[Blitzer:] In New York tonight, an unprecedented new step to contain the coronavirus. CNN's Shimon Prokupecz is in New York. He's got details for us. Shimon, first of all, tell us what you're learning about plans to shut down the New York subway.
[Shimon Prokupecz, Cnn Crime And Justice Correspondent:] Yes, Wolf, as you said, this is unprecedented for the city, for the state. They're going to start shutting down the subway system and bus service all across the five boroughs of New York City starting at 1:00 a.m. And they're really going to be disinfecting every car. They're going to be disinfecting train stations, and really getting deep into some of the areas of the subway. And the police, the NYPD is going to be there, about a thousand officers. We just learn, they're going to be assisting the transit authority. One of the issues on the subways has been the homeless. So they need to get them off the subways. A lot of them have been spending their nights underground, in the subway cars. So they're going to use homeless outreach units to try and get them into shelters, to try and get them off the streets and to places where they can stay. This, of course, is all part of the bigger process for the city of reopening. The governor talking about the last few days, the different phases of which he's going to follow. According to the CDC, that first phase through fourth phase, the key really is a human lives and saving people's lives and making sure there aren't new infections. And he talked about that today, asking about what is the price, how much do you price, what is the price you pay for a human life. And here's what the governor said.
[Gov. Andrew Cuomo:] How much is a human life worth? That's the real discussion that no one is admitting openly or freely. But we should. To me, I say the cost of a human life, a human life is priceless, period. Our reopening plan doesn't have a tradeoff. Our reopening plan says you monitor the data, you monitor the transmission rate, you monitor the hospitalization rate, you monitor the death rate. If it goes up, you have a, quote, unquote, circuit breaker, you stop, you close the valve on reopening.
[Prokupecz:] And all of the rates, Wolf, that the governor is talking about, that is all coming down. He said, we are now coming down the mountain. And those are going to be the key rates, the metrics, by which the governor ultimately decides whether or not to open up the city. Of course, the big question is, when does New York city open up, the five boroughs of New York city, and that still a big question. The governor really not willing to put a timetable on that. He wants to see the city continue to do what it's doing, he wants to see New Yorkers continue to socially distance and those numbers, the hospitalizations and the rates of infections need to keep coming down and then he will decide, Wolf, on when to open the city.
[Blitzer:] Yes, just taking a look at what's going on. All right, thanks very much, Shimon Prokupecz, in New York. Thank you. Let's go from New York to Georgia, where the Atlanta mayor is pushing back against the governor's move in that state, to reopen. We are joined by the Atlanta mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms. Mayor Bottoms, thank you so much for joining us. As Georgia reopens under Governor Kemp's orders, you've remained steadfast in your assistance that Atlanta, the largest city there, is not ready to ease restrictions. So what is your argument for continuing to urge your residents to stay at home?
[Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms  Atlanta, Ga:] Thank you for having me, Wolf. My argument is simple. Nothing has changed about COVID-19. This is still a highly contagious virus and it is hitting our community extremely hard, especially communities of color. We've talked about the numbers in Georgia, and we've talk about the underlying health conditions that make this virus even worse. And all of those conditions are present in our state. And what it really feels like to me anyway is that there is this testing of the orders and willingness to sacrifice people for the sake of our economy. And I'm not willing to sacrifice my mother, who is a senior, and certainly not my children all of whom are asthmatic. And I think that's the way that we have to look at across the board. Who would you be willing to sacrifice for the state of the economy, and I don't think any of us would be willing to do that, which is more reason for us to continue to stay home.
[Blitzer:] Yes, that's a fair point. After you saw residents gathering in crowds in Atlanta over the weekend, you tweeted this warning, quote, the only thing that's changed about COVID-19 is your chance of carrying it. Are Atlantans at greater risk now, because of the state's policy?
[Bottoms:] I really think so, Wolf. I mean, it's springtime in Atlanta. The weather is beautiful. People are tired of being in the house. And for some people, it is an economic consideration that they have bills to pay and they need to get back to work. But for those who don't have those concerns and can continue to stay home, they should, and at least be considerate when they go out. And I saw so many people over the weekend who just had no consideration for putting others and themselves at risk.
[Blitzer:] As you know, a CDC study of eight Georgia hospitals, most of them in your city, Atlanta, found that more than 80 percent of the patients hospitalized with coronavirus were African-Americans. How much of a glaring racial disparity are you seeing there and what, if anything, can you do to fight back?
[Bottoms:] Well, that's not a surprise to me again, Wolf. Because when you look at our underlying conditions that are prevalent throughout the south, they are above the national average. And then you layer on that, the African-American community, our numbers are even higher. So what we are continuing to do is to, one, ask people to stay home, but especially for our vulnerable populations, our senior communities, we are taking food to their doorstep so they don't have to come out. We are continuing to provide resources to people through our small business loan funds and our other assistance funds that we have created throughout the city. But so much of it really is about education, education, education. And that specially for our young people, reminding them that although they may not have any of these underlying conditions, which, by the way, they may because we have such high asthma rates in Atlanta, but even that they don't, that they can take them home to their parents and to their grandparents and it could be deadly.
[Blitzer:] It's a really, really disturbing development. All right, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms of Atlanta, thank you so much for joining us. Good luck to all the folks in your beautiful city. Thanks so much for joining us.
[Bottoms:] Thank you.
[Blitzer:] All right Just ahead, we're learning about U.S intelligence that apparently contradicts the Trump's administration theory that the coronavirus started in a Chinese lab. How much suffering are Americans willing to accept as the nation reopens? We'll take a deeper diver into that question posed by our own, Dr. Anthony posed by Dr. Anthony Fauci. Stay with us.