Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo was chastised Tuesday at an often heated congressional subcommittee hearing for his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic as the virus spread through nursing homes.
COVID-19 : Cuomo defends
Republicans who questioned the Democrat focused on a controversial directive his administration issued in March 2020, which initially prohibited nursing homes from refusing to accept patients simply because they had COVID-19. More than 9,000 recovered coronavirus patients were sent from hospitals to nursing homes under the decree, which was later rescinded amid concerns over the outbreak.
US Representative Ellis Stefanik of New York described the directive as “deadly”. Rep. Brad Wenstrup, the Ohio Republican who chairs the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, said that would be contrary to federal directives and would have “dangerous and disastrous consequences.” Republicans have accused Cuomo of a cover-up to conceal errors that harmed nursing home patients.
“You own it, Governor. Your name is on the letterhead.” This is your command, whether you know it or not, Wenstrup said. “You are the leader. “The buck stops with you, or so it should.”
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During more than two hours of testimony, Cuomo vehemently defended his actions and blamed the previous Trump administration for failing to provide adequate testing and personal protective equipment in the early stages of the pandemic.
According to Cuomo, “These are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the crime of federal response, which was misconduct”.
The testimony is unlikely to resolve disagreements over the nursing home order, which was issued to prevent hospitals from being overburdened by COVID-19 patients who were not sick enough to be hospitalized but needed nursing home care for other reasons and could not be discharged or discharged home. has been sent
The House committee’s findings did not resolve whether a significant number of people discharged from hospitals were still contagious with the virus when they were readmitted to nursing homes or whether they spread the illness to other patients.
Some public health experts believe that most of those who died in New York nursing homes in the early months of the pandemic were infected by staff, visiting loved ones or from fellow patients who had not yet been hospitalized.
Cuomo told the panel that the study found no evidence to support the claim that the directive helped spread the virus.
“In fact, the report found no causal relationship. “Not one death,” he commented
During a particularly heated exchange, Stefanik asked Cuomo why he was negotiating a book deal because people were dying in nursing homes. They both accused each other of falsifying information before Stefanik demanded that Cuomo apologize to families who lost loved ones.
“Families are sitting here. I want you to turn around, look them in the eye and apologize, which you haven’t done yet,” she said. “You will do it?”
“This is not about political theater,” Cuomo said.
The congressional committee also found that Cuomo and his top advisers tried to deflect any accountability by ordering an unscientific analysis claiming that the rescinded March order had no effect on mortality.
New York has reported nearly 15,000 COVID-19 deaths among long-term care residents, far more than initially reported. Cuomo said some figures were initially suppressed due to concerns about accuracy.
“The governor was desperate to change the narrative — to dispel the perception that his administration has failed nursing home residents,” said House Oversight Chairman Rep. James Comer, a Republican.
Cuomo resigned from office in August 2021, denying allegations of sexual harassment.
Cuomo was regarded as a reassuring figure in the early months of the pandemic, but his reputation took a turn for the worse after it was revealed his administration had released an incomplete estimate of the number of deaths in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
Cuomo testified before the subcommittee in June, but it was conducted behind closed doors. The investigation also included interviews with high-ranking former Cuomo administration officials.
A separate state assessment commissioned by Cuomo’s successor, Gov. Cathy Hochul, and released last summer determined that laws related to how nursing homes should handle COVID-19 were “rushed and uncoordinated,” based on the best available scientific data at the time.
