New York extends COVID shutdown till May 15 after 10 states form pact to 'reopen states'

As New York reported a lesser number of deaths - 606 on Thursday, New York governor Andrew Cuomo extended the lockdown till May 15. He added that the state will decide when to reopen in a phased manner based on how the rate of infection has been controlled, testing, surge, etc. This development comes a day after East Coast state governors from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts formed a regional working group to work out a reopening plan. A similar group was formed by West Coast states like California, Washington, and Oregon.

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New York extends shutdown till May 15

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Trump: 'Decision of President to open up US'

Earlier on Monday, President Trump took to Twitter to assert that 'it was the President's decision to open up the states, not the state governors'. He added that his administration was working closely with the Governors and will announce a decision soon. Trump has not announced a nationwide shutdown to deal with Coronavirus and has already temporarily halted the US' funding of the World Health Organization (WHO) as it  "failed in its basic duty and it must be held accountable".

Trump and NY Guv Cuomo lock horns over 'opening up US' as New York sees 671 COVID deaths

Cuomo: 'Plan to reopen must be based on data, not politics'

On the other hand, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that the decision must be based on 'data and experts, not opinion and politics', at his daily press briefing. New York has seen 2,18,707 cases and 16,251 deaths till date. Cuomo has maintained that the state has started finally 'flattening the curve' - adding that the worst of coronavirus pandemic 'is over'.

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Trump and Coronavirus

Trump who had earlier downplayed Coronavirus's effects - terming it a 'Chinese virus', has now called it the 'worst thing to hit the US'. The USA which has overtaken China in the number of positive cases has emerged as the epicenter of the pandemic with 6,53,751 cases and 33,434 deaths. While initially, Trump claimed to have the country 'up and running by Easter', he extended its social distancing restrictions till April 30. The White House, which has forecasted over 1,00,000- 2,40,00 deaths in the US, stopped federal funding to states for testing but reversed it after facing a severe backlash.