Cuomo Adds Two States to Travel Advisory; Non-Essential Interstate Travel Discouraged
As the COVID-19 infection rate continues to climb nationwide, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced two additional states will now be required to quarantine for two weeks upon entering New York while residents are discouraged from any interstate travel in neighboring regions.
Cuomo said on Tuesday that two states — Arizona and Maryland — have been added to New York State’s COVID-19 travel advisory list. No areas or territories have been removed from the advisory.
The list, which now includes 43 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico, requires individuals traveling to New York from areas with significant community spread of COVID-19 to quarantine for 14 days.
An area with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or an area with a 10 percent or higher positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average will be considered a hazard to New York. Some of those states include South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Delaware, Alabama, Illinois, and Tennessee.
The quarantine order has been in effect since June 25, with rule regulations also being enforced by New Jersey and Connecticut.
“We are now in a situation where 43 states meet the criteria for our travel advisory,” Cuomo said. “This is really a bizarre outcome, considering New York once had the highest infection rate.”
However, while Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania now meet the criteria for the travel advisory, they won’t be placed on the list given the interconnected nature of the region and mode of transport between each. Cuomo insisted a quarantine mandate enforced on the trio of states is not practically viable.
He stressed any non-essential travel to and from Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania should be avoided while they meet the travel advisory criteria.
“There is no practical way to quarantine New York from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut. There are just too many interchanges, interconnections, and people who live in one place and work in the other,” Cuomo said. “It would have a disastrous effect on the economy, and remember while we’re fighting this public health pandemic, we’re also fighting to open up the economy.”
As of Tuesday, hospitalizations in New York climbed to 942, up from 434 on Sunday. The infection rate is 1.3%, with 90,540 tests reported statewide and 1,201 positive results.
The state also reported 12 new deaths on Monday.
