GOVERNOR CUOMO CALLS FOR PREBOARDING COVID TESTING ON ALL UK ORIGINATING FLIGHTS INTO NEW YORK. CALLS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT “GROSSLY NEGLIGENT.”

WPCNR ALBANY ROUNDS. From WHEC-TV ROCHESTER. December 20, 2020:

WHEC-TV Rochester coverage of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s telephone news conference day reports Governor Cuomo wants to travelers on aircraft traveling to the New York area from Great Britain should be covid tested.

Currently the station reports travelers from the UK are not required to take a Covid test before boarding a plane to the US.

Jennifer Lewke of WHEC-TV quoted Governor Cuomo as saying “right now this variant is getting on a plane and coming to JFK.”

“How many times in life do you have to make the same mistake before you learn?” The federal government is being grossly negligent just like the spring. All it takes is one person.

“We have done absolutely nothing.To me, this is reprehensible.”

The variant is spreading rapidly through England and parts of the UK, is supposedly 70% more transmissible.

Dr. Deborah Birx Coronavirus Response Coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force said on News 12 on the 10:30 PM newscast said “I do not believe it (the new strain) is more deadly, or affects the vaccine. ”

At least six European nations — the Netherlands, France, Austria, Belgium, Italy and Germany — have already shut down or are about to stop all U.K. flights.

As many as 120 countries — but not the U.S. — require a negative COVID test for travelers before they leave the U.K. 

Foreign nationals are currently banned from flying into the U.S. if they’ve been in any of several European and other countries in the past 14 days. But American citizens are free to fly back and forth. There are currently six daily flights from the U.K. to New York, Cuomo noted.

Britain this week instituted stiff new coronavirus restrictions for England, with particularly stringent limits in the South-East, East and in London, where households are prohibited from mixing even over Christmas.

The government announced the frightening rates of transmission of the new strain as cases burgeoned in southern and eastern regions of England. The strain was first detected in September, but its rates of transmission were reported last week.

Cuomo said a new virus variant discovered in the U.K. has led to at least 120 countries either banning travelers or requiring they get tested before boarding a plane to NY. Right now the New York Port Authority does not have the jurisdiction to do the tests.

Governor Cuomo used the call to remind reporters on the call that the virus came to the U.S. and the New York area carried by travelers on flights from China and the Pacific in January and on flights from Europe which infected New York City rapidly in the spring.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed plans to shut down some businesses and require people to cancel their Christmas gatherings

The super virus transmission volatility was first reported by The Independent two weeks ago.

$908 Billion in Relief for Struggling Americans, Businesses, Special Interests, from Washington. No Relief for States’ Loss of Revenues. Details Sketchy. STIMULUS PAYMENTS CONTINUE BUT CUT IN HALF. END IN MARCH.

WPCNR WASHINGTON WIRE. From The Associated Press. December 20, 2020:

The Associated Press reported late Sunday evening that congress agreed to enact a $300 “bonus jobless benefit” per week lasting through March.

There will be new round of 11 weeks of a $600 direct stimulus payment to most Americans and a new round of subsidies for hard-hit businesses and money for schools, health care providers and renters facing eviction, no details provided yet.

There was no relief for states income losses due to coronavirus and economic tax and revenue losses as many governors, including Governor Andrew M. Cuomo have called on Washington and their representatives in congress to deliver for 10 months.

Congressional leaders Senator Charles Schumer and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said this bill was “just the first step” and the states’ economic needs would be addressed later.

The $300 per week bonus jobless benefit was one half the supplemental federal unemployment benefit provided under the $1.8 billion CARES Act last March and would be limited to 11 weeks instead of 16 weeks.

The additional direct $600 stimulus payment to most people would also be half the previous $1,200 March payment, contingent on lower payments after $75,000 in income

“We put our heads down and worked around the clock for nearly a month to produce a bipartisan, bicameral bill to address the emergency needs of our country,” the bipartisan group of about a dozen lawmakers said in a statement. “Our consensus bill was the foundation of this final package.”

The sustaining of aid to unemployed Americans is part of the Government appropriations bill, scheduled to be voted on Monday in both houses.

There is $284 Billion agreed to for the Paycheck Protection Program,providing more Paycheck Protection Program grants (with no details provided yet) to “hard hit businesses,” as the AP called them. There were also grants for low-income and minority communities, no details.

These “Benies” include $25 billion in rental assistance (no details yet), $15 billion for theaters and other live venues, $82 billion for local schools, colleges and universities, and $10 billion for child care.

The AP said a $1.4 Billion payment was likely to provide a last $1.4 billion payment for the U.S.-Mexico border wall “as a condition of winning President Donald Trump’s approving the Apropriations Bill that funds the U.S. through next September.

There’s more:

  • $10 billion for 46 Army Corps of Engineers flood control, environmental and coastal protection projects.
  • Extension expiring tax breaks for craft brewers wineries and distillersAnother addition would extend a batch of soon-to-expire tax breaks, including one for craft brewers, wineries and distillers.

  • Clean energy provisions
  • $7 billion to increase access to broadband,
  • $4 billion to help other nations vaccinate their people.
  • $14 billion for transit systems, Amtrak and airports.
  • $22 Billion more to help states and localities with COVID-19
  • Relief for persons with sky high medical expenses, which the AP attributed to health care providers drop out of insurance networks.

“We put our heads down and worked around the clock for nearly a month to produce a bipartisan, bicameral bill to address the emergency needs of our country,” the bipartisan group of about a dozen lawmakers said in a statement. “Our consensus bill was the foundation of this final package.”

SATURDAY NEW CORONAVIRUS CASES IN WESTCHESTER REPORTED: 535. TOTAL RISE IN NEW COVID CASES IN 19 DAYS SINCE DEC 1: 22,246, AVERAGING 1,170 NEW WITH COVID A DAY WESTCHESTER INFECTION RATE 6.3%.

The Saturday Westchester New Cases.
The Friday new cases in Westchester County
The Thursday New Westchester Cases
Mid Hudson region NYC and Long Island in growing spread.

WPCNR CORONA VIRUS REPORT. Compiled from the Workbook NY State Tracker. December 20, 2020:

The number of Westchester persons testing positive for corona virus on Saturday saw the infection rate rise to 6.3% of 8,495 persons tested. A total of 535 Westchester persons were found to be positive, raising the number of persons with Covid to 22,246 –all newly infected in the last 19 days.

With vaccinations of the new Pfizer vaccines starting among medical workers in the last week and a second vaccine due to arrive in the next two days, the vaccination campaign cannot ramp up soon enough.

In the last 7 days the infection rate (number of persons tested found positive with the virus, has averaged just shy of 6% (5.98), and new cases have averaged 586 persons a day since last Sunday (Dec. 13). This average the previous 7 Days (Dec. 5 to Dec. 13) was 579 new tested positive persons a day. The spread of the virus is not slowing.

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