New York expects spike in coronavirus cases after big batch of overnight tests

New York (Reuters): The state of New York tested 8,000 people for the coronavirus overnight in what may be the largest batch of testing to date in the United States, likely leading to a spike in positive cases once results come in, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday.

With the United States slow to roll out mass testing for the virus - which has spread rapidly to become a global pandemic - some health officials have feared the number of known cases lags far behind reality.

Nearly 9,000 cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported in the United States, more than 3,000 of them in the New York state, according to state health departments. 

Some 151 deaths had been reported nationwide, including 21 in New York and 66 in Washington State as of 11 p.m. Wednesday.

“I think the spread of the virus is well in advance of any of these numbers,” Cuomo told MSNBC television. “We did 8,000 overnight, which is one of the largest number I think ever done in the country. We haven’t gotten this morning’s tally, but you’re going to see a jump astronomically - I have no doubt - because we did so many tests.” The real number of cases may be 10 times the number of confirmed positives, or even more, Cuomo said.

As a result, the state may see 110,000 hospitalizations and about 25,000 to 37,000 people needing intensive care unit beds at peak time in five to six weeks, the governor projected.