The city could have “hundreds of cases” of the coronavirus in coming weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio acknowledged Sunday — as he finally urged people who are sick to stay off the subways.
De Blasio said a person from The Bronx tested positive for the virus overnight, edging up the city’s tally to 13 confirmed patients — adding, “At some point, we could easily be hundreds of cases.
“As best practice, if you are sick [in any capacity], stay off public transport,” de Blasio said.
“If you are sick, you shouldn’t be going to a public event. You shouldn’t be going to work. You shouldn’t be going on the subway,” the mayor told reporters at a city emergency-management office in Downtown Brooklyn.
Last week, de Blasio appeared to dismiss concerns about whether an infected Midtown lawyer rode the train, saying, “The subway is not the issue, the train is not the issue. The issue [with the coronavirus] is prolonged, consistent contact.”
The mayor Sunday offered buses as an option for healthy commuters who don’t want to go on the subway.
“Buses can be very crowded, but if the bus is a less-crowded option and you can use that, please do,” de Blasio said.
The mayor said that in addition to taking precautions regarding mass transit, people can reduce their risk of infection by not touching their faces.
He demonstrated how to cough into your elbow to avoid spreading germs — but later wiped his nose with his right hand.
He said there are now 13 confirmed cases of the virus in the Big Apple, including infected lawyer Lawrence Garbuz, who works in Midtown Manhattan but lives in New Rochelle in Westchester County.
He said 19 people are in mandatory isolation — and 2,176 in voluntary isolation, a figure that “has gone down substantially.”
The mayor identified two places where an infected health-care worker in New Jersey traveled recently in the city: A Westin hotel in Midtown, Manhattan, and the King David Center nursing and rehab facility in Gravesend, Brooklyn.
“A 32-year-old New Jersey health-care provider saw 11 patients [at the Brooklyn facility] while symptomatic but wore a mask. All 11 patients are asymptomatic,” de Blasio said.
The worker “also attended small medical conference in Midtown,” the mayor said, adding that it was a Westin. “All attendees are symptomatic and family is asymptomatic.”
The nursing home said in a statement to The Post on Sunday that the infected worker is a physician’s assistant and, “The CDC is satisfied with our protocols and procedures.”
A rep for Westin said it is complying with CDC recommendations.
As for the potential closing of city schools, de Blasio said, “We’re dealing with a disease that is not fully understood. [But] I will say definitively, everything we’ve seen so far, this is a disease that for a healthy child presents minimal risk.
“Parents want to see the schools keep going as long as it’s safe, want to see their kids getting educated, and we do have a tremendous interest in avoiding the disruption of the city unless there’s a very specific reason to act otherwise.”
Asked if a specific number of coronavirus cases would prompt closure, the mayor replied, “Not as simple as that.
“There’s no simple algorithm. When we get to the point where anything needs to be adjusted, we will.”
Still, he said all international trips involving city school kids have been canceled “out of an abundance of caution,”as the virus sweeps the globe.
He added that “nonessential” international travel for workers employed by the city is on hold, too.
The mayor also announced financial help for small local businesses hurt by virus panic.
He said businesses with fewer than 100 workers that can document a 25 percent loss in receipts because of the virus can apply for interest-free loans of up to $75,000.
Affected businesses with fewer than five employees can apply for grants of up to $6,000, the mayor said.
Additional reporting by Rachel Green