During a congressional hearing on Tuesday, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo defended his administration’s response to COVID-19 in nursing homes.
Governor Cuomo, whose decisions in early 2020 sparked widespread criticism, appeared before the Republican-led House Select Subcommittee on COVID-19. The hearing focused on a March 2020 directive that required nursing homes to accept recovered COVID-19 patients, a policy that some believe may have contributed to the spread of the virus among vulnerable populations.
Ahead of Cuomo’s testimony, the subcommittee released a report accusing the Democrat of engaging in a “cover-up” to hide mistakes that put nursing home residents at risk.
During the hearing, Gov. Cuomo vehemently denied the subcommittee’s allegations, including claims that his administration concealed nursing home death data to protect itself from political repercussions, adding that the subcommittee was trying to deflect attention from former President Donald Trump’s failures in pandemic leadership.
“This report provides no evidence to support President Trump’s central claim, repeated for three years, that New York state guidelines caused thousands of nursing home deaths. In fact, the report finds no causal relationship whatsoever. No deaths,” Governor Cuomo said.
The former governor’s comments came after he and his administration released an incomplete tally of deaths in nursing homes and senior living facilities, with critics pointing to a March 2020 directive that initially prohibited nursing homes from refusing to admit patients solely because they had COVID-19.
Under orders from Governor Cuomo that have since been rescinded, more than 9,000 recovered COVID-19 patients were discharged to nursing homes, a move intended to free up hospital beds but that was widely criticized.
Nearly 15,000 COVID-19 deaths have occurred among long-term care facility residents in New York state, according to the Associated Press, far higher than the initial figures previously released.
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Republicans on the committee, including Rep. Brad Wenstrup of Ohio, continued their criticism, accusing Cuomo of shirking responsibility, telling the former governor, “This is your responsibility. This was your call and you are responsible.”
A legislative committee said it determined that Cuomo and his aides approved the directive and then tried to shift the blame by ordering an unscientific report that concluded the March directive, which was later rescinded, had little effect on the death toll.
Tensions rose further during the hearing when New York Rep. Elise Stefanik called on Governor Cuomo to apologize directly to the families of those who have died in nursing homes during the pandemic.
“There are families sitting here and we want you to look them in the eye and apologize, and you’ve failed to do that,” she said.
Cuomo rejected the request, accusing the committee of turning the hearing into political theater. Despite resigning in August 2021 amid sexual harassment allegations, Cuomo continues to fight criticism over his response to the pandemic. While Cuomo testified behind closed doors in June, the hearing marked his first time publicly defending his pandemic-era decisions before a legislative committee.
The subcommittee continues to investigate the full extent of New York’s nursing home policies during one of the pandemic’s deadliest periods.
Tuesday’s hearing came after a separate state report released this summer, commissioned by Cuomo’s successor, Gov. Kathy Hokul, concluded that nursing home policies were “hasty and disorganized” but based on the best scientific knowledge available at the time.
This story includes reporting from The Associated Press.
