Assemblyman William Colton (D – Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, and Dyker Heights) doesn’t believe that shutting down restaurants for indoor dining is the sole factor in slowing the coronavirus spread.

“The chart released by Governor Cuomo between September and November of 2020, clearly showing that out of 46,000 data points of Exposure the percentage of infection rate tracing data is concluding that 73.81 % of exposure is from private household gatherings. The health care services are at 7.81% which is a second-high tracing exposure rate. The education employees are at 2%, travel is at 1.05%, religious services at 0.69%, retail at 0.61%, transit and parks are at 0.96%. Ironically restaurants and bars are at 1.43%, which is far lower than private household gatherings and health care services. Yet they were ordered to shutdown indoor dining which is the only way of surviving for small businesses especially during the winter season,” Colton stated.

“We need to look at the data pointing to sources of infection more carefully. By making decisions on business closure clearly indicates that we should reconsider the closing of indoor dining. The family holiday get-togethers and social gatherings must be planned more carefully. We can avoid penalizing businesses that are complying and avoid another business shutdown and still bring infection rates down by being diligent in wearing masks, practice social distancing, and washing hands frequently. Let’s beat this virus together and avoid another shutdown!” Colton added.