New York and bordering northeast states on Monday announced the formation of a task force composed of health and economic development officials to determine how and when to re-open their economies during a shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is working with governors in New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennslyvania and Delaware to develop the regional plan. 

The coalition does not include Massachusetts, though that could change, Cuomo has said, and the two states are talking.

The state-based approached comes President Donald Trump has said he wants to re-open the economy nationally, a decision the state governments have made individually. 

Cuomo said Trump should provide specific guidelines for how that should work from the federal government's perspective.

The task force will include the top health and economic officials from each state as well as the chiefs of staff for each governor. 

The group will begin working on Tuesday, but no timeline has been set. 

"They're going to start talking literally tomorrow and start to scope that out," Cuomo said. "We didn't start with a time table. We've said to the group we want it ASAP, but we want it smart." 

The move comes as hospitalizations in New York over the last several days have appeared to reach a plateau. 

Officials want to balance the re-opening of the economy by also limiting new infections of the virus, which has now killed more than 10,000 people in New York alone. 

Cuomo wants to take a regional approach to the issue to prevent "shopping" in other parts of the country and potentially spread the virus further. 

The pandemic has shuttered non-essential businesses, including bars, restaurants, move theaters and any place where people gather in large numbers. Millions of people have lost their jobs as a result and tax revenue has plummeted.