Washington Post columnist Max Boot raised his eyebrows Monday for his praise of New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo for his state’s response to the coronavirus outbreak.
In a column titled “New York has flattened its curve. The sunbelt has been flattened by it,” Boot said, saying New York did a “laudable job” in managing the spread of the virus, noting disciplined mask wear. And social. distancing from New Yorkers.
“New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo (D) has made many mistakes, including the decision to return covid-19 patients to nursing homes, but he has been successful,” Boot wrote. “He has ordered masks, has spoken the truth, and has been duly cautious about the reopening. Even now, restaurants and bars in New York City are closed for eating and drinking indoors. Movie theaters and gyms are closed entirely. Perhaps because we have been hit so hard and scarred so deeply that we treat the coronavirus as a ruthless enemy worthy of respect. “
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Boot, who is also a CNN analyst, was criticized on social media for being so complementary to Cuomo.
“Actually, Cuomo was wrong and lied about it,” wrote Washington Examiner journalist Jerry Dunleavy.
“In addition to sending the old and sick to a death sentence, Cuomo has been amazing!” journalist Jason Mattera said.
“The deaths of thousands as a result of your disastrous nursing home order is a ‘mistake’?” Asked Jessica O’Donnell of The Blaze.
For much of the coronavirus outbreak, there has been increasing scrutiny over Governor Cuomo’s order in late March that forced nursing homes to accept patients who tested positive for coronavirus, despite test deficiencies for both residents as for the staff. Cuomo signed an executive order on May 11 revoking the policy, preventing hospitals from sending infected patients back to nursing homes and increasing testing for staff.
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As of last month, approximately 7,900 people have been confirmed or presumed dead by COVID-19 in nursing homes in New York, according to the state department of health. That equates to approximately 25 percent of all deaths in the state occurring in nursing homes, according to the latest state total from the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
Earlier this month, The Associated Press reported that “New York hospitals released more than 6,300 recovering coronavirus patients in nursing homes during the height” of the coronavirus pandemic under a “controversial and now discarded policy.”