"Women will not be forced to be alone when they are giving birth"

Women preparing to give birth at some hospitals in New York City will no longer have to labor alone, nor will they need to remain isolated from their partner or family while recovering in the hospital after delivery, state officials said.

Melissa DeRosa, the secretary to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, announced an executive order would be issued on Saturday requiring all hospitals in New York, both public and private, to comply with the latest guidance issued by the New York State Department of Health…

The NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital network, where about 25,000 infants are delivered each year, and the Mount Sinai Hospital System, both private, had instituted the ban on support persons in response to the coronavirus epidemic, resulting in an outcry from expectant parents, doulas and midwives, and a petition that has received more than 600,000 signatures.