People leaving New York should quarantine for 14 days, White House says

As coronavirus cases in the state continue to increase, White House tells New Yorkers to self-isolate for 14 days if they leave

White House response coordinator, Deborah Birx, said New Yorkers should isolate if they leave the state to stop the spread of coronavirus (AFP via Getty Images)

New Yorkers who leave for other parts of the US should self-isolate for 14 days, the White House coronavirus response coordinator has said.

Dr Deborah Birx told reporters at Tuesday's coronavirus task force briefing that the New York City area was a particular cause for concern, where cases have been doubling every three days, according to The New York Times.

Dr Birx urged anyone leaving New York to isolate and monitor their symptoms.

There are now 25,665 confirmed cases – almost 7 per cent of the world total – in New York State, with 3,000 people hospitalised.

“About 56 per cent of all the cases in the United States are coming out of that metro area and 60 per cent of all the new cases are coming out of the metro New York Area and 31 per cent of the people succumbing to this disease,” said Dr Birx.

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With new cases in Long Island suggesting that people had transported the coronavirus outside of New York City, the White House response coordinator warned about the continued spread of the virus.

New Yorkers should isolate “No matter where they have gone whether it’s Florida or North Carolina”, she said.

The recommendation comes as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis introduced an order on Tuesday requiring arrivals from New York, New Jersey or Connecticut to self-isolate.

Diseases expert and White House task force member, Dr Anthony Fauci, said it was understandable that people “want to get out of New York”. He added: “It’s a very serious situation and they have suffered terribly through no fault of their own”.

Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Tuesday that New York “is the canary in the coal mine”, with similar scenarios set to play out across the US in the coming weeks.

Mr Cuomo also appeared to criticise the federal government’s response to the crisis in his state, saying: “Four hundred ventilators? I need 30,000 ventilators. You want a pat on the back for sending 400 ventilators?”