Medical officials say a key part of trying to slow the spread of COVID-19 is testing. Gov. Kathy Hochul says more at-home tests are on the way.   

The state is providing 5 million tests to residents by Dec. 31. Two million of them will be sent to county school districts.

It's part of the state's Back to Learning program which is aimed at keeping kids in school.

"We want to make sure after this holiday break, that on the third of January or shortly thereafter, that kids can safely come back to schools," said Hochul. "We saw how devastating this experiment was in having children work remotely. The stress was on the teachers and on the parents. We just can't set these kids back again."

The governor also signed legislation Wednesday that gives schools improved access to immunization records, makes falsifying vaccine records a crime and directs state resources to study New York's medical and financial response to the pandemic.