Local Dr's still telling patients that if its only a cough, or only fever, they shouldn't worry.
That's misrepresenting it. (I'm assuming you're talking about Crown heights)
They're saying anyone with any symptoms should assume they have the virus and self quarantine. They're saying there's no point in getting tested for mild symptoms (unless you're an at-risk patient) because there's nothing they can do to treat it and this is what you would have to do if you were positive anyways, so might as well skip the testing step (because everyone is assumed to have been exposed at this point) so as not to put more strain on the system and not put the healthcare workers at risk.
The "don't worry" part is that the vast majority of people seem to only have very mild symptoms