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After it came to light that Governor Andrew Cuomo lied about the number of nursing home deaths in New York, a group of 14 state Democrats is calling for the revocation of emergency powers granted to him during the pandemic.
“While COVID-19 has tested the limits of our people and our state, and, at the onset of the pandemic, government was required to restructure decision making to make quick and necessary public health judgments, it is clear that the expanded emergency powers granted to the governor are no longer appropriate,” said a joint statement from State Senators.
It added that “while the Executive’s authority to issue directives expires on April 30th, we urge the Senate to move forward and adopt a repeal as quickly as possible.”
According to Fox News, supporters of the measure against Cuomo included Senators Alessandra Biaggi, Jabari Brisport, Samra Brouk, Jeremy Cooney, Andrew Gounardes, Robert Jackson, John Liu, John Mannion, Rachel May, Elijah Reichlin-Melnick, Gustavo Rivera, Julia Salazar, James Sanders, and James Skoufis.
This action adds to the backlash from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle after the news became known. Cuomo’s excuse for lying about the number of deceased seniors was that then-President Donald Trump might have used it to his advantage by “tweeting messages.”
The revelation came Wednesday, when the state indicated that the number of deaths was actually 15,049 residents in senior care facilities, according to a letter from State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker sent to the Senate.
The data contrasts with that of the New York Department of Health, which in its latest report, last Jan. 27th, stated that there had been 5,957 confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 in nursing homes, with an additional 2,783 suspected deaths.
