New Yorkers cannot be evicted for not paying rent through June, says Cuomo

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has said that no one in the state can be evicted for non-payment of rent through June.

In his daily coronavirus response press briefing, the governor said: "A landlord cannot evict a person for non payment of rent ... that is a law in place through June."

Mr Cuomo made the statement during his presentation a day after protesters called for the governor to address the needs of New Yorkers who are hurting financially from the economic impact of the coronavirus lockdown.

The governor also revealed the latest data on Covid-19 hospitalisations and deaths, as well as further results from the statewide antibody testing program.

"We are in uncharted waters. But that doesn’t mean we are sailing blind. We are constantly looking at the data to chart our course," he said.

On 1 May, New York state recorded 831 Covid-19 hospitalisations, a decrease from several days where that figure had remained flat at around 900.

The number of deaths stood at 299, up ten on the day before.

Hospitals in New York will now gather specific demographic data from patients to build on the picture forming of how and where the virus is spreading. The governor said that details such as the community in which they live, occupation, mode of transportation and other information would be collected in the coming days.

Statewide testing for antibodies continues, with the sample size growing to 15,000 people. The latest survey results show that 12.3 per cent of the population is positive for Covid-19 antibodies, with that figure as high as 19.9 per cent in New York City. Respectively, those percentages correspond to 2.4 million people and just under 1.7 million residents of the five boroughs.

The governor gave details two initiatives regarding preventing the spread of infections. Expanding on the news that New York City's subway would be ending 24-hour service in order to provide time to clean the trains, the governor described the labour-intensive process of workers in hazmat suits misting disinfectant on every surface with the cars.

New York state will also donate 7 million more cloth masks to nursing homes and poorer communities.

The state will also distribute $25m to food banks across the region.