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Cuomo: Airline Passengers Bound For NY Should Be Tested For COVID

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaking June 5, 2020.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/governorandrewcuomo/49974120471/

Governor Andrew Cuomo says some New York hospitals have started testing COVID-19 positive patients for the presence of a mutated form of the virus discovered in the United Kingdom, leading to a shutdown in that country.  

All three airlines that fly from the UK to New York have now agreed to test passengers for the virus before they board the planes.Governor Andrew Cuomo says some New York hospitals have started testing COVID-19 positive patients for the presence of a mutated form of the virus discovered in the United Kingdom, leading to a shutdown in that country.

But Cuomo eased off on his call to halt planes from Great Britain to New York City, after he says he heard the federal government’s infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci say that he thinks a travel ban is premature. Fauci, who spoke on the PBS Newshour, did say that he, like Cuomo, suspects the mutated form of the virus might already be present in the U.S.

Cuomo upped his request for more testing of airline passengers, saying those boarding planes from any country to New York should undergo a COVID test.

“The UK variant is in the UK, yeah, but within days it gets on a plane and it’s now global,” Cuomo said.  

The governor says several hospitals in the state have begun the testing for the new strain of the virus, and so far 4,000 samples show no evidence of it.

Karen DeWitt is Capitol Bureau chief for New York State Public Radio, a network of public radio stations in New York state. She has covered state government and politics for the network since 1990.
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