Jul 29, 2020
Today New York took another step to pay forward the kindness that our fellow Americans showed when we were experiencing the worst of the pandemic here. In response to Florida's current surge in COVID cases, New York sent the City of St. Petersburg thousands of pieces of PPE along with teams to set up a new testing site.
The testing site is located at Pinellas Community Church and will provide up to 500 tests per day. St. Pete residents can make an appointment to get tested by calling 833-697-4352. New York will continue to offer our assistance to states and cities in need — just as others helped us when we needed it most.
Here's what else you need to know tonight:
1. The men's U.S. Open Championship will be held at Winged Food Golf Club in Mamaroneck from Sept. 14-20 without fans. The USGA will put protocols in place to protect players and staff, including rigorous procedures for testing, cleaning, use of face coverings and social distancing.
2. DMV-licensed driving schools can now conduct Pre-Licensing Courses online. Due to the COVID-19 public health crisis, driving schools across the state have been unable to offer the Pre-Licensing Course — also known as the five-hour course — to students. In order to safely meet the demand for driver training while adhering to social distancing guidelines, the DMV has issued guidance to driving schools allowing them to conduct the driver's ed courses using technology such as Zoom and WebEx.
3. The number of total hospitalizations fell slightly. Yesterday, there were 619 total hospitalizations. The State conducted 62,276 tests, of which 715, or 1.14%, were positive. Sadly, we lost 5 New Yorkers to the virus.
4. Today, I issued a letter to New York's Congressional Delegation calling on them to ensure $500 billion in unrestricted state aid is included in any Senate passed relief package. States need federal assistance to help fight against this virus and I urge our representatives in Washington to make sure that states receive this critical funding. Read my letter here.
5. This week is Census Week. It's important that every New Yorker responds to the Census and tomorrow, July 30th, is "Friends and Family Day." I urge you to not only fill out the Census yourself (you can do it online), but to text or call 10 people and remind them to complete the Census too. Let's make sure every New Yorker is counted.
Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": Albany has its very own Spider-Man, but it's not Peter Parker — it's Ben Bohl, a Spider-Man impersonator from Schenectady. Bohl has been dressing up as the web slinger since he was a child, and would make appearances at children's birthday parties as a teenager. To stay active during the pandemic, he started doing tricks on street signs throughout the county.
If you were forwarded this email, you can subscribe to New York State's Coronavirus Updates