On the same day that the world closed again and imposed restrictions on flights and travel against omicron, a new variant of the coronavirus, the Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, decreed “emergency by disaster” in the US state, citing the high of contaminations and hospitalizations for the disease.
In the signed executive order, the government says that the state is going through a situation that has not been seen since April 2020 and that, in the last month, hospitals received more than 300 admissions a day.
The decree, valid until January 15, allows the state to postpone surgeries and non-essential medical procedures, in addition to purchasing and contracting services without a bidding process.
In addition to the growing numbers of infections and hospitalizations, the situation also considers the threat of the omicron variant, recently discovered in South Africa and classified by the WHO (World Health Organization) as a “concern variant”.
“We continue to see warning signs of spikes in Covid-19 this winter, and although the new omicron variant has yet to be detected in New York, it is coming,” wrote Hochul on Twitter. “I urge New Yorkers to take advantage of our biggest weapon in this pandemic: the vaccine. Get vaccinated and get your booster as soon as you can.”
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, imposed restrictions on flights and travelers from eight countries on the African continent: South Africa, Botswana, Swatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Suspensions are effective from Monday (29).
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