There are now 105 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in New York State, and the total number of confirmed new coronavirus cases in New York City increased to 13 on Sunday, according to officials.

Flanked by medical professionals, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an additional case of the virus Sunday afternoon at a news conference. The mayor said the situation is ever-changing, and community-spread cases will likely continue to grow.

Coronavirus: Coverage in New York City

 

 

"It's also important to say that our public health apparatus is already planning on the assumption that we will be at hundreds of cases soon, and is ready for that reality," de Blasio said.

The count of 13 people who tested positive for the new coronavirus includes 12 New York City residents and a Westchester lawyer currently hospitalized in the city. 

The news conference comes hours after Governor Andrew Cuomo called on the CDC to authorize the use of private labs and automated testing during a news conference of his own at the Northwell Health facility Sunday.

"Hopefully, the CDC acts responsibly and acts quickly,” Cuomo said. “We raise the capacity, we bring a great facility like this online with automated testing. We could then get testing per day up to about 1,000 tests, because the more you test, the more positives you identify, the more people you can isolate and stop the spread. That's why so much of this is about testing."

Cuomo announced Sunday evening that Northwell Health labs have been approved to begin manual testing for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The governor again offered assurances, saying there's more fear and anxiety than the facts justify, though the most vulnerable populations for coronavirus are the elderly and people with pre-existing conditions.

Countries around the world are attempting to curb the spread of the coronavirus, particularly Italy, which has seen more than two hundred deaths.

Shortly after midnight, the country's prime minister announced a wide ranging quarantine for its northern regions, restricting travel for 16 million people — about a quarter of Italy's population.

This is a similar plan to China's, which involved severely limited travel and cancelled public events in the wake of the virus.

Argentina has announced its first death from the coronavirus, making it the first in Latin America. Argentina's Ministry of Health said the patient contracted the disease after a recent trip to Europe, and had multiple other health conditions.

In Egypt, a cruise ship on the Nile River has been placed on quarantine after 45 of the 150 passengers tested positive for the coronavirus.

Q & A: What the Novel Coronavirus Emergency Declaration Does

Those who have already tested positive will be placed in isolation in Egyptian hospitals, health officials said.

If you have any questions, you can text Covid to the 692-692.