses, private and public schools and daycares beginning Wednesday.
Businesses and schools would be allowed to reopen after two weeks if the ZIP codes have seen seven consecutive days of positivity rates below 3%. If not, they would be closed for at least four weeks.
The mayor's proposal signals a major step back for the city's reopening effort, coming just days after public schools reopened for in-person classes, though the mayor stressed his proposal was not a response to the spread of the virus in schools.
"What has become clear is that there are a number of neighborhoods now that have continued to have a high level of coronavirus positivity and that requires stronger action than we've had to take for many months," de Blasio says.
Additionally, the mayor says lesser restrictions would be put in place in 11 ZIP codes that officials are "concerned" about.
In those areas, indoor dining, gyms and pools would close if the plan is approved by Cuomo's office, but schools could remain open.
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