Day: May 6, 2025

SUE DONOGHUE, who has served as Mayor Eric Adams’ Parks Commissioner since February 2022, will resign by May 2025’s end.

The post Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue to resign appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

TRAVELERS WHO AREN’T REAL ID COMPLIANT by the Wednesday, May 7 deadline will still be allowed to fly but should be prepared for extra scrutiny

The post Homeland Security: Travelers without Real ID can still fly, but expect extra hurdles appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

THE U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION on Tuesday, May 6 announced it will expand unannounced inspections at foreign manufacturing facilities.

The post FDA will step up impromptu inspections at foreign food, medical production plants appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

THE NYPD HAS BEGUN issuing criminal summonses instead of traffic tickets for cyclists committing low-level offenses like running red lights.

The post NYPD shifts to criminal summonses for cyclists appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

St. DOMINIC CHURCH in Bensonhurst dedicated new statues of St. John XXIII and St. Teresa of Calcutta (aka Mother Teresa) on May 4.

The post St. Dominic Church restores vandalized statues appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

THE DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN IS UNITING IN PRAYER with the College of Cardinals in a Mass organized to coincide with the start of the Conclave.

The post Diocese of Brooklyn will pray in solidarity with Cardinals as Papal Conclave begins appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is launching a third party to run in the November general election even as he leads the Democratic primary field by double digits—a move that Mayor Eric Adams interpreted as mimicking his own third-party bid.

Cuomo, in a lengthy statement released by his campaign on Tuesday, said that even if he secures the Democratic nomination on June 24, he would also run on the newly formed “Fight and Deliver Party” line. He made the move even as he has maintained front-runner status with seven weeks until the June 24 primary.

The former governor, who resigned following 11 allegations of sexual harassment that he denies, explained the move as a way to appeal to Democrats “disillusioned” with the party, as well as Republicans and independents. It would give him a fallback to run as an independent if he ends up losing the Democratic primary or another party line to help him draw votes away from a progressive challenger who could run on the Working Families Party line.

“This November, in addition to securing the Democratic nomination, my campaign will work to build the largest possible coalition and secure the biggest possible mandate,” Cuomo said. “We will be responsive to those who want to support my candidacy, but who would like an alternate way to do it.”

Cuomo must file at least 3,750 signatures from registered city voters by a June 27 deadline in order to get his party line on the ballot, according to the city Board of Elections.

Cuomo ‘going through motions,’ Adams says

Adams, who bowed out of the Democratic primary last month to launch his own independent candidacy, accused Cuomo of “going through the motions” in following his every move. He alleged that Cuomo released a housing plan very similar to his own, visits Black churches like he does, and is now running on an independent line after he did.

“I mean it just seems like he’s just going through the motions,” Adams said of Cuomo during his weekly news conference. “Isn’t that strange to you that now he wants an independent line like Eric?” Adams asked reporters during his weekly news conference.”

The mayor is reportedly planning to run both on the “Safe&Affordable” and “EndAntiSemitism” lines in November. 

Cuomo, in his statement, explained that some Democrats have told him they are disillusioned with the party and feel it has been “hijacked, that it doesn’t produce real results, and that it doesn’t fight for working people anymore.” He pointed to middling voter turnout among city Democrats in last year’s presidential election as proof that the party is in disarray.

“I believe that Democrats can and will turn this around,” Cuomo said. “I believe that once I am elected Mayor of New York City, my administration will play a major role in proving these points and in restoring faith in the party once again. We will put ‘progress’ back in the progressive party.”

Cuomo’s move was also immediately slammed by his Democratic primary challengers.

Queens Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani, who is polling in second place to Cuomo, said the former governor launching a new party line shows that he is “scared” because he is running a “sloppy campaign.”

Mamdani pointed to his use of the AI software ChatGPT to do research for his housing plan, his failure to secure matching funds last month, and his strategy of holding limited press conferences.

“Cuomo is a Democrat in name only, and after the June primary, he won’t even be that,” Mamdani said.

Nurses across New York offer tireless dedication and unwavering commitment to their patients, yet often it goes unappreciated. 

It’s why many nurses across the Big Apple are taking opportunities during National Nurses Week (May 6-12) to advocate for improved safety, staffing and administrational support. 

Nancy Hagans, RN, BSN, CCRN, president of the New York State Nurses Association and a nurse with over 30 years of experience at Maimonides Medical Center, illuminates the pressing issues and the relentless efforts underway to address them.

According to Hagans, nurses have the double duty of advocating for themselves and the well-being of the patients they serve.

“Nurses are fighting for issues that they and their patients face on a daily basis,” Hagans told amNewYork.

At the forefront of these battles is the critical issue of safe staffing. Hagans pointed out that chronic understaffing in hospitals across New York forces nurses to take on excessive patient loads, a situation that not only contributes to nurse burnout but also directly jeopardizes patient care. NYSNA nurses are actively working to ensure compliance with New York’s safe staffing law, holding hospitals accountable and raising awareness about staffing levels that fall below safe standards.

Petar Lovric, BSN, RN, CPEN, CCRN, a nurse at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst in Queens, echoed Hagans’ points about staffing and overwork.

“There’s a tendency to make our jobs exceedingly more difficult,” Lovric said. “Often, changes are implemented and it’s the nurse’s role to carry those out. Seldom are we asked what we think about proposed changes, never mind the workload that is associated with a given change. I would like to hear, ‘How can we make your life easier?,’ and not just adding another task to complete.”

Lovric has one of the more difficult jobs in nursing, working in the pediatric emergency room midshift, with days starting at 11 a.m. and lasting until about 11:30 p.m. at night. 

“It can be quiet one minute (we don’t say the q-word at work!), then super busy the next,” Lovric said. “As an example, a couple of days ago, I triaged 20 patients in 2 hours, and then triaged about the same for the remaining 6 hours. Some days, it’s non-stop all day, and you come home realizing you hadn’t eaten or gone to the restroom the entire shift. Other days can drag on for 12 hours.”

Nurses concerned about safety, finances

Beyond staffing, the safety of nurses in their workplaces is another urgent concern.

“Nurses too often face violence on the job,” Hagans said, noting the efforts nurses are undertaking to combat this issue. Through advocating for legislation and negotiating contract proposals, nurses are pushing for comprehensive prevention plans to mitigate the frequency and severity of violent incidents in healthcare settings.

The financial health of the healthcare system and its impact on patient access to care are also major focuses for NYSNA.

Hagans expressed deep concern over proposed cuts to federal healthcare budgets, warning that such measures would inevitably lead to patients being denied care and the potential closure of vital healthcare services and even entire hospitals. She specifically cited the vulnerability of less profitable but essential services like maternal and mental health, which are often the first to be cut when hospitals prioritize cost savings.

“We are working at every level to ensure that all New Yorkers receive the care they need and deserve,” she said, emphasizing the importance of preventing the closure of services communities rely on and fighting for fair funding.

Hagans also directly addressed the narrative of a “nursing shortage,” arguing that the real problem lies not in a lack of available nurses, but in the failure of hospitals to prioritize recruitment and retention.

“Our problem is not a nursing shortage. Our problem is that hospitals do not prioritize recruiting and retaining nurses,” Hagans said, stressing the importance of listening to and valuing the voices of nurses, who are the experts in patient care and often the first to identify when patient safety is being compromised by profit-driven decisions.

“We fight for better workplaces for ourselves and our patients because safe patient care is on the line,” she said.

And Lovric believes that answers to the many issues facing the healthcare industry in New York today could be solved if those in charge looked to the nurses for guidance.

“You would think that people making important decisions would ask us what we think,” Lovric said. “I would like to see more nurses at the decision-making levels of in-hospital administration along with public policy at local, state, and federal levels. Statistically, we spend the most time with our patients, and we’re the most trusted profession for the last 23 years. Our opinions matter.”