A ‘return to life as we know it’
Gov lifts most COVID-19 restrictions as state hits milestone for fi rst doses
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
Gov. Andrew Cuomo lifted most
COVID-19 restrictions Tuesday as the
state surpassed 70 percent of adults
who received at least one shot of the
vaccine.
“What New York has done is extraordinary,”
said Cuomo at a rally
to celebrate the occasion inside One
World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan
on June 15. “We can now return to
life as we know it.”
New York crossed the 70 percent
threshold Monday, federal data from
the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention show, with more than 20.7
million vaccines administered in the
state, while COVID-19 positivity rates
dropped to 0.4 percent.
The city’s positivity rate continued
to decline to 0.57 percent over a sevenday
average as of June 13, according to
the Health Department.
The state will relax its coronavirus
mandates for most commercial and social
settings effective Tuesday, such as
retail, construction, manufacturing,
gyms, movie theaters, and sports and
recreation, as Cuomo fi rst announced
last week.
The lifted limits include capacity
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3700 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, NY
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restrictions, social distancing, health
screening, cleaning and disinfection
protocols, and information gathering
for contact tracing. Businesses
can keep restrictions in place as long
as they don’t violate state and federal
laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities
Act.
Federal CDC mask requirements
will remain in effect for pre-K–12
schools, public transit, and healthcare
settings, Cuomo said.
The state public buildings will be
lit in blue and gold and there will be
fi rework displays across the Empire
State, the governor said.
However, the end of of the state’s restrictions
does not mean the pandemic
is over, said Cuomo.
“That’s not to say that 70 percent is
the end, we’re going to do better than
70 percent but it is an important milestone
and we’re going to keep pushing
to do more,” he said.
He likened the city’s coronavirus
recovery from a peak positivity rate
of more than 48 percent last year to
Gotham’s comeback after the September
11 attacks, saying that New York is
poised to emerge better than ever.
“Twenty years ago, 9/11, we got
knocked on our rear end and there are a
lot of similarities between the 9/11 moment
and the COVID moment,” Cuomo
said. “We came back better than ever,
even with other obstacles. This site,
One World Trade Center, a symbol of
resilience and determination of faith.
You knock us down, we get up, we get
up stronger and taller than ever before
because that’s who we are.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the relaxing of most COVID-19 restrictions at One World
Trade Center in Lower Manhattan on June 15. REUTERS/Mike Segar
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