NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Mayor Bill de Blasio is expressing support for imposing a travel ban in wake of a new and seemingly more infectious strain of the coronavirus in England as Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced three airlines have agreed to test passengers flying into New York from the United Kingdom.
So far, more than 30 countries, including Canada, India, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland, have banned or restricted travel from the U.K. and de Blasio said it's time for the United States to take action.
"It's really in my view it's time for a travel ban from Europe given what we're seeing with this new strain or at minimum a requirement that anyone getting on a plane has proof that they have a negative test if they're coming out of Europe," de Blasio said during his briefing Monday. "We're going to need help from the federal government, we're going to need help from the airline industry."
On Sunday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he wanted a ban on flights from Britain to New York City.
“Right now, this variant in the U.K. is getting on a plane and flying to JFK (Airport),” Cuomo said. “We have about six flights a day coming in from the U.K. and we have done absolutely nothing.”
The governor announced Monday that he asked British Airways, Delta and Virgin Atlantic to require COVID-19 tests before flights leave the U.K. for New York's John F. Kennedy Airport.
All three airlines have voluntarily agreed to do pre-boarding testing.
"I would not be doing my job as governor of New York if I sat here and let the federal incompetence create another emergency and disaster that costs the lives of New Yorkers," Cuomo said.
He again asked the federal government to either mandate testing on people flying into the country from the U.K. or restrict flights.
"Why are we doing nothing?" he said. "When you do not require the U.K. flights to be tested, you are allowing thousands of U.K. passengers to arrive here every day. The authorities say they haven't found the strain here yet, they are science based, until they find the strain they will say there is no strain. I believe, intuitively, it's already here because if it's been flying around the world it will be here. "
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Health officials in the U.K. said the new strain could be 70% more contagious but it's unclear whether it's more lethal. They expressed confidence that the vaccines now being rolled out would still be effective against it.
De Blasio expressed concerns about travel and gatherings over the holidays causing another surge in the virus, as was the case after Thanksgiving.
“We're really concerned about Christmas and New Year's," the mayor said. "This is a time when we really could see an intensive spike and we can't handle another spike so we need to, for all of us, be careful.”
He is urging New Yorkers to wear face masks, practice social distancing, keep gatherings small and avoid travel.
“The new strain makes me even more worried about what might happen and how we have to guard against it,” de Blasio said. “We need to be aggressive. This is a decisive moment. If we get it right now, if we're careful during the holidays and we give time for the vaccine to be distributed we can really turn the corner.”
The city has been is focused on getting the vaccine administered to as many people as possible as quickly as possible.
The mayor said as of Sunday, 18,000 doses of the vaccine had been administered in the city.
The city's daily indicators showed 184 patients have been admitted to hospitals for suspected COVID-19.
Statewide, New York reported 9,000 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday and 109 additional deaths.
More than 6,300 people are currently hospitalized with the virus in New York.