MAYOR DE BLASIO ON COVID-19 - March 12, 2020

  Mayor Bill de Blasio: We have a lot of information to share with you. Obviously, things are moving very, very quickly when it comes to the coronavirus. I'm stating the obvious to everyone here. I don't think for most of us even who have been in public life a long time, we've seen a situation quite like this where we receive extraordinary new information on what now literally feels like an hourly basis. So, we are constantly making adjustments. We're also going to go over the numbers here, which are very sobering. We're seeing intense increases in the number of cases in the city. And I think we have to fully understand this as the shape of things to come.

So, we'll start with saying we're going to be giving regular updates, but expect major changes from day to day because we've now seen a pattern of such extraordinary information coming in. It's forcing very, very different decisions than we would've made typically not only here, obviously, all over the country. But the last 24 hours have been very, very sobering. Literally, yesterday, morning feels like a long time ago. We got a lot of information in the course of the day yesterday. A lot change then. Then, last night, it just seemed like the world turned upside down in the course of just a few hours. So, you know, I think what we are seeing is more and more of a consensus on how to act and everyone is moving as quickly as we can. That said, you're going to see differences, of course, between different parts of the country, what public sector and private sector does. And I'm going to try my best to explain the specific approach we're taking, but, again, it will be evolving literally daily and hourly, and we will update you constantly.

In light of several new developments – obviously the numbers that we now have seen over the last 24 hours here in New York City, what we're seeing nationally and internationally. The reality of community spread that's been with us over these last few days and the close working relationship between the city and state, the decisions that we are making together – and I spoke with Governor Cuomo at length earlier today about a specific set of decisions. And obviously, you heard his announcements earlier today, which he and I discussed in detail and which I agree with fully. In light of all those changing realities, it is time now to declare a state of emergency New York City. And I will explain what that means, the powers that are vested in me, what it will allow us to do going forward. I'll also emphasize that the declaration of state of emergency authorizes the use of the powers, but we will use them as needed. That doesn't mean everything will happen at once. And we're going to try and be very, very careful to give you accurate information about what the city is doing and why. There's already some very inaccurate information out there, which we'll speak to later on. But I want to ask all of you in the news media, if you're hearing things that are being attributed to the City of New York, please ask if it's true or not. We will confirm with you instantly. It's very important that the people of the city know what is really coming from the government and what is not. 

Continuing on the conversation with the Governor, again, I fully support, we are in total agreement on his decision related to large gatherings. So, we will be working with the state to enforce that new rule that relates obviously to anything where over 500 people would gather – parades, rallies, concerts, sports events, professional conferences, etcetera. And all of our largest venues will now no longer have gatherings until such time in this crisis as it's acceptable to do so again. And again, I unfortunately suspect that will be a number of months. So, places like Barclays, Madison Square Garden, Radio City will obviously will not be operating. As you heard, for most venues that will begin in five o'clock Friday. For Broadway, as I understand, it begins five o'clock tonight. Also agree with the decision for gatherings of under 500 people – this essentially refers to non-essential, non-workplace related dynamics. And we're talking about events, we're talking about restaurants, we're talking about bars. Gathering places under 500 people will be mandated to have occupancy levels at 50 percent or less of their legal occupancy. That will allow for space between people. That will allow for some effective opening up of those spaces. We understand, obviously – thank you – that some businesses will choose to work with these rules because they can make it work economically or they want to stay open for the long haul. Other businesses, I won't be surprised if they believe that's a situation where they'd rather close temporarily. It will be up to each business, but those are the rules that we will enforce from this point on.

Now, I want to say, and I know the Governor feels same way, these decisions that we're making, and the state and the city working closely together to make these decisions, we don't do any of this lightly. This is difficult stuff because we know it'll have a serious, serious impact on a number of businesses. Just talking about the over 500 people gatherings – I mean, that's – in this city, especially,  a huge number of events, concerts, etcetera, that's really, really painful for the many, many people who work in that field, let alone so many New Yorkers and people all over the country who really look forward to these events, these concerts, these sports events. And it's really going to be a kind of a hole in our lives and it's painful. It's not something we would ever want to do, but it's something we have to do.

I am going to use every power that I have, everything we can find to support people, businesses and working people are going through this, obviously. The state and even more so the federal government have the greatest powers to provide that kind of relief and support. We're going to urge them to do that. But, you know, we understand that this is going to be a huge dislocation for so many people and it's painful. And it's obviously, as we've grappled with this crisis, our greatest concern has been how to balance all these factors and ensure that we could keep a functioning society and protect the elements of our society that are most crucial – our hospital system, our schools, our mass transit, all of this interconnects. And I can certainly say none of us wanted to take this action unless it was 100 percent necessary because the impact it'll have on the whole overall picture and clearly the human impact, which is going to be really extensive. And we talked in recent days about a projection that this crisis could easily be a six-month crisis. We all know it could be longer, but then the recovery from it could take a really extensive amount of time. So, going to this level is not done lightly, but it is the point where it's necessary.

I'm going to give you some other updates. Let me start with the overall numbers and I'll just double back to some other things. And again, these overall numbers are striking and troubling. We now, and even compared to this morning, we've seen a big jump. We now have 95 confirmed cases – that is 42 new since yesterday, so you can see the progression now. We do have just a small important procedural point. We are now going to define our cases as only New York City residents. So, we had some questioning that, rightfully so, the other day, we said we were including one person, the original Westchester lawyer and account. We've taken them out of the count from this point on. This will only be New York City residents. As of noon, and again, this is changing constantly – as of noon, the breakout we had, and I don't think this breakout correlates to the 95, so, forgive me, that this is not fully aligned. But as of noon, by residency, it was 25 people from Manhattan, 24 people from Brooklyn, 17 people from Queens, 10 people from the Bronx, and five people from Staten Island. And we'll try and keep you updated regularly on those borough breakdowns.

We have 29 people now in mandatory quarantine. That number continues to rise. We have 1,784 people in voluntary quarantine. It's a lot of bad news today. There's a lot of troubling news. There is one small piece of good news that we talked about the other day, and I'm not going to be specific to which individual, because we are getting some clearance on that, but we can say at least broadly that the first – we have the first case of someone coming out of mandatory quarantine and able to go back to their normal lives. So, even in the midst of the growth of this, we will see this. We met with employers here in the Blue Room earlier today. I'll talk about that in a moment. We talked about the deep fears about losing members of their workforce and the and the health dangers people face, but also the reminder that people will come through and we'll get back into the workforce and get back to being healthy. We'll talk about that in a moment.

So, a couple of pieces here. I keep giving you some agency updates as they arise. We're very concerned about people's loss of livelihood in the kind of situation we've just described, especially where a number of businesses will be cutting back or shutting down. We're worried about folks having trouble paying the rent. We want to emphasize, if anyone is facing eviction, we want to help them to avoid eviction. If it is a sheer legal matter, we will get them free legal help and people can call 3-1-1 if they need it. For folks who are now in a situation of distress, it will depend of course upon levels and other factors. But if someone is faced with eviction or unable to pay the rent, in some cases we can provide some short-term support through our human resources administration. We'll get you more details on that, but anyone who thinks that they need that help, they can go to nyc.gov/accesshra. And we'll get you more details on that.

We are concerned about people again who have less money because their employment has been compromised, running low on food for their families. Our Department of Social Services is activating emergency food contracts, working with nonprofit organizations, community-based organizations, and increase the amount of available food. We'll have more details on that in the next day or two.

And again, there's nothing that would be more important in terms of providing support and relief for people than federal action. We all understand in a national crisis, the federal government can provide a level of relief that state and local government simply can't. We need the federal government to move immediately with a huge stimulus program and a program of relief for working people – paid sick days, any number of measures that would help people through what could easily be a half year or more. The House of Representatives has put forward a stimulus plan that is very helpful and a very positive step. We need to see action by the House, Senate and the President as quickly as possible.

I want to give updates about our school system. And I'll talk about the school in the Bronx in just a moment. But first, overall, and this is absolutely essential to our strategy and something we are working very, very hard to continue to keep continuity on, I know the state feels the same way, we want our schools to remain open. We intend for our schools to remain open. That said, there are non-essential and non-instructional activities that we will alter. They'll either be moved online if they can be or they will be canceled, depends on each activity. So, that includes PSAL activities, athletic activities, games and practices, assemblies, parent teacher conferences, PTA meetings, and school plays and recitals.

And I will stay on the topic of schools and then double back. This morning, we have a potential – and please, everyone accurately note this, we do not have independent confirmation – we have a potential case of a student at a school contracting this disease, but it is self-confirmed. We do not have a medical provider or a testing agency that has independently verified that. That is not in any way doubting what the individuals are saying, it’s saying that we have to make a series of decisions and we need medical confirmation. We don't have it right now. We hope to have that confirmation in the next hour or two. Two schools – and the Chancellor’s here, and obviously we'll add in the Q & A – and Chancellor, make sure I described properly, if there's anything you need to correct me on, feel free. Two schools in the same building, the Laboratory School of Finance and Technology and South Bronx Prep. This is in the Mott Haven neighborhood in the Bronx. The school is at – or, the two schools are on the building at 360 East 145th Street. Again, this was a decision we made this morning a little after 7:00 am based on decisions – excuse me, based on information that had just come in and it was a tough decision because we did not have that confirmation, but out an abundance of caution determined that it was the right thing to do to close the school to work, to work to get that confirmation. If we were so lucky as to get a negative confirmation, that would be ideal. If we get a positive, it's quite clear the follow through. In the meantime, the full disinfection and cleanliness regimen is placed in the school today. The disease detectives from the Department of Health have been deployed to figure out any close contacts, as we said would be the case in any potential temporary school closure. We have checked the school and we'll keep double checking, but, as of now, there are no children in the school who reach what we call a tier one level of preexisting medical conditions – so, children who would be particularly vulnerable. We're double checking that. But as of this point, we do not have an indication of any children in the school having those particular preexisting conditions.

I want to talk for a moment about two things. The City workforce and then the private sector workforce on the city. We now intend to authorize 10 percent of the city workforce to work from home. The specific details are being determined. So, this is telecommuting. We believe that's a number we can hit in the short term, but it will take some real work. It's not the norm, obviously, for city employment. There's, as is obvious, a huge number of our employees who cannot telecommute, who we need at their posts, but we believe in short order we can have 10 percent telecommute. I am – want to confirm that number. I believe that is 34,000 but I want to check that –

Unknown: 35,000 –

Mayor: 35,000 – thank you, Commissioner. And then of the remaining 90 percent of the workforce, there are 20 percent we intend to put on staggered schedules. Again, understanding a lot of our folks not only play a crucial role but cannot be on staggered schedules, but others can. So, we in short order hope to put 20 percent on staggered work schedules even as they report to their normal work locations. And I wanted that – so, that's 20 percent of the remaining 90 percent – I want that number too – do you know –

Unknown: 70,000 –

Mayor: 70,000 – thank you, Commissioner. So, between those two categories, that's about a 100,000 City workers will either be in telecommuting or on a staggered schedule and getting them as much as possible away from the rush hour.

And again, our message to New York City businesses, as much as humanly possible, please authorize maximum telecommuting and or staggered schedules for your employees. I want to say, it's our impression so far from the information we're getting that business community is really honoring that, a lot of them are acting on that. The meeting we had here which was organized with the help of the New York City partnership and CEOs and business leaders of some of the most prominent businesses in New York City. Just going around the room and going [inaudible] each of them going through, with each of them what they are doing, we saw a very, very high level of adherence to the guidance to institute telecommuting. In fact, in the case of some of the companies, which had the ability, obviously, if it's a technology company, for example, more capacity to do that. We had companies that were literally at 100 percent telecommuting now. Other companies are going to have a much harder time and strike a balance. A great example, one of the great New York City iconic companies, Macy's, the CEO was here. Macy's is in a different situation where a lot of their workers obviously work in physical locations, but they are working with us to maximize any kind of adjustments they can make. So, I want to say I appreciate the high level of cooperation from the business community. I also want to note every business is different. Some can do a lot of – have a lot of flexibility. Others do not. They are all taking it seriously. They're all working with us. We do want to keep reminding any business that's not yet instituted maximum telecommuting and, or staggering or work hours that we need them to. But we, again, are sensitive to the fact that not every business can do that and that we are simultaneously extremely concerned to keep people employed, keep people from running out of their livelihood because that has a huge number of other ramifications. So, we're trying to strike that balance, but very, very pleased with the cooperation we're getting. And we're going to try and work with these businesses on any help they need as they proceed.

Hang on one second. Okay, a couple of other matters. There's been concerned about the special election scheduled for March 24th for borough president of Queens. We are analyzing those concerns but I want to be very, very clear that election will continue as scheduled. We are dealing with an unprecedented challenge, but I think it is a signature of a stable democracy that elections happened when scheduled. So, we very much want that election to happen on time so long as we believe it can happen effectively. However, want to urge all candidates and campaigns to alter their activity. Right now, we're reaching out to each campaign specifically – believe that door to door canvasing should be stopped immediately. And I want to note, and knowing a lot about campaigns over the years, campaigns have many, many ways to still be effective without door to door canvassing or rallies. Clearly, phone banking social media, email updates, digital ads, TV ads, radio ads – there are many, many ways, including some of the most effective ways to get the message out. So, I think it's fair to say, and that campaign that's been going on for a while, that the democratic process can continue here effectively and the campaigns do have other options for getting their message out. We do not need people going door to door canvassing and taking those risks. So, we will move forward. We have a lot to sort out of course about making the voting process as safe and effective as possible. But I do want to say, particularly with early voting, the voting process is being spread out. So, it's almost its own version of social distancing. I can say from the first day early voting I saw this – fewer people are congregating to vote. The voting process and early voting is very fast. And again, preserving our democracy is crucial. We'll talk about it in the Q & A, but we are more comfortable getting this done now than waiting. We have a related challenge, which is a huge challenge and something we really have to think through, which is the Census – was raised in the Q & A the other day. This is going to be a very, very complex matter and we have to see on the federal level there'll be any consideration of altering the Census, delaying it, extending it. But my fear right now is that there will not be any change from Washington and we’ll be put – in many places, we’ll be put in a really, really difficult spot. We're going to have to figure out if that is the case, some way to communicate with people to the maximum. It's almost impossible to engage the Census without some kind of in-person activity, but we can alter the nature of the in-person activity. We've got a lot of important work to do on that. So, that's an area of tremendous concern, going forward.

Last few points and I'll be the only speaker and we will go to Q & A right after my remarks. My colleagues obviously will jump in on the Q & A. There have been questions previously about the homeless. I've said we would come back with a specific update. We have now trained 550 outreach workers through HOMESTAT and the protocol for discussing coronavirus with homeless folks, giving them information, checking on their condition, making sure they get the help if they need it. As of today, and we'll get the exact timeline on this, but we have 764 homeless individuals on the street who had been engaged so far. At this moment, we have no known referrals, so no one that was exhibiting the symptoms or the specific dynamics that led to follow up health care activity. But we'll get more on that day by day.

Want to just say something simple about the President's remarks last night. And I think at this point, it's not worth wasting breath on everything that has happened over the last few weeks and all the missed opportunities. I think we can at least say that last night's remarks indicated that the President is now finally taking the situation seriously. The steps he outlined showed much more connection to reality than a lot of what we heard previously. But he was essentially silent on the single most important action that the federal government could take, certainly from the perspective of New York City, which is to get immediate approval for a huge expansion of our automated testing. This is a tool that would be immensely helpful in addressing all the concern you're hearing from New Yorkers. So many people who want to get tested that we cannot prioritize right now. Businesses that would like to test employees that can't right now because we have to focus on the folks who have the clearer symptoms and the folks who are in the greatest danger and the folks who have a nexus to travel or an existing positive case. We want to do wide-scale testing. We cannot do it without the federal government coming in. There has been talk of localities taking matters into their own hands. I believe that that is what's going to happen if we don't get this federal approval. And I think this is bluntly the last chance. I think if the President United States and the FDA do not give us approval, I don't blame any locality, any company, anyone who just decides to do whatever kind of testing they can at this point. And we will work with all of them.

Finally, I want to say, all of us have been talking to so many New Yorkers over the last days and we've been watching how people are responding to quarantines, how their businesses are following up on guidance, how our public servants are reacting to the crisis. And I'm very, very proud of New Yorkers right now. It's been extraordinary. We're dealing with the absolutely not only unforeseen, something on a level we have never seen in our lives. There is no precedent for this in U.S. history or New York City history. New Yorkers are handling this with tremendous strength and resiliency. People are stepping up, people are looking out for each other and their neighbors. We're going to need a whole lot more of that. It's going to get a lot worse before it gets better. And I want to be clear about that, we will be at this for months and months. This is – I said earlier today, this is a battle we are going into – a long battle. It is the opposite of when you're told don't worry, it'll all be over soon. This will not be over soon. This is going to be a long, long battle. It's going to be a tough battle. We're going to lose some of our fellow New Yorkers – that, unfortunately it is inevitable, but we can fight back. There's a lot we can do to help each other, to support each other, to protect people. We will unquestionably overcome this. It will take time, but we will. The City will prevail in the end and the vast majority of people who are afflicted, thank God, will survive and will fully recover, but it is going to be a long, painful episode. The more that people are informed, the more they follow through on the guidance that we are trying to give them constantly, the more people support each other, the better off we will be. Anyone who needs information can go to nyc.gov/coronavirus or text the word COVID – C-O-V-I-D – to 692-692, or call 3-1-1. Any of those approaches will get you information.

Wave Hill events Mar 26-Apr 2: Cactus and Succulent Weekend

Sat, March 28

In The Shop: Succulent Plants for Sale

Stop by The Shop at Wave Hill on Cactus & Succulent Weekend to make your selection from a wide variety of succulents that will be on sale all weekend.

Perkins Visitor Center, 10AM–4PM

Sat, March 28

Lessons from Wave Hill: Cultivating Succulents

Cactus and succulent plants make ideal houseplants if you understand their basic needs. In this workshop with Wave Hill Gardener Harnek Singh, learn Wave Hill-tested methods for keeping your plants healthy and attractive, including watering, repotting and propagation techniques. An illustrated presentation, behind-the-scenes tour, and a hands-on component round out the session. Go home with a plant and several cuttings to start or add to your own collection. Coffee and tea included. Space is limited! Registration required, online at wavehill.org or at the Perkins Visitor Center. $55. Cactus and Succulent Weekend event.

Meet at Wave Hill House, 10AM‒NOON

Sat, March 28

Winter Workspace Session 2 Open Studios

This winter, Glyndor Gallery is transformed again into studio spaces for artists to develop new work and offer opportunities for public interaction in the context of the garden. Individual artists share their studio practice with the public on this open studio day. This year’s session 2 artists are Maya Ciarrocchi, Samanta Batra Mehta, Beatrice Modisett, Salvador Muñoz, Tiffany Jaeyeon Shin and Elizabeth Velazquez. Free with admission to the grounds.

Glyndor Gallery, NOON–3:30PM

Sat, March 28

Cactus and Succulent House Tour

Tour Wave Hill’s eclectic collection of Cacti and Succulents with a horticultural interpreter. Free with admission to the grounds. Cactus and Succulent Weekend event.

Meet at Perkins Visitor Center, 1PM

Sun, March 29

In The Shop: Succulent Plants for Sale

Stop by The Shop at Wave Hill on Cactus & Succulent Weekend to make your selection from a wide variety of succulents that will be on sale all weekend.

Perkins Visitor Center, 10AM–4PM

Sun, March 29

Art Workshop: Plants with Personalities—Sketching Cacti and Succulents

Cacti and succulents are often small in stature but big in personality. Observe a potted plant from Wave Hill’s collection and capture the quirkiness of your chosen subject by sketching or doodling with colored pencils. Artist Wennie Huang shares some basic techniques and offers feedback in this casual and fun workshop for artists of all levels. Materials provided. $55. Registration required, online at wavehill.org or at the Perkins Visitor Center. Cactus and Succulent Weekend event.

Wave Hill House, 10AM‒NOON

Sun, March 29

Garden and Conservatory Highlights Walk

Garden highlights walks offer an intimate look at our living collections. Wave Hill Garden Guides help you explore the grounds and make sure that you do not miss any seasonal floral wonders. Free with admission to the grounds.

Meet at Perkins Visitor Center, 2–3PM

Sun, March 29

Cooking Demo: Succulent Succulents

Prickly pear, aloe and dragon fruit are a few examples of edible succulents. Find out how to select, prepare and serve some of these unlikely edibles and sample out-of-the-ordinary recipes featuring cacti and succulents, with a chef from Great Performances, Wave Hill’s exclusive caterer. Free with admission to the grounds. Cactus and Succulent Weekend event.

Wave Hill House, 2PM

Thu, April 2

Art Workshop series begins: Emergence of Spring—The Garden Above and Below

Spring is a time of anticipation in the garden, with new plants emerging from the ground as the mystery of what still lies beneath is slowly revealed. Working in mixed media, create your own renderings of the gardens as spring unfolds, with expert guidance from artist Wennie Huang. A list of materials will be provided. $300. Registration required, online at wavehill.org or at the Perkins Visitor Center. 

Wave Hill House, 10AM‒1PM

                         

A 28-acre public garden and cultural center overlooking the Hudson River  and Palisades, Wave Hill’s mission is to celebrate the artistry and legacy of its gardens and landscape, to preserve its magnificent views, and to explore human connections to the natural world through programs in horticulture, education and the arts.

HOURS – Open all year, Tuesday through Sunday and many major holidays: 9AM–4:30PM, November 1–March 14. Closes 5:30PM, starting March 15.

ADMISSION – $10 adults, $6 students and seniors 65+, $4 children 6–18. Free Saturday and Tuesday mornings until noon. Free to Wave Hill Members and children under 6.

PROGRAM FEES – Programs are free with admission to the grounds unless otherwise noted.

Visitors to Wave Hill can take advantage of Metro-North’s one-day getaway offer. Purchase a discount round-trip rail far and discount admission to the gardens. More at http://mta.info/mnr/html/getaways/outbound_wavehill.htm

  

DIRECTIONS – Getting here is easy! Located only 30 minutes from midtown Manhattan, Wave Hill’s free shuttle van transports you to and from our front gate and Metro-North’s Riverdale station, as well as the W. 242nd Street stop on the #1 subway line. Free offsite parking is available nearby with continuous, complimentary shuttle service to and from the offsite lot and our front gate. Complete directions and shuttle bus schedule at www.wavehill.org/visit/.

Information at 718.549.3200. On the web at www.wavehill.org.

Is Carnegie Hill Institute Getting Ready to Open a Drug Clinic at 2500 Williamsbridge Road?

  A short time after the press conference at Exit Reality on Allerton Avenue we spotted this man doing work at 2500 Williamsbridge Road. We went up to him and asked him if he was doing work foe the new owner of 2500 Williamsbridge Road, and he replied that he was going to be installing cameras around exterior the property. Having cameras around the exterior as well as the inside of 2500 Williamsbridge Road would be one of the steps that would have to be done if the new owner of the property was to open a drug clinic there. 

  At the press conference by Exit Realty it was learned that 2500 Williamsbridge Road was not sold directly to Carnegie Hill Institute, and that the name Carnegie Hill Institute was not on the bill of sale from Exit Reality to 2500 WBRD LLC of 27 Lotus Avenue East Hampton N.Y. 11937. Mr. Sonny Vitaj owner of Exit Reality said that his office was deceived, lied to, and fooled, saying that he was given a closing statement with WBRD LLC on it as the buyer. Mr. Vitaj repeated that he did not sell 2500 Williamsbridge Road to Carnegie Hill Institute to use as a drug clinic. 

Carnegie Hill Institute has already gone before Community Board 11 in a public meeting on the subject of opening a drug clinic at 2500 Williamsbridge Road. All that is required by the New York State Office of Addiction and Services (OASAS) is that the operator of a proposed drug clinic in New York City meet with the local community, through the local community board where the proposed site is located for public input. Carnegie Hill Institute has already met the requirement of the one meeting with the community through the community board. Should another meeting be required by OASAS since the 2500 Williamsbridge Road site was withdrawn, and seems to be the site Carnegie Hill Institute recently purchased in what Exit Realty claims a fraudulent matter is another matter.

A close up of the work being done at the electrical connection of an outside light fixture at 2500 Williamsbridge Road for an outside camera placement.

Former MTA Supervisor Pleads Guilty To Obstructing Investigation Into Bid Rigging And Fraud

Paresh Patel, a Former Manager at the MTA Responsible for Oversight of Subway Repair Contracts Following Superstorm Sandy, Deleted Emails and Persuaded Witnesses to Lie

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Douglas Shoemaker, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Regional Investigations Office of the United States Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (“DOT-OIG”), and Carolyn Pokorny, Metropolitan Transportation Authority Inspector General for the State of New York (“MTA-OIG”), announced that PARESH PATEL, a former MTA manager, pled guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ona T. Wang to obstructing a federal investigation into bid rigging and fraud in connection with contracts awarded by the MTA for Superstorm Sandy-related subway repairs.  PATEL, who set up a private company that participated in a bid for a project that he would oversee at the MTA, took numerous steps upon learning that his conduct was being investigated, including deleting an email account, asking others to destroy evidence, and encouraging others to lie to authorities to obstruct the investigation.  PATEL previously surrendered to federal authorities on February 18, 2020. 

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, Paresh Patel set up a company so that he and his family could profit from the work that was being done to repair our subways.  When Patel learned he was under investigation, he destroyed evidence and asked others to lie to federal and local investigators.  Efforts to obstruct investigations into corruption at the MTA undermine the public’s faith in the nation’s largest public transportation system and threaten the ability of our Government to ensure that justice is done.”

DOT-OIG Special Agent in Charge Douglas Shoemaker said:  “The devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy is only exacerbated by the unscrupulous actions of Mr. Patel, who was entrusted with aiding in the restoration of the New York region’s transit infrastructure. Working with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, we will continue to protect the taxpayers’ investment in our nation’s infrastructure and pursue those who participate in fraud schemes that undermine DOT-funded programs and projects, and the public trust.”

MTA Inspector General Carolyn Pokorny said:  “It is simply unacceptable for an MTA employee to obstruct any investigation - let alone a criminal investigation.  We are proud that our initial probe has resulted in derailing this scheme to defraud riders, taxpayers, and other stakeholders of our great transportation system, and thankful to our law enforcement partners who worked with us to leave no doubt that obstructing a federal investigation is a crime.”

According to the allegations made in the Information to which the defendant pled guilty, as well as the defendant’s admissions in court:

In order to manage necessary subway rehabilitation work following Superstorm Sandy in 2013, the MTA awarded construction management contracts for managers to oversee post-Sandy subway projects.  To prevent self-dealing and the appearance of corruption, the MTA maintains rules relating to conflicts of interest.  The rules provide that MTA employees are barred from participating in the selection, award, or administration of a contract if the employee, his or her family member, or an organization that employs the employee or one of the employee’s family members has a financial interest in any of the companies that propose or bid on, or are awarded, such a contract.

PATEL was a program manager at the MTA and was responsible for awarding contracts and exercising oversight of Superstorm Sandy-related subway repairs.  In June 2014, PATEL and another MTA employee set up an engineering consulting firm named Satkirti Consulting Engineering LLC (“Satkirti”).  Because MTA rules prohibited them from having an interest in such a company, PATEL and the other employee registered Satkirti in the names of their children, and then transferred the ownership to a friend of PATEL who played no substantive role in the management of Satkirti.  In February 2015, Satkirti was awarded a contract as a subcontractor on the Joralemon Tube subway rehabilitation project, which project PATEL would oversee in his role at the MTA.  Although the technical employees of Satkirti who sought and carried out the subcontract were PATEL’s friend, who had no background or qualifications in engineering, and a second individual who PATEL recruited from a pizzeria owned by PATEL, PATEL directed the operations of Satkirti and its employees while concealing his involvement with the company.  Among other things, PATEL created a company email account for Satkirti, and instructed Satkirti’s employees about what to write in emails.  On many occasions, PATEL instructed Satkirti’s employees not to mention PATEL’s name and reminded them that PATEL was not supposed to be involved in the operation of Satkirti.

In the spring of 2016, MTA-OIG launched an investigation, later joined by the DOT-OIG and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, into the contract that was awarded to Satkirti.  MTA-OIG served subpoenas and conducted interviews with individuals involved in Satkirti, many of whom made false statements about their and PATEL’s involvement in the company.  After MTA-OIG began serving subpoenas, PATEL told one of Satkirti’s employees to delete from his personal email account all emails with PATEL.  On November 16, 2016, after federal investigators began serving grand jury subpoenas, PATEL deleted the Satkirti company email account, which contained records of Satkirti’s business and evidence that would have connected PATEL to Satkirti.  Over the course of the MTA-OIG and federal investigation, at the request of PATEL, several individuals questioned by investigators also concealed and lied about PATEL’s involvement in Satkirti. 

PARESH PATEL, 59, of Paramus, New Jersey, pled guilty to one count of obstruction of justice, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. 

PATEL will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood on a date to be determined. 

The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. 

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the special agents from the DOT-OIG and investigators at the MTA-OIG.

Attorney General James Orders Companies To Stop Selling Fake Treatments For Coronavirus

Sends Cease & Desist Notices to Two Companies Fraudulently Marketing Treatments

   New York Attorney General Letitia James today ordered two companies to immediately cease and desist selling and marketing products as a treatment or cure for the coronavirus. The first notice was sent to The Silver Edge company, which claims its Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator “beats coronavirus” and that there is “clinical documentation” to prove it. The second notice was sent to Dr. Sherrill Sellman, who has been marketing colloidal silver products as a cure for coronavirus and selling them on her website and on the Jim Bakker Show. There is currently no Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved vaccine to prevent the disease or treatment to cure it, and the World Health Organization has also said that there is no specific medicine to prevent or treat this disease.

“Falsely marketing products as a treatment for a serious disease and charging steep prices is deeply unethical and unlawful,” said Attorney General James. “We will continue to go after any company that attempts to deceive the public, especially during this public health crisis.”

Attorney General James recently ordered the Jim Bakker Show to stop marketing Dr. Sellman’s Silver Solution products as a treatment for coronavirus after claiming on television that they were proven to treat strains of the virus. The Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator — which retails for $249.95 — is currently sold out, suggesting that many individuals might believe the company’s deceptive marketing.

Beyond this fraud, both companies also tout the use of colloidal silver as the main ingredient in their products. According to the National Institutes of Health, colloidal silver can actually be dangerous to a person’s health, and the FDA has warned that colloidal silver is not safe or effective for treating any disease or condition. Countless scientific studies have also determined that there is no evidence to support the use of colloidal silver as a treatment for any disease or condition.

In addition to ordering the companies to immediately cease and desist these activities, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) also ordered Dr. Sellman to immediately affix a disclaimer on her website to make clear that her products have not been evaluated by the FDA and that none of her products are intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Attorney General James has also issued cease and desist notifications to multiple businesses in New York for charging excessive prices for hand sanitizers, disinfectant sprays, and rubbing alcohol — a violation of New York’s price gouging statute. That statute prohibits the sale of goods and services necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of consumers at unconscionably excessive prices during any abnormal disruption of the market.

The OAG continues to surveil and monitor businesses across the state for potential scams and price gouging schemes designed to exploit public concern related to the spread of the coronavirus. Scammers commonly exploit real public health concerns and use heightened public fear to prey on consumers and profit from frauds related to those health fears. If you believe you have been the victim of a scam or have witnessed potential price gouging, please report these incidents to the OAG.

Mayor de Blasio on COVID-19 At Bellevue Hospital March 10, 2020

 Mayor Bill de Blasio: Well, first thing I want to say is – I want to thank these extraordinary people who work here at Bellevue.

This is a world-renowned institution that does so much good every single day. This is a place where – I say this with tremendous respect to all of you – you, day-in, day-out, year-in, year-out, you handle whatever's thrown at you and you're doing an amazing job. I remember vividly the days I got to spend with some of you during the Ebola crisis, there was no place better in America to handle that challenge. And you did it beautifully and you're playing a crucial role right now helping us address coronavirus. One of the very first people came to be tested in all of New York City, came right here and, thank God, that was a negative back when – seems like a long time ago – it was only weeks ago. But we are depending on all of you and all your colleagues in Health and Hospitals, and I can safely say we are in very good hands with all of you. Let's thank them again.

Also, this group is exceptionally good at the elbow bump. I think you guys can go out and teach all of New York City how to do that. I want to start up on our update today. We've got some new information, but I wanted to say something really clear to all New Yorkers. Every single day, we're going to give you new information. Every single day, we're going to give you what we have that we can tell you that's clear and helpful. But every single day we're to tell you we're also receiving a lot of new information from our own experiences here in the city, from national sources, international sources, and everyday we're trying to understand the exact right approach to take the information changes day to day. We get new interpretations all the time. We get new strategies all the time. We're going to constantly update people, but you should assume a changing dynamic. This a – you know, we've dealt with a lot of things but I think we can all say with coronavirus we have rarely seen a situation that started with people not even understanding the disease to begin with because it was brand new – that's been the whole international community, medical community. And then, we've all had to learn by doing and our understanding of the best approaches keeps evolving. So, you will hear change because the information is changing. But we are still in the middle of a fight right now. We have to, every single day, do the best we can with the information we have and the resources we have. So, we'll tell you what we're doing, why we're doing it, and then as information changes we'll provide those updates. The fact is, everything is inherently preliminary at this point because, again, the information about the disease continues to evolve. It helps us to have our own experience here in New York City, our own work from our Department of Health and Health and Hospitals, our disease detectives giving us new information all the time. But there's a lot more out there that we are trying to glean and work with.

The crucial point I made yesterday, and I'll keep saying it, New Yorkers are going to be able to have a really big impact on this crisis by your own actions. So, the government is here to protect you, protect your health. We're going to do everything we know how to do. We're going to throw in every resource we got, but this one is participatory. This one is for everybody to be a part of the solution. The government cannot solve this alone. It has to be in every family, on every block, in every workplace. Everyone has to participate from those basic things, washing your hands, hand sanitizer, covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze onto the kinds of decisions we make in our life, starting with being very sensitive to the vulnerable people. We have seen this over and over again. It's very consistent all over the world. People over 50 with the preexisting conditions, that's the number-one problem. Either people like that in your life, support them, be really careful, watch out for them. We need New Yorkers to watch out for their fellow New Yorkers, which New Yorkers are very, very good about. But if someone in your life is vulnerable, be careful – another great example I'm giving, and I think it's a real life example – grandparents who want to visit their grandchildren, we all understand that that's normally fantastic, but if a grandchild is sick, the grandparents should not be visiting with them now. If the grandparent wants to visit their son or daughter, but the son or daughter is sick, this is not the right time for that. So, we really want to be clear about those common sense measures. The folks who are vulnerable need to take precautions. We need to support them as they take those precautions. We've talked about employers being as flexible as possible where you can have some telecommuting. We like that. We need that. Where you can't, we understand. Where you can stagger work hours – that helps. Everybody can participate. Literally every single person that'd be part of ending this crisis. So, we'll keep giving information and we'll keep updating people every step of the way.

Now, folks want information, they want accurate information. Want to remind you, you can go on our website, nyc.gov/coronavirus – nyc.gov/coronavirus – and you can text COVID to 692-692 – that's COVID to 692-692. I think it was yesterday we said 20,000 people have done that. Now, 60,000 people have done that. It's a really good way to keep informed. We're going to give a quick presentation, then you'll hear from – I'll give a presentation – you'll hear from the CEO of our Health and Hospitals, Dr. Mitch Katz, you'll hear from the Speaker of City Council Corey Johnson. I want to thank for their partnership and the good work they're doing Borough President Manhattan, Gale Brewer, thank you very much; Council Member Steve Levin of Brooklyn, thank you very much for all you're doing working with us.

Okay, so as we said, we're now in what we are simply calling phase two, and that means more and more guidance to New Yorkers of things that we want you to adjust in your life. I gave the example of employers staggering work hours and allowing telecommuting where they can. Again, those who are self-employed, those who have the ability to make those decisions yourself, we want you trying to – if you're going to have to use subways, use it on off hours. To the maximum extent possible, avoid the rush hour. If you can telecommute yourself, we prefer that right now. We need people to be mindful. We have a real concerned about the super packed subway cars, particularly in rush hour. If you don't need to be on one of those, please avoid them. Even means letting a few trains pass until one's less crowded. And then there's the really basic, but very, very important things – you know, a lot of people get sick and they power through it. A show of hands – even these health care providers – you ever been sick and powered through? Raise your hand. Raise your hand. Okay, stop doing that.

So, what we need to do, all of us, is if we're sick, we need to take it seriously. We need to talk to our doctor. We need to stay home if we're sick. Health care workers, obviously we depend on you, so the best way is for the health care – and Mitch will speak to this – health care worker's sick, they get to be evaluated by health care professionals, and if they shouldn't be at work, they shouldn't be at work. If they can be, that's great or with whatever precautions, and I want you to go in detail about that. But for the rest of everybody else, if you've got those cold and flu symptoms, don't go to work, consult with your doctor, make sure you're well before you get in the presence of lots of other people and, God forbid, do not go near someone in that vulnerable group over 50 with the preexisting conditions.

Okay, I'm going to state it just so we're consistent – over 50 preexisting conditions, that means heart disease, lung disease, cancer, diabetes, and a weakened immune system. Those five areas – we've also said not a condition, but a factor – smoking and vaping. Smoking and vaping do not help, in fact, they make it harder for someone to handle coronavirus for folks who have the preexisting conditions and are over 50 be very, very mindful of who you're coming in contact with. We want you to adjust your routines mindfully and if you do have symptoms, that group of people needs to get to care immediately.

Okay. Now, update on numbers. We have a very rapidly evolving situation on the numbers of cases and we're obviously concerned when we see more cases, but there's a piece of this that actually is in its own way good news, which is the testing capacity is coming online more and more. We still are waiting for that formal confirmation from the FDA that we've been talking about. We're hopeful but we still want it to be 110 percent formal. We haven't gotten that yet, but the private labs that started up on Friday are now really ramping up. So, we are starting to get more and more test results back. They are coming in so intensely now that being able to give you the detailed case breakdown, we're not in that position to do that at this moment, because so many new cases are coming forward. We will of course when we can give you updates on particularly pertinent cases and again, what we have been doing historically – there was a good question yesterday – I want to just clear this up for all the cases we've given you up to date –the ones with detailed profiles were all New York City residents, but one exception, the original lawyer from Westchester County, and the reason he was counted among the city cases was he was diagnosed hospitalized in New York City and remains in New York City. That was the one aberration. But now, with the private lab results coming in very, very rapidly, we're adjusting our approach, because we don't get the profiles on each case as quickly as we were because of the sheer numbers. So, again, we won't be giving across the board individual profiles. We will be giving them in particular cases. And we are happy to be getting more and more test results because it allows us again to ensure that people are getting the care they need, people are isolated that need to be isolated, and folks who are negative can go on with their life.

As of 12 noon – so, I gave a report yesterday and then this morning we had a different report. Now, we have another update as of 12 noon, working with the State of New York, the number now for confirmed cases in New York City is now 36 – 36, that is 16 new since yesterday and 11 new even since this morning at 7:00 AM when I last spoke about this. I said yesterday, we're going to start to talk to you about people who have their cases resolved. The first two that we will get information on, but they are not yet fully through the process, are the two health care workers who had been in Iran. They are now asymptomatic. They're going through a first of two tests that will lead to them coming out of quarantine. We're waiting for the results soon on the first test and it will take a second in short order thereafter, if both those come back negative, they will be out of quarantine hopefully as early as the end of this week. So, those are the first two that we will report on. As other people come out, we're going to give you those updates.

Now, as of – this is – I want everyone to hear a carefully, this is a different time frame because this is the last information we have. As of 10:00 am, before some of the newer information came in on cases, so this is probably dated by now – actually, is dated by now, but at least it's somewhat helpful information. As of 10:00 am, the number of negative cases for New York City was 258 – that was 57 new since yesterday. The number of pending tests, 195. So now, what you're seeing is we're talking about – and this is what we've been projecting – we'll be doing hundreds of tests a day and that's where the numbers are getting – moving so rapidly that we won't be able to do the individual cases the same way, again, with some exceptions.

In mandatory quarantine, 30 people right now. In voluntary isolation, 1,980. So, this is the context of community spread, which has only been with us since the latter part of last week and intensive testing, which has really only been with us the last few days. Now, we're going to see a very different trajectory in terms of the information flow and the numbers and we're going to keep giving updates every day.

Okay. A few quick updates in terms of the city. An issue that has been getting a lot of attention, rightfully so, around the country, around the world is cruise ships. So, the cruise ship terminals in Red Hook and the West Side of Manhattan, those are licensed via the Economic Development Corporation. They are run by a private entity called NY Cruise. We are following the guidance of the CDC and saying to all New Yorkers, this is not the time to take a cruise. I just want to start with that. Obviously, the cruise ships have been a real focal point for problems while our nation gets ahead of this crisis. This is not a great time to take a cruise, but if people do choose to take a cruise specific actions are being taken. The two terminals are being thoroughly cleaned throughout and health care workers will be on site if anyone is leaving on a cruise for additional screening during boarding. Anyone who attempts to get on a cruise and it has a temperature of over one 100.4 – 100.4 will not be allowed on a cruise ship. So, that's outgoing and that's trying to guide our fellow New Yorkers on how to handle this situation and protecting all the fellow passengers. The obvious other question is the incoming, and on the outgoing, I don't have in front of me, but I'm going to turn to my team and say we should check with EDC on the outgoing cruises – we have the incoming, let's get the outgoing dates. For incoming cruises, the next incoming cruise to the Manhattan terminal on the West Side will be Sunday, March 15th that cruise will be met by Department of Health Officials. And the same standard of 100.4 degrees will be implemented in this case, meaning folks who are coming off that cruise with that temperature will either, if they're from New York City, depending on their overall health, they will either will be allowed to go home into self-isolation or will be taken to a hospital depending on their health. If they are not from New York City, they'll be taken to a hospital or other health care facility right away. That Sunday, March 15th – this coming Sunday. The next incoming cruise to the Red Hook terminal in Brooklyn is April 9th, so we won't be seeing much there anytime soon.

On the issues related to the federal government, I mentioned that we still are waiting for the formal approval on the automated testing. Again, we keep seeing promising signs and some movement, but we do not have the fully confirmed formal approval. We need that right away. We've also talked about the N95 masks, which are particularly important for keeping our health care workers and our first responders safe. We definitely need more of these masks. The State, to their great credit, has kept their reserve. They gave us 120,000 new N95 masks. That's crucial. I want to thank the State for doing that, but we will certainly need more and we'll need them soon. We're sending a specific request today to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for 300,000 more N95 masks, specifically for our Health and Hospitals personnel who need them and for our first responders. That supply, in addition to the 120,000 from the State, the 300,000 more we're requesting from the federal government, we could get that soon, that will take us through the coming months. Related to our disease detectives, we are working right now to double the number of disease detectives. One element of that will be training all school nurses to do this work, to do the initial screening. We'll have an update shortly on the exact timeline on the doubling and the protocols we'll use, going forward. But the – one of the most immediate things we'll do is get all of these very effective school nurses into this work immediately. That's going to help us speed up the process.

An important note for all New Yorkers – obviously, there's information out there about coronavirus and there's misinformation and there's confusion. One area that should be crystal clear is that it is absolutely crucial for everyone to keep giving blood. There is no danger in giving blood, but we must maintain our supply. At this moment, our supply is okay, but we're concerned. We have seen some workplace blood drives canceled. That is a worrisome sign. So, we will be working to make sure that as many as possible blood drives continue. We're encouraging all New Yorkers who can to give blood. I'll be doing that myself in the coming days. And a thank you to all New Yorkers who have been giving blood and everyone who works to keep our supply strong. But there is no health risk related to coronavirus in the process of giving blood.

One more update. Yesterday, we talked about later in the day an emergency medical technician who works for the Fire Department tested positive for coronavirus. The information we have at this moment is that that was passed along by a flight attendant who is this individual's girlfriend who had been traveling to an affected area. As a result of this diagnosis, five fellow EMT are in self-quarantine. They are all asymptomatic. The EMT in the timespan that's pertinent here treated 11 patients, but as – when treating these patients wore protective gear. The Department of Health and the FDNY will be reaching these patients today to follow up and do the normal diagnostic work. But the good news is they are identified and the other good news is that the EMT wore protective gear, but we're still going to treat each case obviously very seriously.

And that is a thank you to all New Yorkers who really have been following the guidance in so many ways and helping us to address the situation here in New York City. Now, to talk about the capacity of our Health and Hospitals facilities and all the personnel, like these good people here, who will be part of fighting off this virus here in this city. We want to turn to CEO of Health and Hospitals, Dr. Mitch Katz.

President and CEO Mitchell Katz, Health and Hospitals: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And thank you for having this at Bellevue. Bellevue is the longest running public hospital in the United States. Established prior to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Bellevue was a leader in the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Bellevue was there to provide care with compassion without fear, to provide the very best of care. Also, in the Ebola outbreak, this hospital was the only hospital in New York State to successfully take care of somebody with Ebola who fully recovered and to do that without any other infections occurring to health care personnel. This is a hospital that knows how and knows how to do it with compassion, with love, with competence. It's also a public hospital, which means that people who are undocumented, people without insurance, they know that they can come here, they can come to Bellevue, they don't have to worry that they're going to get a bill that they can't pay, that they're going to be treated as unwelcome. With all of the negative anti-immigrant spirit coming out of Washington, how great that that's not true in New York City, it's not true at Bellevue, and I'm so grateful to you, Mr. Mayor to the City Council for always maintaining that.

We are prepared at Bellevue. We are prepared at the other 10 acute care hospitals of Health and Hospitals. We are prepared at our other 60 outpatient sites. We have known for several weeks that it is likely that we would reach a point where there would be many people seeking our services because of respiratory disease. As the Mayor has explained, 80 percent of people who contract this virus will have little or minimal symptoms, but 20 percent will need healthcare services, and probably about 5 percent of those people will need intensive services such as a breathing tube and a ventilator machine. We are prepared for that. We have been practicing – Bellevue in all our acute care hospitals have plans. Now, those of you in the press may say, well, wait a minute, we've been hearing that hospitals are crowded.

We've been hearing that ICU's, are crowded already – how could you possibly be prepared to take on additional people? And the answer is that in an emergency you change how you operate. You don't continue to operate in the same standard. So, we are prepared at Bellevue and all of our hospitals that were we to have many patients with respiratory distress, we would rapidly discharge those patients who are in the hospital now and do not need to be in the hospital, because they can be safely cared for at home. We would cancel all elective surgeries, so there is a lot of incredibly valuable work that a hospital like this does – we remove gallbladders, we fix hernias, we fix bones, we do arthroscopy, we do bariatric surgery – all very worthwhile. All that stops in an emergency. We have outpatient clinics, Health and Hospitals does 1.1 million outpatient visits a year. In an emergency, we will be canceling our outpatient surgeries. We will be canceling our outpatient visits and we will be directing all our great physicians and nurses and technicians and physician assistants and nurse practitioners and pharmacists to our inpatient areas. We know we're in every hospital. If we needed to set up intensive care beds, someone thoughtfully asked the other day, well, but do you have enough intensive care bed? An intensive care bed is defined by the great nurse who is caring for the patient is not a physical space. If you give me a great nurse as I have in Bellevue, I can turn any space into an intensive care space. What matters is the staffing. What matters is having the appropriate equipment. We have at Health and Hospitals 376 negative pressure rooms. If we needed to double up negative pressure rooms, not something we would ever do in regular practice, where the overwhelming likelihood is you'd have two patients with different diseases – of course they would not go in the negative pressure room together. In the case where we suddenly have many people who've tested positive of COVID-19, we would be able to double up existing spaces. We have practiced on our masks. We have practice on our gowns. We know the different levels of protective equipment that are necessary. We have implemented that in all of our settings. We very much appreciate the efforts on having more testing. That would make a huge difference for us and we greatly appreciate the efforts that you, Mr. Mayor, and the City Council have made to make that happen so that we know who is sick, who is not sick, and that will allow us to take care of people. We are 30,000 employees strong. We will all be taking care of those patients. If we have a large number, Mr. Mayor, Mr. President of the City Council – we are ready. We are prepared.