FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 20, 2021 • HEALTH • THE QUEENS COURIER 41
New York adopts new CDC mask guidelines
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
AND MARK HALLUM
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Fully vaccinated New Yorkers are able
to do almost anything in New York state
without wearing a mask as of Wednesday,
May 19.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced
that the state would begin following
the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention’s new guidance on maskwearing
St. John’s University applies for new nursing program
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
While hospitals were overwhelmed with
patients from coast to coast during the
COVID-19 pandemic, the importance
of the nursing profession soared in the
national conscience.
In celebration of National Nurses Week,
St. John’s University announced that it has
recently applied to the New York State
Education Department for approval to
off er a Bachelor of Science (BSN) degree
in nursing. Pending state approval, the
university anticipates the program could
begin as early as fall 2022.
“Service is a core value at St. John’s
University,” SJU President Rev. Brian J.
Shanley said. “Our obligation and commitment
to service lie not only in our
active compassion as an institution, but
in the cultivation of skilled service professionals
in high-demand professions like
nursing.”
Nursing is a leader in job growth in
the United States. Demand for nurses is
expected to grow with an aging population,
longer life spans and steady growth
in the number of patients with chronic
medical conditions.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics’ employment projections 2019-
2029, registered nursing (RN) is listed
among the top occupations in terms of job
growth through 2029.
Th e RN workforce is expected to grow
from 3 million in 2019 to 3.3 million in
2029, an increase of 221,000 or 7 percent.
Th e bureau also projects 175,000 openings
for RNs each year through 2029,
when nurse retirements and workforce
exits are factored into the number of nurses
needed in the U.S.
Th e proposed program will be housed
in the College of Pharmacy and Health
Sciences at St. John’s University, the largest
provider of health-care personnel in
Queens, and one of the major health-care
educators in the New York City region.
“We must act now to meet the projected
demand for increased nursing services,
including the need for more nursing
professionals, nurse faculty, researchers
and primary care providers,” College
of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Dean
Russell J. DiGate, Ph.D. said. “Research
indicates a clear link between higher levels
of nursing education and better patient
outcomes.”
In New York, the “BSN in 10 Law”
passed in 2017 requires registered nurses
to have earned at least a Bachelor of
Science in nursing within 10 years of
their initial licensure to continue practicing.
Although the law applies to nurses
within the state of New York, the legislation
is expected to have nationwide ramifi
cations.
St. John’s University is also making
major investments in health sciences. In
March, the university announced plans
for the construction of a new Health
Sciences Center at the Jamaica campus,
estimated to cost approximately $78 million.
Th is capital project is expected to
commence in the fall, and the building is
expected to be ready for occupancy and
available for students and classes by the
fall of 2024.
Th e Health Sciences Center will promote
inter-professional education among
existing academic programs and enable
students to learn together and work as a
team, similar to the real-world situation
found in clinical settings. Additionally,
the new Health Sciences Center will
house state-of-the-art simulation facilities
for students to learn in a safe and realistic
clinical environment before embarking
upon required clinical rotation requirements
at off -campus sites.
amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Th at change coincides with the regional
reopening of the New York City area
that same day.
“We’re also going to follow the CDC
guidelines that you will still need to wear
a mask on public transportation the subways
the buses nursing homes, homeless
shelters correctional facilities, schools
and health care facilities,” Cuomo said.
“Th e CDC guidance is all up on the website.
… Individual private venues still
have the ability to add additional guidelines
to the state guidelines and the CDC
guidelines, but for our part, we’re adopting
the CDC and we’re saying, let’s open.
Th is comes at a good time for New York,
because we had already said we were
going to do our major reopening this
Wednesday.”
On May 13, the CDC recommended
that individuals who are fully vaccinated
against COVID-19 can walk outside without
masks and go maskless in most indoor
settings. Th e agency still advises wearing
masks in confi ned areas such as planes,
trains, buses, and in large public venues
such as hospitals and doctor’s offi ces.
“Part of that is common sense the people
who are most eager to get to get a vaccine
came in and got it. And now we’re
getting towards a percentage of the population
that’s not that eager to get the vaccine
and then you have a subgroup that
is just reluctant and hesitant to get it,”
Cuomo added. “We started a new program,
because these are times to be creative
and do things you’ve never done
before.”
Under the revised mask order for New
York state, Cuomo said that any unvaccinated
or immunocompromised New
Yorkers who haven’t received the vaccine
will still be required to wear masks and
practice social distancing.
Making the announcement at Radio
City Music Hall, Cuomo said it was just
one of many venues, including Pier 76
where the Tribeca Film Festival will be
held this year, that will only admit vaccinated
people to fi ll seats at 100 percent
capacity.
In order to access events, New Yorkers
can present their vaccination card or an
Excelsior Pass, which provides digital
proof of inoculation against COVID-19.
Th e Excelsior Pass can be obtained from
the stateand displayed on a smartphone
devise through an app.
Th is policy refl ects the policies in
neighboring states, New Jersey and
Connecticut, and comes as New York
reaches a statewide vaccination rate of 52
percent, according to the Cuomo administration.
health
Photo courtesy of St. John’s University
St. John’s University is planning on adding a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing to meet the
explosive demand nationwide to be housed at its new Health Sciences Center.
REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
Vaccinated New Yorkers will not be required to wear masks, barring certain exceptions, as of May 19.
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