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| - The governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut on Wednesday issued a travel advisory saying visitors from US states with accelerating COVID-19 infection rates must quarantine for 14 days. The advisory effective at midnight applies to travelers from Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Washington, Utah and Texas, New York's governor Andrew Cuomo said. The announcement comes as COVID-19 numbers in New York -- once the epicenter of the global pandemic, where more than 20,000 people have succumbed to the disease -- trend downward while infection rates spike elsewhere. Cuomo said the advisory was aimed at keeping infection and hospitalization rates in the New York area low as the region slowly re-opens businesses and activities. "They could literally bring the infection with them," Cuomo said of out-of-state travelers. "It wouldn't be malicious or malevolent, but it would still be real." Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont said his state would inform hotels and short-term rentals about the self-quarantine requirements. Deidre Gifford, Connecticut's public health head, said the states would update jointly the list of impacted states weekly. In New York, Cuomo said any visitors found violating self-quarantine rules would be subject to a judicial order and self-funded mandatory quarantine, as well as potential fines of $2,000 for a first violation and $5,000 for a second. "Nationally we should admit the reality," Cuomo said. "Denial is not a life strategy." The advisory marks a stark shift in the nature of the coronavirus' spread in the United States, where just months ago several states were mandating quarantine for visiting New Yorkers. mdo/bgs
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