Andrew Cuomo of New York said there was no need for an independent inquiry into his nursing home policy that critics say led to thousands of deaths during the coronavirus pandemic.
Cuomo, a Democrat, told reporters during a teleconference on Monday that Democrats and Republicans will never agree on the investigation of his now-defunct March 25 directive that prohibited nursing homes from reversing recovery of coronavirus patients.
“There is no such thing as a person who is trusted by all Democrats and Republicans. That person does not exist. The Department of Health – those are just numbers. They report our numbers. You can see what you want. “But the numbers are the numbers. You can spin numbers politically, but those numbers are numbers,” Cuomo said.
“And, as you know, the department’s health department was then assessed by credible experts in the sector … so to your point about why you do not get independent experts to check the figures – we did. Now, people do not think they are independent experts, yes, I know, because no one will ever agree on who an independent expert is, “he added.
Republicans in the New York legislature have criticized Howard Zucker, the state commissioner of state, for refusing to appear on a panel Monday during a hearing on nursing homes. Republicans also claim that Cuomo’s administration has not been transparent, while the governor has accused Republicans of partisan investigation.
However, Cuomo insisted that an independent review was unnecessary.
“No, I would not investigate whether it is political or not. Anyone can make that decision for themselves. I think you have to be blind to realize that it is not political,” he said.
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