ALBANY, N.Y. — Gov. Kathy Hochul warned Wednesday that New Yorkers are facing a potential triple threat as rising COVID-19, flu and RSV cases ahead of the holidays strain hospital resources.
In order to help alleviate potential overcrowding and staffing issues at hospitals, Hochul hinted that she may issue an executive order that would make it easier to bring in doctors and nurses from out of state as well as transfer workers in-state to hard-hit medical facilities.
State officials will also continue to monitor bed capacity and the need for transferring patients throughout the winter months.
The state has stockpiled ventilators and coronavirus test kits that are ready to be deployed if needed. While cases have been steadily rising, most health experts expect COVID cases to skyrocket following holiday gatherings.
At a Manhattan press conference Wednesday, the governor and health officials urged state residents to take precautions and make sure they are up to date with vaccinations as hospitals report “spikes and surges” of all three ailments.
“We’re going to embrace the holidays, but not let our guard down,” Hochul said during the press conference.
Officials said that early influenza cases have already reached extraordinarily high numbers compared to recent years. The state has seen a 75% increase in positive cases since the beginning of the flu season started about eight weeks ago.
“These numbers are spiking way too early compared to historical trends. And we have 27,000 positive cases right now,” Hochul said. “I don’t see anything that tells us this is going to abate anytime soon.”
Cases of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, a common and highly contagious virus, has been hitting young children hard this year, leading to crowded emergency rooms and shortages of cold medicine at pharmacies.
Hospital higher ups across the city told the Daily News that they have seen dramatic increases in patients at pediatric emergency rooms and are already struggling with staff shortages.
Outgoing state Health Commissioner Mary Bassett said there are “simple common sense things we can do” to help stem the spread of the three ailments including hand washing, covering your cough or sneeze and staying home when sick.
Additionally, Bassett encouraged more New Yorkers to get updated COVID vaccines as only 13% of the adult population has received the most recent booster.
“The numbers are extremely worrying,” Bassett said about upticks in COVID cases and hospitalizations. “We can’t emphasize enough the importance of people getting their shots. We want people to be as protected as they can be from illness and death.”
Although no mask mandates are on the table at the moment, Hochul encouraged New Yorkers to wear a face covering to protect others in crowded settings such as stores or large gatherings.
The governor admitted that mask wearing had become a politicized issue and “people are tired of being told what to do.”
“We can’t legislate people's behavior,” she said. “People should feel free to wear masks. I want people to be aware of the settings mask wearing would be wise.”
Hochul said finding a replacement for Bassett, who is leaving her post at the end of the month to return to a previous gig at Harvard, could take some time but expressed confidence in the state’s ability to handle any health crises.
“We’re going to conduct an extensive search. These are big shoes to fill, and we’re going to make sure we find the best person to manage this,” the governor said. “We have a lot of institutional knowledge ... I feel confident that our team will be able to manage through the next few months.”
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