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Governor Cuomo’s senior aide privately apologized to Democratic lawmakers for withholding the death toll in nursing homes across the state from COVID-19 – telling them “we froze” lest the real ones numbers “being used against us” by federal prosecutors, the Post learned. .
The astounding admission of a cover-up was made by Gov. Secretary Melissa DeRosa in a conference call with Democratic leaders in the state in which she said the Cuomo administration had rejected a legislative request for a count in August because “around the same time, [then-President Donald Trump] turns it into giant political football, ”according to an audio recording of the over two-hour meeting.
“He starts to tweet that we killed everyone in nursing homes,” DeRosa said. “He starts looking [New Jersey Gov. Phil] Murphy, start going after [California Gov. Gavin] Newsom, start going after [Michigan Gov.] Gretchen Whitmer. “
In addition to attacking fellow Democratic governors in Cuomo, DeRosa said, Trump “orders the Department of Justice to investigate us.”
“And basically we froze,” she told lawmakers on the call.
“Because then we were in a position where we didn’t know if what we were going to give to the Justice Department, or what we are giving you, what we are starting to say, was going to be used against us while we were I don’t know if there was going to be an investigation.
DeRosa added, “It played a really big part in all of this.”
After dropping the bomb, DeRosa asked for “a little contextual appreciation” and offered what appears to be the Cuomo administration’s first apology for its management of nursing homes amid the pandemic.
But instead of a mea culpa to the grieving family members of the more than 13,000 deceased seniors or to critics who say the health department has spread COVID-19 in care facilities with a directive from the health department The March 25 Health that nursing homes admit infected patients, DeRosa has tried to make amends with fellow Democrats for the political inconvenience it has caused them.
“So we apologize,” she said. “I understand the position you have been put into. I know this is not fair. It was not our intention to put you in that political position with the Republicans.
Assembly Health Committee chairman Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan) immediately dismissed DeRosa’s expression of remorse, according to the recording.
“I don’t have enough time today to explain all the reasons why I’m giving no credit at all,” said Gottfried, one of the lawmakers who demanded data on the death toll in August.
State Senate Aging Committee chair Rachel May (D-Syracuse) – who was defeated in her re-election last year over the issue of deaths in nursing homes – s’ is also torn against DeRosa, claiming her former opponent launched another campaign earlier today. .
“And the problem for me, the biggest problem of all, is feeling that I had to defend – or at least not attack – an administration that seemed to be covering something up,” she said.
“And in a pandemic, when you want the public to trust public health officials, and there’s this clear feeling that they won’t come, that they won’t come with you, it’s really difficult and it remains difficult.
Assembly member Ron Kim (D-Queens), who took part in the call, told the Post Thursday that DeRosa’s remarks sounded as though they had admitted they were trying to avoid having incriminating evidence which could put the administration or [Health Department] in addition to problems with the Department of Justice.
“This is how I understand their reasoning as to why they couldn’t share, in real time, the data,” Kim said.
“They had to make sure the state was protected from federal investigations first.”
Kim, whose uncle presumed dead from COVID-19 at a nursing home in April, also said he was not happy with DeRosa’s apology.
“It is not enough to see how contrite they are with us,” he said. “They have to show this to the public and to families – and they haven’t.”
In addition to ignoring lawmakers on the total number of nursing home residents killed by COVID-19, the Cuomo administration has also denied requests from news media – including The Post – and fought action in Justice for Freedom of Information filed by the Empire Center on Public Policy.
Instead, it only disclosed data on the number of residents who have died in their nursing homes.
But after Attorney General Letitia James released a damning report last month that estimated the deaths of nursing home residents in hospitals would increase the grim number by more than 50%, Health Commissioner Howard Zucker finally said. released figures showing the combined total was 12,743 in January. 19.
A day earlier, the DOH publicly acknowledged only 8,711 deaths in retirement homes.
In a letter to lawmakers on Wednesday, Zucker said the total number of nursing home residents killed by COVID-19 rose to 13,297, and that number jumps to 15,049 when assisted living / adult care facilities are factored in .
The controversy generated by James’ report led to an infamous press conference in which Cuomo emphatically dismissed the question of where the nursing home deaths actually took place.
“We do not care [if they] died in hospital, died in a retirement home? They are dead, ”he said.
During Wednesday’s conference call, DeRosa said it appeared the DOJ was no longer focusing on deaths in nursing homes in New York City.
“All the signs are that they’re not looking at this, they let it go,” she said.
“They never officially opened an investigation. They sent a letter asking a number of questions and then we answered those questions and it looks like they’re gone.
In a prepared statement, Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said, “We explained that the Trump administration was in the midst of a politically motivated effort to blame Democratic states for the COVID deaths and that we were cooperating with it. production of federal documents and that was the priority and now that it’s over, we can go to the state legislature.
“That said, we were working simultaneously to complete the audit of the information they requested,” he added.
The DOJ declined to comment.
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