With the surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations due to the viral infection, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced new restrictions on bars, restaurants, gyms and residential gatherings in the state.
Coumo ordered that from Friday, bars, restaurants and gyms or fitness centers, as well as any State Liquor Authority-licensed establishment, will be required to close from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Restaurants will still be allowed to provide curbside, food-only pick-up or delivery after 10 p.m., but will not be permitted to serve alcohol to-go. The State Liquor Authority will issue further guidance for licensees regarding what sales are continued to be permitted.
The Governor also announced that indoor and outdoor gatherings at private residences will be limited to 10 people. The restriction comes due to the recent prevalence of COVID spread resulting from small indoor gatherings including Halloween parties. These gatherings have become a major cause of cluster activity across the state.
Similar restrictions were implemented in neighboring states also including Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
The Governor said it has been found on contact tracing that the cases are coming mainly from establishments where alcohol is served - gyms, and indoor gatherings at private homes. "The reason we have been successful in reducing the spread in New York is we have been a step ahead of COVID. You know where it's going; stop it before it gets there. And you know where it's going by following the science. This is the calibration that we've talked about: increase economic activity, watch the positivity rate - if the positivity rate starts to go up, back off on the economic activity. It was never binary -- economic activity or public health -- it was always both," Cuomo said in a statement.
The Governor took these actions amid a widespread increase in cases throughout the nation, and an increase in New York, which was expected moving into the fall and winter seasons.
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