New York City sets up quarantine checkpoints as it toughens state travel restrictions
Source: CNBC
New York City is setting up quarantine checkpoints at key entry points along main bridges and tunnels to the city to screen travelers coming from more than 30 states with bad coronavirus outbreaks, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Wednesday.
Travelers coming in from those states will be given information about the quarantine, they will be reminded that it is required, not optional, de Blasio said at a press briefing. Theyll be reminded that failure to quarantine is a violation of state law and it comes with serious penalties. The checkpoints will begin Wednesday.
Dr. Ted Long, head of New York Citys Test and Trace Corps, said that a fifth of all new coronavirus cases in New York City are from out-of-state travelers.
The new agency is deploying teams to Penn Station and Port Authority Bus Terminal starting Thursday. They are checking in on travelers through calls, text messages, and if we cant get through to you on the phone, weve deployed teams that are now knocking on your door and making sure youre safe, Long said.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/05/new-york-city-sets-up-quarantine-checkpoints-as-it-toughens-state-travel-restrictions.html
Long said the city will help those quarantining with free food deliveries, help with medications, telehealth services or even a hotel stay.
We know that its not easy to get through a two-week period of safe separation, but its incredibly important and were going to do everything in our power to help you, Long said.
matt819
(10,749 posts)It sure would be nice to know where the checkpoints are and what states are excluded.
Response to matt819 (Reply #1)
left-of-center2012 This message was self-deleted by its author.
Squinch
(51,007 posts)But for people from states who are not on the list and are traveling to do business in NY, NJ, or CT, it might be useful to plan alternate routes.
That said, my wife came across just such a checkpoint somewhere in upstate NY the other day. It wasn't so much a checkpoint as it was a cop standing outside his car. It was dark. Car lights were off. No reflective clothing. No indication that it was a checkpoint of any kind. Cop was maskless. Wife slowed down, mostly not to hit the cop, and he annoyedly waved her on. Her conclusion was that it was a corona checkpoint. Maybe it was something else. It seems were are now a nation of ad hoc stuff designed to keep us all on edge.
Blues Heron
(5,943 posts)this is serious business, spreaders not welcome
Response to left-of-center2012 (Original post)
left-of-center2012 This message was self-deleted by its author.
MichMan
(11,971 posts)left-of-center2012
(34,195 posts)I'll delete the link to avoid confusion.
deurbano
(2,895 posts)there was a quarantine, and they flew home less than a week later. I asked my mom why the hell they were breaking the NY quarantine rules, and she said it was okay because they flew from VA, not NC! I tried to explain that they were coming from NC, even if via VA, but my mom's a Republican, too, and they are all about their own desires (freedom!) and obviously lack common sense, much less critical thinking. (And of course, the day after they flew to NY, VA was added to the quarantine list.)
My sister also sent two of her daughters to be counselors at summer camps that experienced massive outbreaks, and one daughter (not one of the two that went to NY) became infected with scores of others at her camp in TX, then quarantined for two weeks, then went back to being a camp counselor for new campers! They never shut down the camp! (Just suspended for a couple of weeks.) And this camp is part of a larger evangelical "ministry" with several other camps in TX that also had outbreaks.... and kept going. (At least my other niece's camp in NC shut down for the summer after the first outbreak.)