[ad_1]
New York Democratic Congressman Ron Kim said that when Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed for health facilities to be immune from liability for actions or omissions related to the coronavirus pandemic, he essentially gave them a “license to kill”.
Kim told WNYC radio host Brian Lehrer that while nursing homes have complained that they are not equipped to deal with residents with COVID-19 – with many of their staff sick – Cuomo les has covered instead of helping treat patients.
CUOMO ADMINISTRATION NURSING HOME CORONAVIRUS CRISIS MANAGEMENT FBI INVESTIGATION, US LAWYER: REPORT
“When he sent 9,000 positive COVIDs to nursing homes,” Kim said, “those nursing homes were crying,“ We can’t take them, half of our staff are with COVID. “”
“Instead of listening, he issued blanket legal immunity and slipped it into our budget, essentially giving the facilities a license to kill, to get out of jail,” Kim said.
Lately, Kim, whose uncle died in a nursing home after experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, has been a vocal opponent of Cuomo when it comes to the nursing home scandal. The two traded blows through the media or at press conferences, particularly after Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa said the administration withheld statistics on nursing home deaths for avoid the repercussions of the Department of Justice.
Kim spoke out against Cuomo’s administration as a result of this report, which allegedly led the governor to call Kim and ask him to issue a statement saying that what DeRosa really said was that “there was a federal investigation and they had to deal with it first. “
CUOMO ANSWERS A DEMOCRATIC LAWYER WHO ASKS THE GOVERNOR SAYS THAT HE “DESTROY” HIM: “MR. KIM MENT ‘
Kim told the New York Post that when he didn’t accept this, Cuomo threatened him, saying, “You will be destroyed.”
Kim told Lehrer that at one point he gave Cuomo “tangible solutions” suggestions to resolve the nursing home scandal and “right your wrongs.”
These included “a public acknowledgment of your mistake”, an apology and the repeal of immunity.
Kim said that instead of following his advice on how to move forward, Cuomo held a press conference and “started trying to get the Senate, the Assembly again.”
The MP said that was the reason why he had to resist and say, “No, we will not be a partner in your corruption and bad behavior, we will stand up and do the right thing and protect the integrity of the Senate and Assembly. “
Fox News reached out to Cuomo’s office for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
Cuomo told reporters that Kim’s opposition to him was the product of a multi-year rivalry dating back to a bill to protect nail salon workers in 2015. Kim said it was a ” total distraction “.
Cuomo defended bringing up the past and making accused statements about Kim saying he was only responding to Kim’s accusation that Cuomo obstructed and pushed for health facility immunity. because of the lobbying of a hospital association which had contributed to his campaign.
Kim reiterated that claim during Thursday’s interview.
“Governor Cuomo allowed his major donors, the hospital association lobbyists who gave him $ 1.25 million, to write pro-business policies like statutory immunity for retirement homes. even bragged about writing it, they sent a press release! “
This was likely a reference to the Greater New York Hospital Association, which Kim has named in the past on this matter, although the figure he cited is slightly higher than the $ 1.15 million reported by the Empire Center for Public Policy in January 2019. This money would have gone to the New York Democratic Committee, which used a large portion of its funds to support Cuomo’s re-election.
GNYHA issued a press release on April 2, 2020. It appears to have been removed, but the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine has a record of it.
“GNYHA has drafted and advocated aggressively for this legislation,” the statement read, adding, “We are deeply grateful to Governor Cuomo and the Legislature for hearing our concerns and working with us so effectively. . “
WHO CUOMO BLAMED – OTHER THAN HIMSELF – FOR THE NURSE HOUSE SCANDAL
Kim said he did not vote for the bill that contained immunity. He claimed that the wording for immunity “was introduced by the executive” and that “most members were not even informed” because it was introduced at “the last minute”.
A GNYHA official confirmed to Fox News that they had worked with a member of Cuomo’s staff on the legislation, but said they were not directly lobbying the governor. The official also said the language they wrote was specific to hospitals.
“We have not been lobbying on behalf of the retirement homes. We assume that some or all of the nursing home associations in New York have been lobbying on behalf of the retirement homes, but the GNYHA does not. did not, “the official said.
The official also said that at the time they were unaware that Cuomo’s March 25 directive requiring nursing homes to accept residents with COVID-19 would be issued.
Kim said the big problem with granting immunity not only to professionals but also to facilities is that it removes the incentives for people who run facilities to make investments that would improve their ability to manage. the situation, such as purchasing more PPE for workers or hiring additional staff.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Ultimately, Kim admitted that Cuomo had no intention of creating a situation where people would die, but claimed the governor had “listened to bad advice.”
Instead of listening to lobbyists and business people who “were primarily concerned with the industry’s bottom line,” Kim said Cuomo should have listened to workers, families, residents and patients.
[ad_2]
Source link