Niagara Leader

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) released a statement following the House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Hearing with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo regarding his COVID-19 nursing home policies.

This was Cuomo’s first public Congressional Hearing after his March 25 directive, which reportedly resulted in the death of 15,000 New Yorkers. The hearing followed the release of the Subcommittee's memo, revealing that Cuomo’s office intentionally withheld significant data on nursing home COVID-19 deaths from official reports and edited New York Department of Health documents to divert blame.

“Rather than take responsibility for the unscientific, reckless, and malignant policies that caused the untimely deaths of thousands of New Yorkers, disgraced former Governor Cuomo deflected responsibility for his nursing home directive that sent COVID-19-positive patients back into nursing homes. Today’s hearing exposed the extent of the cover-up by Cuomo and his staff to conceal the true number of nursing home deaths and shift responsibility. On behalf of the victims and the families across New York who lost loved ones due to his cruel policies, I am committed to ensuring Cuomo’s deadly actions are not forgotten and that he is held accountable,” said Congresswoman Tenney.

Tenney submitted remarks to be included in the written record:

First and foremost, I want to thank Chairman Wenstrup for holding this important hearing on the horrific, malignant, and deadly COVID policies of disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo. It is long past time for Cuomo to be held accountable for his unscientific and baseless policies that are directly attributable to the untimely and cruel deaths of thousands of seniors and individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities (I/DD).

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, studies showed that older adults and individuals with underlying conditions were particularly vulnerable to COVID-19. Cuomo knew this; hence his draconian order prevented family members from providing care and companionship to their loved ones in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.

Despite recognizing these vulnerabilities, Cuomo issued orders preventing nursing homes from refusing COVID-19 positive patients. As a result, these facilities had to expose vulnerable patients to infected individuals, leading to thousands of unnecessary deaths. In response to these policies, in March 2020, I was one of the first people to speak out against Governor Cuomo’s actions, call for an investigation, and call for Governor Cuomo’s resignation.

Instead of taking responsibility for these deadly policies, Governor Cuomo sought to cover up fatalities resulting from his decisions. New York Attorney General Letitia James and the New York State Assembly found that COVID-related deaths in state nursing homes were underestimated to hide them from federal investigators and maintain Cuomo’s reputation. Both FBI and DOJ have opened investigations into Governor Cuomo’s conduct.

While the COVID nightmare is now over, we cannot allow these malicious actions by Governor Cuomo to be ignored. Congress must expose his dangerous actions and criminal behavior. He must be held accountable for lives lost due to his actions.

Additionally, I introduced the Essential Caregivers Act ensuring long-term care facility residents have visitation rights even during emergencies. I thank Chairman Wenstrup for supporting this bill and look forward to working with him and relevant committees to get it passed into law.

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