Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now
Sign up
*Password must be at least 8 characters and contain one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one symbol.
Already have an account?
By submitting, you consent that you are at least 18 years of age and to receive information about MPR's or APMG entities' programs and offerings. The personally identifying information you provide will not be sold, shared, or used for purposes other than to communicate with you about MPR, APMG entities, and its sponsors. You may opt-out at any time clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email communication. View our Privacy Policy.
Sign in to your profile
Forgot Password?
New to MPR News?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Reset Password

Enter the username on file and we'll send you a code to reset your password.

Still require assistance or not sure what your User Name is?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Email Verification

A verification code has been emailed to

Still awaiting the code?
COVID-19
Bobby Allyn, NPR

Cuomo makes plea to medical workers nationwide: 'Please come help us in New York'

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Log inCreate a free Account

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, speaks after the arrival of the USNS Comfort, a naval hospital ship with a 1,000 bed-capacity.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, speaks after the arrival of the USNS Comfort, a naval hospital ship with a 1,000 bed-capacity.
Kathy Willens/AP

More than 1,200 people have now died of the coronavirus in New York, but the worst of the outbreak has yet to arrive, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Monday.

Cuomo said the coronavirus is overtaxing the state's health care workers. He asked for the assistance of medical volunteers from other parts of the country as the pandemic continues to devastate New York, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States.

"I am asking health care professionals across the country, if you don't have a health care crisis in your community, please come help us in New York right now," Cuomo said from a makeshift hospital at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan set to receive its first patients on Monday. "We need relief."

Cuomo said more than 66,000 people have tested positive in the state for the coronavirus, accounting for nearly half of all cases in the U.S. About 36,000 of those cases are in New York City.

"That's a lot of loss. That's a lot of pain. That's a lot of tears," Cuomo said. "That's a lot of grief that people all across this state are feeling."

A U.S. Navy hospital ship arrived in the city on Monday to help free up room in the city's hospitals to handle those who have become sick from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Both the 1,000 hospital beds on the Navy ship and the 2,500 beds at the Javits center have a similar aim, Cuomo said.

"Their function will be basically be an overflow valve for existing hospitals. They can't take COVID patients, but they can take non-COVID patients," he said.

Cuomo agreed with President Trump that the fight against the coronavirus is comparable to war.

"Then let's act that way, and let's act that way now," Cuomo said. "Let's show a commonality and a mutuality and a unity that the country hasn't seen in decades."

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.