• New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned in a press conference on Tuesday that “What happens to New York is going to wind up happening to California and Washington state and Illinois.”
• New York is grappling with over 25,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
• “We are just a test case and that’s how the nation should look at it,” Cuomo said.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has a stark warning for people around the country: “What happens to New York is going to wind up happening to California and Washington state and Illinois. We’re just getting there first.”

New York state is grappling with over 25,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, amounting to nearly 6% of global cases.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Cuomo said that the surge in cases in New York is “not a New York phenomenon” and that people around the country should brace for a similar increase.

“Where we are today, you will be in three weeks or four weeks or five weeks or six weeks,” Cuomo said. “We are your future and what we do here will chart the course for what we do in your city and in your community.”

“We are just a test case and that’s how the nation should look at it,” Cuomo said.

New York has ramped up testing for COVID-19 and is turning a convention centre into a treatment centre for coronavirus patients.

“I’m asking you to help New York to help yourselves,” Cuomo said. States have struggled to cope with a shortage of N95 masks and respirators, among other medical equipment, as they seek to treat the spread of the virus.

Cuomo said in a post to his Twitter account that “The federal government must distribute ventilators based on need. We need them in New York NOW.”

He said that “after New York gets past the apex of this pandemic,” he would distribute ventilators wherever they are needed.

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