Governor Cuomo Addresses Bed Capacity, Staffing Shortages, and Availability of Supplies
Today (April 2nd), Governor Cuomo announced at his COVID-19 press conference that all hospitals have increased their bed capacity by 50% as per the State’s recent mandate, and construction has begun on two additional temporary hospitals at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal and the Staten Island Psychiatric Center, both expected to be completed next week. On staffing shortages, 21,000 health care professionals from out of state have volunteered to work in New York State to address the outbreak. In total, 85,000 volunteers are being deployed to hospitals and the State is working to shift staffing resources from upstate to downstate as needed.
As a result, equipment and supply shortage remain the biggest concern for the State. Hospitals have been asked to complete a daily survey on their current inventory of gowns, gloves, masks, and ventilators, and to contribute their supply to a central stockpile that will be distributed to hospitals based on need and availability. The Governor also announced that the State continues to look for supplies to purchase, and manufacturers/producers who would like to contribute can call 212-803-3100 or email Covid19supplies@esd.gov. To address ventilator shortages, the State is:
- Continuing to cancel or postpone elective surgeries;
- Using anesthesia machine ventilators;
- “Splitting” ventilator tubes;
- Converting and utilizing BiPAP ventilators (non-invasive); and
- Looking to acquire more ventilators.
New York State of Health Special Enrollment Period Extended
In order to ensure that more individuals have health coverage during the COVID-19 emergency, Governor Cuomo announced that the special enrollment period during which uninsured New Yorkers may enroll in health insurance will be extended for an additional 30 days until May 15th. Uninsured individuals may enroll in coverage through the NYSOH marketplace or directly through insurers.
New York State Department of Health Provider Weekly Update
Today, the New York State Department of Health hosted its weekly health care provider update (available for viewing here). During the webinar, DOH provided an epidemiological overview of current cases in New York State, discussed updated guidance on specimen collection/testing and quarantine/isolation procedures, and announced a forthcoming webinar to discuss the recently released Medicaid Telehealth FAQ. The webinar also discussed the State’s surge health care workforce, and noted that their call center is continuing to reach out to volunteers who have signed up to provide both COVID-19 and general medical services. The State is also exploring using the surge workforce via telehealth/telephone if needed in cases of staff shortages.
The DOH weekly update webinars are held every Thursday from 1pm-2pm, and posted on the DOH COVID-19 Health Care Provider website here.