John, 

Long Island continues to be hit hard by the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, with many of our neighbors celebrating Easter or Passover away from their families. I wanted to take the time today to inform you of some of the many updates from the past few days with ongoing efforts to respond to the coronavirus outbreak in our community. 

• After Suffolk officials told me just over a week ago that the county stockpile of surgical masks, regular sized n95 masks, gowns, face shields and body bags was empty, I immediately issued an urgent call for help. The White House and President Trump responded right away, sending 251,200 n95 masks to Suffolk County and an additional 100,000 n95 masks to Northwell hospitals west of Suffolk.

• On top of the n95 masks, I was also able to help secure 250,000 surgical masks for Suffolk County’s amazing front line workers.

• I worked closely with a great organization called Tunnel to Towers to secure a donation of 10,000 KN95 masks that were delivered to Suffolk County this past Saturday.

• Also on Friday, a new and free COVID-19 drive thru testing center opened at the County Center in Riverhead at 100 Center Drive in Riverhead. If you need to make an appointment, call 845-553-8030. This is one of several new testing locations on Long Island that are being sent to hot spots and are key to locating, identifying, and containing the virus. This is in addition to the ProHealth drive thru testing center in Riverhead and the Stony Brook drive thru testing center.

• We have seen so many New Yorkers step up and are inspired by their uplifting stories. 22 nurses from Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse volunteered to come to Stony Brook University to help Suffolk County in our time of need. Also, some grateful East End residents organized a “ride of smiles and gratitude” to help provide moral support to our healthcare heroes.

• My daughter, Arianna, and I were honored to volunteer in Riverhead at the Island Harvest Food Bank. It was heartwarming to see just how many of our neighbors are stepping up to take care of each other in this time of need.

To successfully defeat the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, we can't approach this as Republicans and Democrats. I will continue to work with partners at all levels of government to get us through these difficult times. While progress is being made, there remains much more work to do. We must overcome this virus together, and come out the other side stronger than ever. Please stay home whenever possible, stay safe, thank our front line warriors, continue to share your stories and remain healthy.

Be Well and Best Wishes,

Lee Zeldin, Member of Congress (NY-01)