New Yorkers Could Face Big Fine, Jail After Travel to 19 States
New Yorkers coming back from many states and others traveling into New York could face large fines or jail for violating the travel advisory.
On Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced three additional states meet the metrics to qualify for the travel advisory, requiring individuals who have traveled to New York from those states, all of which have significant community spread, to quarantine for 14 days.
The newly-added states are Delaware, Kansas and Oklahoma. The quarantine applies to any person arriving from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or a state with a 10 percent or higher positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average, officials say.
"As states around the country experience increasing community spread, New York is taking action to ensure the continued safety of our phased reopening. Our entire response to this pandemic has been by the numbers, and we've set metrics for community spread just as we set metrics for everything," Cuomo said. "Three more states have now reached the level of spread required to qualify for New York's travel advisory. We will now require individuals coming from Delaware, Kansas and Oklahoma to quarantine for 14 days. New Yorkers did the impossible - we went from the worst infection rate in the United States to one of the best - and the last thing we need is to see another spike of COVID-19."
The full, updated list of states on the travel advisory is:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Arizona
- California
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Iowa
- Idaho
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- Nevada
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
The travel advisory also requires any New Yorker to quarantine for 14 days after returning from a state on the quarantine list.
"A quarantine doesn’t stop people. It’s not that you ever prohibited someone from entering a state. That is not a quarantine. That is a blockade," Cuomo said.
Melissa DeRosa, the Secretary to Gov. Cuomo, added the federal government regulates airports.
Anyone found violating the quarantine will be subject to a judicial order, placed in a mandatory quarantine and fined, Cuomo added.
“You violate the quarantine, you will have to do mandatory quarantine, and you will be fined," Cuomo said.
According to Cuomo, a person found violating the order could be fined $2,000 for the first violation, $5,000 for a second violation and $10,000 if the person causes "harm."
"This is not a polite recommendation, this is a strong advisory built on the back of the healthcare professionals," Cuomo said. "We are asking folks to take on a big amount of personal responsibility here, to do the right thing for themselves as well as for their families, communities and the rest of us."
A violator could be jailed for up to 15 days, according to the New York State Department of Health.
"The NYS Department of Health expects all travelers to comply and protect public health by adhering to the quarantine. However, the NYS Department of Health and the local health departments reserve the right to issue a mandatory quarantine order, if needed. Anyone who violates a quarantine order may be subject to a civil penalty of up to $10,000 or imprisonment up to 15 days," the New York State Department of Health said.