Cuomo: Hospitals and Group Homes May Reopen Doors to Visitors, at Their Discretion

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced that hospitals and group homes in New York State will be allowed to accept visitors at their discretion. Any facility that chooses to allow visitors must follow state guidelines, including time-limited visits and requiring visitors to wear PPE and be subject to symptom and temperature checks. The hospital visitation program expands on a pilot program that was launched in May, which demonstrated that hospitals could provide safe visitation for patients and families. Hospitals statewide will now be able to provide visitation.

Group homes certified by the NYS Office for People with Developmental Disabilities will be allowed to accept visitors beginning Friday provided they adhere to state guidance and certify compliance to OPWDD prior to commencing visitation. The prohibition on nursing home visitors remains in place as the state Department of Health continues to review.

Cuomo also announced the U.S. Open will be held in Queens without fans from August 31st to September 13th. The USTA will take extraordinary precautions to protect players and staff, including robust testing, additional cleaning, extra locker room space and dedicated housing and transportation.