By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

New York state officials confirmed 6,448 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 37,258 confirmed cases in New York State. This is approximately half the US total of 76,000.

New York City has accounted for nearly six out of 10 cases in the state with more than 21,000.

More than 300 deaths have been reported in the state, with the bulk of deaths in NYC.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the state is scouting additional new sites for temporary hospitals, with a goal of having a 1,000-plus patient overflow facility in each NYC borough as well as Westchester, Rockland, Nassau and Suffolk counties.

These new additions, together with the temporary hospitals that are being built at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and locations at SUNY Stony Brook, SUNY Old Westbury and the Westchester Convention Center, are aimed at building thousands of new beds to bolster existing hospital capacity, with the goal of being open to patients in early- to mid-April. The state is also preparing college dormitories and hotels for emergency beds.

“We know at this point that any scenario will overwhelm the capacity of our healthcare system and we are continuing to work aggressively to increase our state’s hospital capacity and flatten the curve,” Governor Cuomo said. “Our top priority is finding more beds for patients and getting the ventilators we need to ensure our most vulnerable patients are being treated properly, and we are actively scouting new locations for temporary hospital sites.”