NEW YORK CITY — The lack of testing capacity and continued high rates of novel coronavirus transmission mean Mayor de Blasio cannot promise schools will reopen in September, he said Monday.

"September is a viable thing to be talking about, but no one is guaranteeing that," de Blasio said. "It's so unclear when we even start on that pathway."

De Blasio, addressing the media during a virtual news conference Monday morning, said New York City would remain under its stay-at-home order until there was absolute proof of low-level transmission.

That proof would rely on the federal government provided testing supplies the city cannot find, and for which de Blasio has been pleaded for weeks. City hospitals are currently facing a shortage of swabs needed to conduct COVID-19 testing.



"We need to know a lot of testing is coming and it will be sustained," de Blasio said. "I don't think any of us believe that will be coming in the next few weeks." To keep up to date with coronavirus developments in NYC, sign up for Patch's news alerts and newsletter.



De Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo sparred over schools last weekend when de Blasio announced city schools would remain closed for the rest of the semester and Cuomo retorted hours later that was the mayor's "opinion."

The back-and-forth spurred a request from Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams that both New York lawmakers "cut the c---."

De Blasio said he and Cuomo were in constant communication, even after the New York Times reported the mayor resorted to a last-minute text message to update Cuomo on his schools. The mayor pointed to city and state data that show continued widespread coronavirus transmission.