New York City was one of the first American cities struck by COVID-19, and among the
hardest hit, becoming an epicenter for the nation. But New York City, primarily due to the
resolve and ingenuity of everyday New Yorkers, showed the way forward in responding to
and addressing this enormous international health, economic, and humanitarian crisis. The
city rapidly implemented a comprehensive mobilization of personnel and resources, including
an unprecedented health response predicated on science and data; the overnight creation of
new programs to combat hunger at scale; the procurement and distribution of 100 million
pieces of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to frontline workers; the adaptive use of
technology to maintain critical services; the redeployment of thousands of City workers to
tackle emergent issues such as social distancing compliance; and the creative use of streets
and sidewalks for recreation, travel, and commerce.
New York City monitored the evolving science around COVID-19 and continuously expanded
the key, vital aspects of social distancing, testing, and contact tracing throughout the City. It
deployed a wide array of public health measures, including education and critical outreach
campaigns; distribution of vital supplies such as masks; placement of large numbers of testing
sites throughout the city; mobilization of contact tracers and take care ambassadors; and
constant response and recovery programs. As a result of programs like these and the diligent
response of more than 8 million New Yorkers, the City has gone from its initial high infection
rates to its current low levels of infection and transmission (among the lowest in the country).
In April 2020, the City also launched the Racial Inclusion and Equity Taskforce in response
to the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on communities of color. The taskforce has
monitored response in affected neighborhoods and among vulnerable populations. It has also
identified key disparities through analysis and dialogue with affected communities. The City
also conducted outreach and engagement through 10 Sector Advisory Councils, convening
experts in such fields as labor and small business to inform the City’s response.
This chapter provides a summary of the City’s COVID-19 response through the MMR reporting
period of June 30, 2020. It cannot capture the rapid and complex nature of the efforts, but
it lays out key aspects of the City’s response.
FRONT LINE HEALTH RESPONSE
The City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and NYC Health + Hospitals
(NYC H+H) have a long history of combatting infectious diseases and preparing for emergent
health threats. COVID-19 exceeded all modern-day epidemics on a global scale and tested every
facet of our health care system, from post-acute care to ambulatory care to the bed capacity
of our 11 acute care hospitals. The City rapidly expanded the bed and staffing capacity of
its public hospitals, including the creation of new field hospitals; surged critical supplies and
resources to the city’s other hospitals and nursing homes; and activated and expanded new
technologies such as telemedicine services.
Starting in February, DOHMH conducted disease surveillance efforts and the epidemiologic
investigation to inform response operations and decision-making, including how different
age groups, racial demographics, neighborhoods and communities are all experiencing this
public health emergency. DOHMH distributed over 1 million face masks to nursing homes
Page 4 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
from its emergency response warehouse and began
filling orders for face masks from hospitals and other
healthcare facilities. In March, DOHMH began to receive
PPE and other supplies from the federal Strategic
National Stockpile, New York State, and other sources
and made weekly “push” deliveries of PPE to every
hospital and nursing home in New York City. Through
June 30, 2020, more than 98 million pieces of PPE
were provided to hospitals, nursing homes, and other
healthcare providers across the City. In the last week of
March, DOHMH delivered over 3,100 ventilators, which
it received from State and federal stockpiles, to New
York City hospitals.
In early March, NYC H+H stood up a clinician-led
COVID-19 hotline that allowed New Yorkers to call
with their COVID-19 health concerns and receive
expert guidance. At its peak, the hotline received over
5,000 calls a day. In addition, NYC H+H aggressively
scaled up telemedicine services, going from just 500
virtual visits in the month prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, to nearly 57,000 in the first three weeks of the pandemic—
and a total of over 289,000 televisits by the end of June.
COVID-19 created patient loads well beyond our health care system’s baseline capacities, especially in intensive care
units (ICUs). NYC H+H’s facilities quickly re-organized and transformed spaces into COVID-19 critical care units, which
included increasing the number of intensive care beds. NYC H+H was able to triple overall ICU capacity. It also stood up
a 350-bed field hospital, Roosevelt Island Medical Center, equipped and staffed within three weeks, that accepted over
600 patients. Activating its waterfront properties, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC)
conducted dredging to prepare Pier 90 for the arrival of the USNS Comfort hospital ship while simultaneously converting
its space at Brooklyn Cruise Terminal to a 1,000-bed temporary hospital. In a collaborative effort to help New York
City health care facilities mitigate staffing shortages, DOHMH provided health care workers through the NYC Medical
Reserve Corps, comprised of over 2,000 medical professionals mobilized in response to the public health emergency.
DOHMH also implemented a liaison program with assigned points of contact, who reached out daily to the city’s
nursing homes and independent hospitals. Requests were collected for general guidance on City and state policies,
PPE needs, and staffing support. The City also constantly communicated and partnered to support its broader health
care and hospital networks.
Although the City’s emergency life-saving measures were robust, as outlined above, COVID-19 tragically represents
the largest mass fatality incident in modern NYC history. Drawing from expertise developed post-9/11, the NYC Office
of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) led the City’s response to the unprecedented number of deaths by conducting
medico-legal investigations as well as serving as the City’s mortuary. OCME partnered with NYC Emergency Management
(NYCEM) to help 135 NYC hospitals expand and manage their own morgue capacity, creating temporary morgue
capacity in healthcare facilities throughout the City. OCME also rapidly established four portable mortuary units in
Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, to ensure dignified and respectful treatment of the deceased.
The City has taken unprecedented measures to protect New Yorkers, including our heroic frontline workers at private
and public healthcare facilities, from the spread of COVID-19. Through June 30, 2020, more than 98 million pieces of
PPE and more than 3,300 contracted and volunteer staff were provided to hospitals, nursing homes, and other care
facilities throughout the city. As it became clear that such supplies were not readily available, the City through NYCEDC
undertook an unprecedented effort to coordinate, partner with, and drive approximately 70 local manufacturers to stand
up local supply chains from scratch to produce and distribute critical medical supplies. Through June, these partnerships
resulted in the local production of over 3.6 million medical gowns, 4.7 million face shields, 190,000 test kits, and 1,330
bridge ventilators. Beyond providing much needed medical equipment, local production of this equipment supported
nearly 3,000 jobs in the City while strengthening our emergency preparedness.
COLLABORATING TO DELIVER RESULTS: COVID-19 | Page 5
TEST AND TRACE
On June 1, the City announced universal testing for all New Yorkers and launched the NYC Test & Trace Corps to
reduce the spread of COVID-19. Since the first days of the pandemic, the City has sought to expand testing capacity
throughout the City, by partnering not only with national reference labs, but also local ones. The City has pursued
strategic private, community, and non-profit partnerships, while constantly encouraging and pursuing new innovations
in testing. As a result, the City now has capacity to perform more than 50,000 tests per day, a considerable increase
from the initial days, when its capacity was just a few hundred tests per day. The City has continued to ramp up its
citywide testing capacity at community testing sites operated by NYC H+H and through a wide, diverse network of
other private and community partners. It has brought more than 200 new walk-in sites on line, spread across the five
boroughs, to ensure that testing is available in the hardest hit neighborhoods, communities of color, and places that
continue to experience periodic spikes of COVID-19. In addition, NYCEDC properties, NYC Parks recreation centers,
and several libraries were converted into sites for COVID-19 testing.
NYC H+H leads the NYC Test & Trace Corps in close collaboration with DOHMH. Through Test & Trace Corps, New
Yorkers receive free, safe, and confidential testing for COVID-19. The program emphasizes the core tenets of combating
COVID-19: testing as many people as possible and tracing the contacts of those who are identified as positive. The
NYC Test & Trace Corps manages COVID-19 by identifying early, and limiting future contacts of, anyone infected with
the virus. It ensures that anyone with the virus receives care and can safely isolate to prevent the spread. Through
the Take Care initiative, the NYC Test & Trace Corps connects COVID-19 positive patients to care and help them stay
isolated at home, in a hotel, or at a healthcare facility if necessary. Contact tracers manage a process to determine if
individuals who test positive need medical attention, offer services to patients at home or in hotels (including meals
and medications), and create lists of everyone patients have had contact with since the onset of symptoms. By the end
of June, the City’s Test & Trace Corps reached 86 percent of total cases in the City. The program has continued to grow
and is now reaching 96 percent of COVID-19 cases citywide.
EDUCATION
New York City made the difficult decision to close school buildings for in-person instruction beginning on March 16,
At the same time, it provided innovative new resources at scale to students, parents, and teachers. These included
remote learning, free meals, and other support services for 1.1 million public school students.
To ensure that all students were connected and able to learn from home through the end of June, the City distributed
over 310,000 internet-enabled iPads to students. To support the families of first responders, health care providers,
transit workers, and other frontline workers, the City created 178 Regional Enrichment Centers across all five boroughs
that care for children while their parents served the City in its time of need. In addition, the City provided free meals
to all New Yorkers at Meal Hubs across the city.
The 2020–2021 school year began on September 16 for remote student-teacher orientation. The City is also preparing
to reopen physical schools, making it the largest school system in the nation to do so.
SAFEGUARDING OUR MOST VULNERABLE
During the pandemic, food insecurity rose dramatically as the economy was put on hold, schools closed, and hundreds of
thousands of residents lost their jobs. To meet these challenges, the City launched large-scale, multi-language education
and support programs to reach all New Yorkers, particularly our most vulnerable and hardest-hit populations. Public
education and awareness efforts included targeted robocalls, live calls from outreach staff to vulnerable seniors, and
targeted text messages via NotifyNYC. The City also expanded its wellness call program to all seniors and vulnerable
residents in the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) with the goal to check on residents’ health and well-being
and connect them to basic necessities such as medicine and food.
Page 6 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
ESTABLISHING FOOD SECURITY
New York City has also taken bold and effective steps to make sure every New Yorker has access to the food they need
during the crisis, regardless of age, disability, income, race or ethnicity, neighborhood, immigration and citizenship status,
medical risk and underlying health conditions, dietary restrictions, employment status, housing status, or eligibility for
federal assistance. In March, Mayor de Blasio appointed a City Food Czar to create and operationalize a cross-agency
effort to feed hungry New Yorkers and ensure a secure food supply chain. As a result, the City launched the Feeding New
York Plan and the GetFood NYC Program, which served more than 130 million free meals through the home delivery
programs and DOE Meal Hubs at over 500 sites across the City. The City also invested $25 million in direct assistance to
support emergency food providers—pantries and soup kitchens—that experienced increases in demand and costs, and
established a Food Reserve to bolster our capacity to support this network in the future. In addition to support from the
Department for the Aging, the Department of Education, the Department of Youth and Community Development, the
Department of Information Technology and Telecommunication, and the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Taxi
and Limousine Commission hired 9,000 TLC-licensed drivers who worked nearly 37,000 shifts to deliver more than 60
million meals directly to New Yorkers’ homes. In order to publicize these programs, the City conducted outreach in 11
languages, reassigned staff to manage increased virtual and remote interviews for enrollment in federal food assistance
programs, and made robocalls to more than 400,000 senior citizens throughout the five boroughs.
ENSURING ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH
The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly affected the mental health of New Yorkers. To ensure that services continued to
reach people who need care, nearly all of Thrive NYC’s 30 programs continued to deliver services during the pandemic.
Many programs—specifically those that reach New Yorkers with the highest need and those that strengthen crisis
prevention and response—continued to provide in-person services, including in over 100 shelters for families with
children, over 40 runaway and homeless youth residences and drop-in centers, and at 46 high-need sites within the
NYC Health + Hospitals system. Mobile treatment teams continued to provide intensive, ongoing, community-based
treatment to people with serious mental illness, many of whom are experiencing homelessness. Students in high-need
schools and students enrolled in school-based mental health clinics continued to receive counseling remotely, and
School Response Clinicians offered wellness check-in calls and individual mental health sessions remotely to students
in emotional distress or crisis. Furthermore NYC Well, the City’s comprehensive mental health helpline, responded to
an increased need: the service answered 17 percent more calls in May 2020 than in May 2019.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, ThriveNYC also
launched new engagement strategies to eliminate
barriers to care for particularly high-need populations.
For example, to reach veterans during the pandemic,
ThriveNYC and the Department of Veterans’ Services
launched Mission: Vet Check, in which volunteers
were trained to make supportive check-in calls to
veterans. Over 12,800 calls to veterans were made
resulting in over 300 referrals for additional help
with issues like food assistance, unemployment, and
COVID-19 testing information.
ENGAGING SENIORS
In addition to ensuring that certain traditional
essential services to home-bound seniors, including
meal delivery and case management, remained
seamless, the Department for the Aging (DFTA) and
its partners quickly worked to transition many of
the services that older New Yorkers came to rely on,
especially those provided in congregate settings, to services that could be accessible at home. Before and through the
pandemic, DFTA served 170,994 senior center participants. Key areas of focus during the pandemic for senior center
participants, and for all older New Yorkers and their caregivers, included social engagement, virtual programming,
social isolation-related outreach and services, meals, support groups, assessment, and linkage and referral to essential
resources.
COLLABORATING TO DELIVER RESULTS: COVID-19 | Page 7
In May, the COVID-19 Heat Wave Plan was announced to keep vulnerable New Yorkers cool and safe at home, create
safer summer cooling options, and prevent and respond to power outages. The City created a $55 million program
to provide over 74,000 air conditioners to New Yorkers who were 60 years old and older and had income below 60
percent of the state median income, and did not have air conditioning at home. The Get Cool NYC program addressed
the higher risk for indoor heat exposure for New Yorkers due to staying inside for social distancing, especially among
those most at risk of COVID-19 complications. By mid-June, the City had reached out to over 180,000 low-income
seniors. In the first few weeks of the program, the City installed eight times as many air conditioners as it did in all of
last year under the Home Energy Assistance Program.
In a multipronged approach to combat social isolation among older New Yorkers, DFTA network reached 145,596
older New Yorkers through 904,442 social engagement calls and 100,827 clients through additional wellness calls. This
effort was conducted by DFTA and provider staff, supported by over 1,000 volunteers. DFTA transitioned its Friendly
Visiting program, which matches homebound older adults with volunteers who do weekly in-person visits, to a remote
program. In June, DFTA launched a social isolation media campaign to raise public awareness about the problem of
social isolation among seniors, with audio and visual media in English, Spanish, Russian, and Chinese. More than 200
New Yorkers signed up as Friendly Visiting volunteers during the media campaign in June.
PROTECTING TENANTS
At the outset of the crisis, the Human Resources Administration (HRA) and the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants (MOPT)
worked together to initiate a wide-ranging tenant engagement strategy to inform tenants of the risks posed by the virus
and to keep New Yorkers in their homes while much of the City’s economy was put into lockdown. This campaign was
accomplished through the wide distribution of up-to-date fact sheets to tenants and by consistently posting the latest
public health guidance online. HRA designated eligibility specialists and case managers as essential workers, ensuring
that social services “first responders” remained on-hand to assist New Yorkers in need. In late March, HRA initiated
an emergency process for all eligible New Yorkers—including those not already receiving public assistance—to apply
for public assistance and rent and utility grants and arrears online through the ACCESSHRA benefits portal. In April,
MOTP, the Public Engagement Unit, HRA, and 311 launched the Tenant Helpline, a fully language-accessible legal
services and case management referral hub available to all NYC tenants regardless of income or immigration status.
This helped New Yorkers navigate housing insecurity created and exacerbated by the pandemic. Working with the
Department of Buildings, MOPT initiated the Three Quarter-House (TQH) PPE program, which distributed PPE to single
adults receiving public assistance and living in City-monitored TQH housing. In May, MOPT and HRA launched Project
Parachute/Homebase, a housing assistance collaboration with Enterprise, a community non-profit organization, and
the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, to translate Notices of Eviction into a variety of languages. These initiatives
helped to ensure that tenants knew their rights, had the resources necessary to avoid eviction, and were able to stay
in their homes regardless of immigration status.
In public housing, NYCHA took proactive steps to ensure the safety and well-being of the 400,000 New Yorkers
residing in NYCHA properties. From the beginning of the crisis through the end of Fiscal 2020, NYCHA staff delivered
approximately 2.35 million communications to residents and other stakeholders in the form of phone calls, robocalls, and
emails advising about the risks of the virus and measures to prevent its spread. NYCHA launched a COVID-19 resource
website and posted safety posters translated into Spanish, Chinese, and Russian at all 316 NYCHA developments.
Working with Tenant Associations, NYCHA staff helped mobilize federal Housing and Urban Development Tenant
Participation funds to cover the distribution of free meals in coordination with New York City’s GetFoodNYC program,
related transportation, face coverings and PPE, and other supplies for tenants. NYCHA deployed targeted outreach
programs for its most vulnerable residents, including those with active social service cases, those with life-sustaining
equipment, and seniors. NYCHA also took special precautions and preventative actions to ensure that the physical state
of its facilities was in compliance with public health guidance to keep residents safe, including deploying two vendors
to provide regular disinfection services at developments citywide.
SERVING homeless NEW YORKERS
The Department of Homeless Services (DHS) and its not-for-profit partners delivered essential, front-line social services,
providing shelter and expanding outreach to New Yorkers experiencing street homelessness and offering temporary
housing to all those in need. DHS worked closely with public health officials to develop a multi-pronged approach
for implementing City guidance on isolation and disease mitigation. In keeping with DOHMH guidance, DHS ensured
Page 8 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
that all shelters were regularly and comprehensively cleaned; implemented an active monitoring system for clients and
staff who had experienced (or were experiencing) symptoms; and coordinated closely with DOHMH and NYC H+H
staff to provide care for the sick. To protect its most vulnerable clients—including those over 70 years of age who were
neither sick nor symptomatic—DHS made special accommodations in dedicated shelters in its system for residents to
isolate. To inhibit the virus’s spread, DHS strategically relocated clients out of larger shelters with congregate settings
to commercial hotels, which were able to provide greater social distancing for the clients who were relocated and
protected the residents of the targeted shelters from which they relocated.
All front-line DHS and HRA staff were provided with essential PPE such as masks and other face coverings, and DHS
distributed the same resources to clients. As a further safety measure, DHS coordinated with NYC H+H to contract
or hire new nursing staff at all intake centers to conduct 24/7 front-door screenings, on top of their intake centers’
existing medical clinic capacity, and ensured 24/7 clinical staffing at all isolation locations as well. DHS is also proactively
offering testing to all adult clients, systematically going shelter-by-shelter to provide easy-to-access, free testing on-site.
The DHS HOME-STAT program conveyed the City’s latest guidance to social service provider partners and directly to
clients experiencing unsheltered homelessness. DHS rolled out a screening process to hundreds of street outreach, Safe
Haven, and Drop-In Center staff to identify unsheltered individuals who may be experiencing possible symptoms and
connect them to testing and assessment at NYC H+H. As of August 18, outreach teams have conducted more than
53,000 engagements related to COVID-19.
DHS also brought new resources online to serve unsheltered New Yorkers, including hundreds of new Safe Haven and
stabilization beds, several in commercial hotel locations. DHS intensified outreach efforts at high-priority, end-of-theline subway stations and gave outreach teams the ability to conduct expedited intake processes with clients directly on
the platform to bring more unsheltered New Yorkers out of the subways amid the COVID-19 crisis.
SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESSES
To support small businesses during the crisis, the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) quickly established
financing programs including the Small Business Continuity Loan and Employee Retention Grant program. SBS helped
small businesses obtain 4,750 financing awards totaling $122.6 million—triple the number of awards and a 60 percent
increase in funding compared to the prior fiscal year.
In June, SBS established its Business Restart Hotline, which allows business owners to reach out for assistance and
information on how to reopen safely. The Hotline received over 19,616 calls in Fiscal 2020. The Workforce1 Career Center
System pivoted to remote service delivery, focusing on connections to jobs for essential work and on training. Over 400
New Yorkers participated in trainings made available online. As of June 30, SBS had distributed more than 5.1 million
face coverings to small businesses through its network of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), Chambers of Commerce,
and other community partners.
NYCEDC assisted small businesses across the City and worked to maximize their access to federal support programs.
NYCEDC provided information about applying to Small Business Administration programs to over 5,700 companies and
provided direct application assistance to more than 300 small businesses. NYCEDC also developed partnerships with
small banks and community development financial institutions, through which over 60 local businesses successfully
submitted loan applications.
In June, the Racial Inclusion and Equity Taskforce announced the creation of the Restaurant Revitalization Program.
Implemented by NYC Opportunity and HRA, and supported by the Mayor’s Fund, the program will support unemployed
and underemployed restaurant workers affected by COVID-19 and their employers, with a focus on New York City’s
hardest-hit communities. This program aims to partner with restaurants committed to paying a full minimum wage
to its workers, with tips on top; increasing race and gender equity; and making their meals accessible to vulnerable
community members, including those who are food insecure, essential workers, or others who are facing challenges
in a time of need. Collectively, the City and the advocacy group One Fair Wage will direct $3 million into some of the
City’s hardest-hit communities to support approximately 100 restaurants and 1,000 displaced restaurant workers, as
well as providing hard-hit communities with approximately 53,000 meals over 6 to 12 weeks.
COLLABORATING TO DELIVER RESULTS: COVID-19 | Page 9
ACCESS TO OPEN SPACE
Warmer weather brought new challenges to the fight against COVID-19. In April, the City announced its Open Streets
initiative to allow New Yorkers to safely experience summer in New York City. Open Streets are streets that are closed
to through traffic and only accessible for local access, allowing pedestrians and cyclists to use the roadbed for socially
distant recreation. Open Streets locations were selected through community engagement and data analysis to include
neighborhoods that lack open space and were hard hit by COVID-19. The program includes streets managed by local
precincts or local partners such as BIDs, block associations, and civic groups. By June 2020, 64 miles of Open Streets
had been announced across all five boroughs, among which were blocks in some of the City’s most impacted areas,
such as Stanley Avenue in East New York, Rockaway Freeway in Far Rockaway, and 101st Street in East Harlem. The
Open Restaurants outdoor dining plan was announced in June 2020, allowing restaurants to temporarily use open
space on sidewalks and curbsides. The program has supported the City’s restaurants by eliminating a cumbersome
application process while promoting social distancing. Open Streets and Open Restaurants will continue in New York
City until October 31 and will begin again summer 2021.
In March, the Department of Parks and Recreation created the Social Distancing Ambassador program to encourage
communities to follow social distancing guidelines and stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. In May 2020, the
Social Distancing Ambassador program was expanded by the Mayor’s Office. In coordination with 14 agencies, City
employees were deployed throughout City parks to monitor adherence to social distancing guidelines and to educate
residents about the importance of social distancing through the distribution of literature and face coverings. In addition,
approximately 800 school safety agents were deployed to subway stations throughout the five boroughs to also
educate New Yorkers about social distancing and distribute face coverings. From May 1 to the end of Fiscal Year
2020, over 2,200 Social Distancing Ambassadors from the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Department of
Environmental Protection, the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings, the Law Department, the Department of
Design and Construction, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene, the Department of Correction, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, the Department
of Citywide Planning, the Department of Buildings, the NYC Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Sanitation, and the Fire
Department interacted with over 100,000 members of the public and distributed more than 3.3 million face coverings
in City parks.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
For additional information on items referenced in the narrative, go to:
• Department of Health and Mental Hygiene COVID-19 Information page: