- By Delphine Luneau | The Center Square/February 11th, 2021
(The Center Square) – A report Thursday evening that New York sent more than 9,000 patients recovering from COVID-19 back into nursing homes in the spring of 2020 met immediate pushback from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration.
The Associated Press said that 9,056 people were returned to long-term care facilities in the early days of the pandemic under Cuomo’s policies that commanded the facilities to accept those patients.
Facing intense criticism, Cuomo wound up rescinding that policy in May 2020, but he and New York state health officials have faced accusations since then that the policy caused the death toll to skyrocket in the state.
Cuomo and his lieutenants have argued that there’s no direct evidence tying the policy to the spike in deaths in March through May of 2020. But they were reluctant for months to release numbers delineating the total number of deaths tied to the nursing homes, doing so this month only after a legal ruling and a report from Attorney General Letitia James made it clear that the state’s numbers were a significant undercount.
In a statement to the AP, Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker sought once again to refute the idea that the administration’s policies had increased the death toll.
“At least 98% of nursing home facilities in the state had COVID in their facility before their first admission or readmission, and as we’ve seen across the nation, the major driver of infections appears to be from asymptomatic staff through no fault of their own,” Zucker told the AP.
Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi criticized the AP’s reporting on Twitter as “clickbait.”
“They are conflating those who got COVID in a nursing home, were hospitalized, recovered & returned to their homes with people who got it in the hospital,” Azzopardi wrote. “2 different universes. Either way 98 % of homes got COVID before their 1st admission or readmission.”
Latest from the Roosevelt Island Daily News
Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Suspected in Hunters Point High-Rise: FDNY Responds
A lithium-ion battery fire is suspected in the Hunters Point high-rise incident that prompted a major FDNY response, with a second Queens fire following at Ravenswood. Officials are investigating both events.
NYPD Shooting on Brooklyn Bridge: What Happened and What Comes Next
A look at the NYPD shooting on Brooklyn Bridge: what happened, how the investigation is unfolding, and what NYC commuters can expect as reviews continue.
Gloria Steinem’s Passing Sparks Personal Tributes on the Upper East Side
Gloria Steinem’s passing on the Upper East Side was marked by personal tributes and quiet remembrance, reflecting how a national figure’s legacy unfolded in a local community.
Still Searching: Transparency Delayed at RIOC
New York’s Freedom of Information Law rests on a basic principle: government records belong to the public unless an agency can identify a lawful reason to withhold them. For Roosevelt Island residents, that right matters because RIOC controls public land, infrastructure, transportation, contracts and development without functioning as a locally elected government.
