Northeast governors to meet to coordinate on coronavirus surge

Governors of several Northeast states are planning to meet over the weekend to discuss possible coordination on combating the coronavirus as the region and the country see sharp spikes in COVID-19 cases. 

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said during a press call Friday that the planned meeting would include him and the executives of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut. 

“We believe we’re going to have to be taking additional steps and to the extent we can share information and align action we’ll do that,” Cuomo said.

The meeting comes as governors across the region look for ways to combat rising COVID-19 cases. Bars, gyms and restaurants will start closing at 10 p.m. in New York starting Friday, and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) signed an executive order this week allowing municipalities and counties to shut down nonessential businesses at 8 p.m. He’s also implemented a 10 p.m. curfew on indoor dining.

Cuomo said on the press call he will wait to gauge the effectiveness of the new safety measures before imposing any more restrictions. 

New York recorded more than 5,400 new coronavirus cases Thursday, while New Jersey tallied nearly 3,400 new cases.

The new outbreaks in the Northeast are just part of the national spike in cases. The country set a record with more than 152,000 new cases Thursday alone, the highest number of single-day diagnoses. The alarming outbreak has stressed hospital systems in several states and is expected to be exacerbated even further during the winter months when social events move to indoor settings where the virus can more easily spread.