/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/advancelocal/ACRMKR3GKJCFBLJGNIYDYFJZPE.JPG "Cuomo looks to the future: ‘I can’t spend 9 months with restaurants closed’")
Albany, NY – Governor Andrew Cuomo said today that he is trying to map how the state can begin to revive its Covidian economy without waiting any more months.
Cuomo said that some estimates suggest that it will take up to nine months or more before enough people are vaccinated to contain the coronavirus pandemic. But the New York economy cannot wait that long.
The pain is unsustainable.
“We cannot survive these economic downtime,” he said during a news conference in Albany. “We cannot spend nine months with the restaurants closed. We need to find a smarter way to do this. “
Cuomo said he plans to talk more about the issue in his State of the State speech after the holiday.
But he suggested that increased vaccination combined with rapid tests could help the state safely open more parts of its economy. Authorities are currently considering a proposal from Buffalo Bills to allow fans in the team’s next playoff game at home, which could serve as a model for restarting other major events.
“This is the really smart long-term vision that we should have in this state,” said Cuomo. “We cannot spend a year with the economy closed. We can not. “
He also noted that the pandemic will permanently restructure the economy. Things like calls to Zoom, working from home and worries about big meetings will endure.
New York must find its place and opportunity in this new world, Cuomo said.
“This next chapter is not about fixing a hole in the state budget or the city budget,” he said. “The next challenge for next year is how does the post-Covid world realign economies and societies?”
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