Coronavirus update: The Navy’s ‘floating hospital’ is on its way to boost city’s health care capacity
The state is in talks with the Army Corp of Engineers to build backup hospitals
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday that President Trump is dispatching the naval hospital ship USNS Comfort to New York City to help alleviate what could be a catastrophic shortage of hospitals as the number of novel coronavirus patients increases.
The vessel and crew are just one component of a massive effort to build more hospitals beds in New York, especially intensive care beds. Experts have predicted the COVID-19 outbreak will peak in 45 days, Cuomo said Monday, setting an unprecedented deadline.
New York State has more confirmed cases — 2,382 — than any other state in the union. Of these, 1,339 are in New York City.
“It’s an extraordinary step, [the Comfort] is literally a floating hospital,” Cuomo said at a livestreamed press conference.