NY Democrat demands apology from Cuomo for mishandling of nursing home deaths

New York State Sen. Rachel May (D) released a statement on Tuesday demanding an apology from Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.) for his handling of nursing home deaths in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

May’s statement was shared by CNY Central reporter Mary Kielar on Twitter.

“The people of New York deserve a full and sincere apology from the Governor over the mishandling of this information,” May said. “I do not believe that his statements yesterday amounted to that. Further, the legislature has been working hard to address the serious underlying failures in our nursing home and long-term care institutions, including bills to address safe staffing levels, family visitation, and ombudsman program reforms.”

From NY Senator @RachelMayNY on @NYGovCuomo:
“The people of New York deserve a full and sincere apology from the Governor. I do not believe that his statements yesterday amounted to that.”@CNYCentral pic.twitter.com/JTC7oRmAPh

— Mary Kielar (@marykielarCNY) February 16, 2021

Cuomo on Monday accepted some blame for the mishandling of nursing home residents who contracted COVID-19 and the apparent failure by his administration to report the correct numbers of patients who had died due to the virus. During a press conference, he said the state Department of Health had “paused” inquiries into nursing home death data in order to deal with the general pandemic.

He acknowledged that the pause had resulted in a “void” of facts that led to misinformation, disinformation and conspiracy theories.

“In retrospect, should we have given more priority to fulfilling information requests? In my opinion, yes, and I think that’s what created the void. But do I understand the pressure everyone was under? Yes,” Cuomo said at the Monday briefing.

“He says he will be submitting amendments to his budget proposal to address other issues. I look forward to seeing whether his proposals will help prevent another tragedy from occurring in the future,” May, who is the chair of the Committee on Aging, added.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), New York has confirmed over 1.5 million coronavirus cases and nearly 46,000 deaths. Over 3 million coronavirus vaccines have been administered with 924,000 receiving their second dose.

The Hill has reached out to May’s office for comment.