Cuomo announces ‘safe marriage receptions’ beginning March 15

Gov. Andrew Cuomo had good news today for caterers and couples with wedding plans this year. Event venues in New York State will be able to host wedding receptions at 50% capacity, to a maximum of 150 people, as of March 15, with COVID-19 rapid testing of guests, the governor announced at a midday media briefing.

Plans will have to be approved by the local health department, which will be required to monitor testing, Cuomo said.

The governor warned that if circumstances change — if community spread of the coronavirus surges again and hospital capacity is strained — the new rule is subject to rollback.

“There was virtually no cases of spread as a result of the Bills game,” Cuomo said, referring to an NFL playoff game in Buffalo that was attended by more than 6,700 people. Fans were required to have a negative test results within three days of the game. Fans were required by the Bills organization to get tested by a BioReference Laboratories and have proof of a negative test in order to enter the stadium for the game. Fans also had to submit to a health screening before entering.

When he announced plans for allowing fans to attend the Bills game, Cuomo said if the event was successful in terms of not causing viral spread in the community, the same procedure could be rolled out to reopen other types of businesses and activities.

The governor today also announced that NYC restaurants will be allowed to reopen for indoor dining on Valentine’s Day — again, assuming virus trends don’t spike.

He said “variants of interest” — such as the variants that developed in the U.K., South Africa and Brazil — could “create a different situation.” Much remains unknown about the transmissibility or lethality of the variants, or the efficacy of existing vaccines against the new variants.

“If the facts change then we will have a different situation,” the governor said.

If any region’s hospital capacity hits 85%, it will be subject to a new lockdown.