New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that easing coronavirus restrictions and opening up more businesses across the state will likely take months.
“We’re not talking about the next two weeks or three weeks, we're talking about months, we're talking about a phased reopening,” he said in an interview with CNN’s Alisyn Camerota. “It means there is no light switch.
He continued: "It’s going to be a phased process. We have to bring in testing, so that we’re testing as we're doing this reopening, so that we can gauge whether or not we're increasing the virus spread. We have to start with really what's an expansion of essential services.”
Cuomo said coronavirus cases over the past five days or so seem to have plateaued in the state.
“Our behavior has stopped the spread of the virus. God did not stop the spread of the virus. And what we do, how we act, will dictate how that virus spreads,” he said.
“We changed the trajectory of the virus by our actions. And that's the real important lesson to me,” he added.
Cuomo again cautioned that easing coronavirus restrictions too soon could have potentially disastrous results.
“I want to get out of the house, trust me. Everybody does. But if you move too quickly and not smartly, you will see the numbers go right back up again and you'll have to do another lockdown,” he said, adding that “the federal government has to be realistic about this. You can't just wish it and then it is so.”
Watch more: