Cuomo orders nonessential workers in New York to stay home

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday mandated that all nonessential workers across the state stay home to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

Cuomo, at a press conference, added the executive order will not apply to those who work in essential services, including people who work in pharmacies and grocery stores. 

#BREAKING: New York will implement a 90-day moratorium on evictions for residential and commercial tenants.

We will do all we can to help those financially suffering because of the #COVID19 pandemic.

— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) March 20, 2020

The new, more restrictive rules come as the total number of cases in New York has climbed well above 7,000.

Cuomo acknowledged that some in government oppose the tougher rules and said he would accept all responsibility and blame for the decision.

The governor also released the Policies Assure Uniform Safety for Everyone, or PAUSE, in an effort to “close the valve.” The new, stringent measures are an effort to prevent both low- and high-risk populations in the state from contracting the disease and to limit the amount of person-to-person contact significantly and are set to take effect on Sunday. 

Among the announced measures, the governor required that those over the age of 70 and those with compromised immune systems remain indoors at all times. People in these groups should only venture out for solitary exercise, Cuomo said, while adding that “all vulnerable persons should wear a mask in the company of others.” 

The governor advised as well that people in these groups pre-screen visitors by taking their temperature, while warning them not to “visit households with multiple people.” 

Those who are not in the at-risk demographic are mandated to avoid non-essential gatherings of “any size for any reason”, Cuomo said, as he warned against holding parties and other social events. Any concentration of individuals outside their home will be limited to those who are gathering to perform essential work functions. 

New reporting on the coronavirus from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown that other groups beyond vulnerable populations are also at risk of contracting the virus, including young people. 

On Friday, Cuomo warned that there are some parts of New York City that don’t appear to be taking the threat of the virus seriously, saying that some neighborhoods appear to be going on with “life as usual.” 

“This is not life as usual,” he said. 

Other states and cities with dense populations have taken increasingly drastic measures amid the COVID-19 outbreak. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced late Thursday that the state’s 40 million inhabitants need to stay home to prevent the coronavirus from proliferating exponentially