Your answer is very good and I completely agree with it.
There are also other factors
New Yorkers have less vitamin D (less sun exposure, not just heat)
New York miscounts like crazy to pad the numbers
New York forbids/discourages use of HCQ before hospital
New York's policy was to return positive tested patients who did not have symptoms back to their assisted living places, infecting everyone else (see Ron de Santis interview yesterday on Hannity).
Your answer is very good and I completely agree with it.
There are also other factors
And others that we don't even know about yet.